40 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



of Somerville, Mass., was appointed special assistant in corn borer 

 work. 



Miss Hartman, prior to her transfer from this office in midsummer, 

 was fully occupied, in addition to the usual duties of an assistant, 

 by translations of technical literature needed in systematic work, 

 the making of numerous microscopic preparations of small insects 

 and the arrangement and care of pressed specimens of insect work 

 and the extensive accumulation of alcoholic material. 



The vacancy created by the transfer of Miss Hartman has not 

 been filled owing to the difficulty of securing a qualified assistant 

 at the very nominal compensation available. The loss of an assistant 

 must inevitably circumscribe the work of the office and may result 

 in serious limitations. 



The many additional calls upon the staff incident to work upon 

 the European corn borer have greatly restricted the amount of time 

 which could be given to the identification and arrangement of 

 collections, though some progress has been made along these lines. 

 Work of this character is very exacting and time-consuming and it is 

 impossible, as pointed out in previous reports, to build up the state 

 collections of insects in a satisfactory manner without more funds 

 and adequate assistance. 



Horticultural inspection. The nursery inspection work of the 

 Bureau of Plant Industry, State Department of Farms and Markets, 

 has resulted, as in former years, in a number of specimens representing 

 various stages of insect development, some in very poor condition, 

 being submitted to this office for identification. Satisfactory 

 determination of specimens originating in various parts of the world 

 requires an intimate and wide knowledge of the literature and insects 

 in both this and other countries. 



General. The work of the Entomologist has been materially 

 aided as in past years by the identification of a number of species 

 through the courtesy of Dr L. 0. Howard, Chief of the Bureau of 

 Entomology, United States Department of Agriculture, and his 

 associates. There has been very effective and close cooperation with 

 the State Department of Farms and Markets, particularly the 

 Bureau of Plant Industry, the State College of Agriculture at Cornell 

 University, the State Experiment Station at Geneva, the county 

 farm bureaus and various public welfare organizations. A number 

 of correspondents have donated material and rendered valuable 

 service by transmitting local data respecting various insects and 

 assisting in other ways. 



