﻿t]ie 
  Hessian 
  Fly. 
  363 
  

  

  breeding 
  in 
  Great 
  Britain 
  for 
  some 
  years, 
  and 
  we 
  must 
  

   confess 
  that 
  it 
  had 
  been 
  overlooked 
  until 
  Mr. 
  G. 
  Palmer 
  

   discovered 
  it 
  in 
  his 
  barley 
  fields, 
  July 
  27th, 
  1886. 
  

  

  In 
  September 
  last 
  (1890), 
  whilst 
  on 
  a 
  visit 
  to 
  friends 
  

   in 
  the 
  island 
  of 
  Portland, 
  I 
  searched 
  both 
  wheat 
  and 
  

   barley 
  fields 
  with 
  the 
  usual 
  result, 
  that 
  I 
  found 
  puparia 
  

   in 
  all 
  of 
  them 
  ; 
  the 
  last 
  one 
  visited 
  surrounded 
  the 
  well- 
  

   known 
  Jighthouse 
  at 
  " 
  Portland 
  Bill," 
  the 
  furthermost 
  

   point 
  on 
  the 
  island, 
  and 
  here 
  the 
  barley 
  was 
  still 
  

   standing 
  ; 
  and 
  five 
  minutes' 
  search 
  revealed 
  both 
  larv^ 
  

   and 
  puparia 
  in 
  the 
  injured 
  stems 
  ; 
  these 
  I 
  showed 
  to 
  the 
  

   keeper 
  of 
  the 
  lighthouse, 
  who 
  informed 
  me 
  he 
  had 
  

   " 
  heard 
  tell 
  of 
  the 
  Hessian 
  Fly 
  in 
  the 
  newspapers, 
  but 
  

   did 
  not 
  know 
  how 
  to 
  go 
  about 
  to 
  find 
  it." 
  

  

  From 
  reports 
  we 
  gather 
  that 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  sleepy 
  British 
  

   farmers 
  were 
  stirred 
  into 
  activity 
  to 
  search 
  for 
  the 
  pest, 
  

   and 
  in 
  most 
  cases 
  found 
  it 
  in 
  plenty 
  ; 
  but, 
  like 
  all 
  other 
  

   things 
  connected 
  with 
  Economic 
  Entomology 
  in 
  Great 
  

   Britain, 
  the 
  interest 
  at 
  first 
  taken 
  in 
  the 
  Hessian 
  Fly 
  

   has 
  been 
  gradually 
  falling 
  off, 
  until 
  in 
  1889 
  there 
  were 
  

   not 
  (according 
  to 
  reports) 
  a 
  dozen 
  farmers 
  to 
  be 
  found 
  

   in 
  the 
  whole 
  land 
  who 
  cared 
  one 
  jot 
  whether 
  it 
  was 
  

   plentiful 
  or 
  not 
  in 
  their 
  fields, 
  though 
  no 
  doubt 
  every 
  one 
  

   of 
  them 
  would 
  have 
  the 
  usual 
  grumble 
  at 
  the 
  lightness 
  

   of 
  the 
  crop. 
  

  

  All 
  practical 
  entomologists 
  who 
  have 
  studied 
  the 
  

   Hessian 
  Fly 
  in 
  the 
  fields 
  agree 
  that 
  the 
  preservation 
  of 
  

   the 
  natural 
  remedy 
  — 
  the 
  parasites 
  — 
  is 
  of 
  the 
  greatest 
  

   importance. 
  Perhaps 
  a 
  few 
  quotations 
  on 
  this 
  important 
  

   subject 
  will 
  not 
  be 
  out 
  of 
  place. 
  Dr. 
  Asa 
  Fitch, 
  who 
  was 
  

   about 
  the 
  first 
  to 
  study 
  the 
  Hessian 
  Fly 
  in 
  America, 
  

   asserted 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  of 
  the 
  highest 
  importance 
  to 
  encourage 
  

   these 
  parasites. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  * 
  Third 
  Eeport 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  of 
  America 
  

   Entomological 
  Commission 
  for 
  1882,' 
  Dr. 
  Packard, 
  when 
  

   referring 
  to 
  the 
  subject 
  of 
  " 
  burning 
  the 
  stubbles," 
  writes 
  : 
  

   — 
  "Although 
  this 
  remedy 
  has 
  been 
  advocated, 
  it 
  will 
  be 
  

   seen 
  to 
  be 
  worse 
  than 
  useless 
  when 
  we 
  reflect 
  that, 
  after 
  

   all 
  the 
  artificial 
  means 
  taken 
  to 
  reduce 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  

   the 
  Hessian 
  Fly, 
  Nature's 
  method 
  of 
  checking 
  its 
  undue 
  

   increase 
  is 
  far 
  more 
  important 
  and 
  thorough-going 
  ; 
  we 
  

   refer 
  to 
  the 
  diffusion 
  and 
  multiplication 
  of 
  the 
  insect 
  

   parasites. 
  As 
  previously 
  stated, 
  most 
  probably 
  nine- 
  

   tenths 
  of 
  the 
  young 
  Hessian 
  Flies 
  are 
  destroyed 
  in 
  the 
  

  

  