34 REPORT 4, UNITED STATES ENTOMOLOGICAL COMMISSION. 



Mississippi. — Uwtott ; In some localities, but after cotton matured. Tate: Second 

 growth eaten by them (leaves) bolls not hurt. CMckasaio : Army Worm destroyed top 

 crop. Alcorn : In a few localities, but after the crop had mostly opened. Prentiss : 

 Did not appear until about frost, and did no harm. Eankin : Very little, and after 

 bolls were matured. Jefferson : Destroyed all top crop. Clay : Bottom crop at matur- 

 ing. Issaquena : Only partially, and that late. Clarke: Owing to the early drought 

 the leaves became so hard and dry that they made very slow progress. 



Texas. — Gonzales: In some places early; others late. Bee: Damage at first of 

 Bcaaon by Grass-worm. Colorado: In some sections where not poisoned. Denton: 

 Partially by the Web- worm. Lee: Where poison was not used the plant was gener- 

 ally stripped. Houston : In very few sections, and very late. Wise : Came, but too 

 late to do harm. Brazos: Very late; too late to injure. LiveOaJc: In some localities. 

 Wood: Too late to damage. Zanipasas: Came too late to damage. Milam: Second 

 crop damaged in some localities. Van Zandt : Caterpillars came early and made clean 

 sweep. Grimes: Only top crop injured, which seldom amounts to anything. Palo 

 Pinto : Stripped but very little. Leon : In some places, but too late to do damage. 

 Fannm : Some fields were stripped, but not until it was all opened. 



HISTORY OF REMEDIES. 



From the early days when the Creoles of Louisiana fought the che- 

 nille which was destroying their cotton, with ^'holy water," down to the 

 present time, when the improved sprinklers, with their extended arms 

 and many jets of poisoned spray, are drawn through the fields, destroy- 

 ing the worms upon eight to twelve rows of cotton at once, it is plain 

 that immense improvement has been made. Let us glance at the steps 

 by which this was brought about. 



JSTaturally the first remedy which the planter would try would be to 

 destroy the worms by hand, and this really was, so far as we can find, 

 the first method used. The next remedy was suggested by the avidity 

 with which poultry devoured the worms. Dr. Chisholm says concern- 

 ing his observations in Guiana in 1801-'02 : " A prudent, economical 

 planter will increase the brood of every species of domestic poultry, 

 particularly turkeys; for this has a tendency to diminish the brood of 

 the chenille in a very great degree, while profit arises from the aug- 

 mentation of useful stock. Turkeys are observed to have a remarkable 

 appetite for the larvse of the Cotton Moth and devour prodigious quan- 

 tities of them." With this remedy, however. Dr. Chisholm^s practical 

 ideas seem to cease, for he goes on to describe how the worms may be 

 killed by burning sulj^hur on a chafing-dish, the plant being covered 

 meanwhile by a canvas hood ! By the use of this remedy (as Mr. Wailes 

 many years afterwards very justly remarked) a hand might, with excep- 

 tional diligence, go over an acre in fifteen or twenty days ! 



For many years hand-picking and the keeping' of large poultry yards 

 were the only remedies practised; yet excellent success was attained 

 where thorough and energetic planters tried to save their crops by these 

 means, as is evinced in the following quotation from Seabrook (1843) : 



The caterpillar appeared in several parts of the field of John Townsend, of Saint 

 John's, Colleton, early in August last. The plants were luxuriant in growth and 

 tender in weed and leaf, and the weather, being warm and rather moist, was altogether 



