1 6 yULID^. 



CASE decaying and living animal and vegetable substances. They 

 prey upon slugs, small snails, insects and their larvae and pupae, 

 earth-worms, &c. So far they may be regarded as friends ; but, 

 unhappily, they also feed on living vegetables, and various plants 

 are often seriously injured by their attacking their roots. In 

 particular they feed upon our root crops, potatoes, carrots, &c. 

 It has been said that although often found in holes in our 

 root crops, it may be that the holes were already there before 

 they came, and that they have only come to feed on the soft 

 parts of a diseased or decaying root. The truth may be that a 

 sound healthy tuber has too tough a coat for them to penetrate, 

 but when they get into the juicy interior of soft pulpy roots, 

 such as bulbs, the case is different ; they can have no difficulty 

 in making their way into them or in consuming the tender fibres 

 of the roots of herbaceous plants. 



It is very doubtful whether any means have been found of 

 getting rid of these insects. Sprinkling soot and nitrate of soda 

 over the land and watering it with lime water have been recom- 

 mended, but apparently without much success. It is difficult to 

 damage the insect without damaging the plant it is attacking too. 

 So far as greenhouses, hothouses, and outhouses are concerned, 

 they may be kept tolerably free from them by care, cleanliness, 

 aii^ the adoption of such traps as have been already referred to ; 

 but the open fields are less under control. 



Nos. JULUS PULCHELLUS, {Leach)^ (supposed to be J. guttatus, Fab.). — 

 16—20. jg^ Specimens (several in a phial) ; 17. Enlarged figure of ditto ; 



18. Sketch of carrot injured by ditto ; 19. Lily roots injured by ditto, 

 preserved in glycerine ; 20. Model of lily roots injured by them. 



^mmmsfim^ This is an insect as to 



whose hurtful properties 

 there can be no doubt. It 



Julus pulchellus (natural size and magfnified). is probably the mOSt in- 



jurious of all the snake 

 Millipeds, as it is the commonest. It is a- small, long, thread-like 



/ 



