﻿10 
  THE 
  DISPERSION 
  OF 
  THE 
  GIPSY 
  MOTH. 
  

  

  territory. 
  Tlie 
  caterpillar 
  outbreak 
  was 
  sufficient 
  to 
  convince 
  every 
  tree 
  lover 
  

   of 
  the 
  necessity 
  of 
  concerted 
  action 
  against 
  the 
  moths. 
  While 
  in 
  many 
  places 
  

   in 
  the 
  afflicted 
  district 
  the 
  trees 
  under 
  the 
  charge 
  of 
  municipal 
  authorities 
  were 
  

   cared 
  for 
  with 
  considerable 
  success, 
  private 
  estates 
  and 
  woodlands 
  in 
  June 
  and 
  

   July 
  presented 
  shocking 
  scenes 
  of 
  devastation. 
  In 
  many 
  places 
  the 
  work 
  of 
  

   fire 
  could 
  not 
  have 
  been 
  more 
  thorough 
  or 
  alarming. 
  From 
  Belmont 
  to 
  Saugus 
  

   and 
  Lynn 
  a 
  continuous 
  chain 
  of 
  woodland 
  colonies 
  presented 
  a 
  sight 
  at 
  once 
  

   disgusting 
  and 
  pitiful. 
  The 
  hungry 
  caterpillars 
  of 
  both 
  species 
  of 
  moths 
  

   swarmed 
  everywhere 
  ; 
  they 
  dropped 
  on 
  persons, 
  carriages, 
  cars, 
  and 
  automobiles, 
  

   and 
  were 
  thus 
  widely 
  scattered. 
  They 
  invaded 
  houses, 
  swarmed 
  into 
  living 
  and 
  

   sleeping 
  rooms, 
  and 
  even 
  made 
  homes 
  uninhabitable. 
  

  

  GIPSY-MOTH 
  WORK 
  RESUMED. 
  

  

  It 
  must 
  be 
  noted 
  that 
  the 
  conditions 
  above 
  described 
  were 
  most 
  

   favorable 
  for 
  the 
  dispersion 
  of 
  this 
  insect, 
  and 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  determine 
  

   so 
  far 
  as 
  possible 
  the 
  territory 
  which 
  had 
  become 
  infested, 
  inspectors 
  

   from 
  the 
  office 
  of 
  the 
  superintendent 
  made 
  an 
  examination 
  of 
  a 
  large 
  

   area 
  outside 
  of 
  that 
  known 
  to 
  be 
  infested 
  when 
  the 
  work 
  was 
  stopped. 
  

   Of 
  necessity 
  this 
  examination 
  was 
  hurriedly 
  done, 
  owing 
  to 
  the 
  fact 
  

   that 
  a 
  sufficient 
  number 
  of 
  trained 
  men 
  could 
  not 
  be 
  secured 
  in 
  the 
  

   limited 
  time 
  available, 
  and 
  also 
  because 
  a 
  large 
  number 
  of 
  the 
  more 
  

   experienced 
  workers 
  had 
  to 
  be 
  employed 
  in 
  fighting 
  the 
  intolerable 
  

   conditions 
  in 
  the 
  central 
  towns. 
  The 
  results 
  of 
  the 
  scouting 
  work, 
  

   however, 
  showed 
  that 
  the 
  gipsy 
  moth 
  was 
  present 
  in 
  124 
  towns 
  and 
  

   cities 
  in 
  Massachusetts. 
  Seven 
  infested 
  towns 
  were 
  also 
  found 
  in 
  New 
  

   Hampshire, 
  extending 
  from 
  the 
  Massachusetts 
  line 
  along 
  the 
  sea- 
  

   coast 
  to 
  and 
  including 
  Portsmouth, 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  entire 
  infested 
  area 
  

   proved 
  to 
  be 
  six 
  times 
  greater 
  than 
  when 
  the 
  work 
  was 
  abandoned. 
  

   Each 
  year 
  since 
  1905 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  scouting 
  work 
  has 
  been 
  done 
  by 
  the 
  

   State 
  of 
  Massachusetts 
  in 
  the 
  towns 
  outside 
  of 
  the 
  known 
  infested 
  

   area, 
  and 
  in 
  Maine, 
  New 
  Hampshire, 
  Rhode 
  Island, 
  and 
  Connecticut 
  

   large 
  sections 
  have 
  been 
  examined 
  by 
  scouts 
  working 
  under 
  the 
  

   direction 
  of 
  Mr. 
  D. 
  M. 
  Rogers, 
  superintendent 
  of 
  moth 
  work 
  for 
  the 
  

   Bureau 
  of 
  Entomology, 
  United 
  States 
  Department 
  of 
  Agriculture, 
  

   and 
  every 
  year 
  additional 
  infested 
  territory 
  has 
  been 
  found. 
  As 
  a 
  

   rule 
  very 
  fewi 
  egg 
  clusters 
  are 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  outside 
  towns, 
  but 
  it 
  

   should 
  be 
  stated 
  that 
  the 
  examination 
  is 
  confined 
  to 
  the 
  roadsides, 
  

   residential 
  sections, 
  and 
  orchards, 
  it 
  being 
  impossible 
  to 
  examine 
  all 
  

   the 
  large 
  forest 
  areas 
  involved. 
  

  

  The 
  same 
  factors 
  which 
  previously 
  resulted 
  in 
  the 
  dispersion 
  of 
  

   the 
  insect 
  were 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  operating, 
  but 
  the 
  clanger 
  had 
  been 
  

   greatly 
  increased 
  owing 
  to 
  the 
  development 
  of 
  many 
  high-speed 
  

   and 
  long-distance 
  trolley 
  lines 
  which 
  conveyed 
  people 
  from 
  the 
  cen- 
  

   ters 
  of 
  population 
  to 
  the 
  rural 
  districts 
  rapidly 
  and 
  in 
  many 
  cases 
  

   without 
  changing 
  cars. 
  These 
  increased 
  transportation 
  facilities 
  

   afforded 
  an 
  excellent 
  opportunity 
  for 
  the 
  distribution 
  of 
  gipsy-moth 
  

  

  