﻿PAST 
  HISTORY 
  OF 
  THE 
  ARMY 
  WORM. 
  99 
  

  

  appearedin 
  countless 
  millions, 
  and 
  was 
  destroyingthe 
  grain 
  crops 
  at 
  an 
  alarming 
  rate. 
  

   During 
  the 
  last 
  week 
  of 
  that 
  month 
  Mr. 
  C. 
  M. 
  Samuels, 
  of 
  Clinton, 
  Ky., 
  brought 
  speci- 
  

   mens 
  to 
  my 
  office 
  with 
  the 
  statement 
  that 
  they 
  were 
  common 
  and 
  doing 
  much 
  dam- 
  

   age 
  all 
  over 
  the 
  northwestern 
  portion 
  of 
  Kentucky. 
  It 
  was 
  also 
  reported 
  from 
  various 
  

   parts 
  of 
  Delaware 
  and 
  of 
  Ohio 
  about 
  the 
  same 
  time. 
  Somewhat 
  later 
  it 
  appeared 
  in 
  

   Iowa, 
  and 
  I 
  quote 
  the 
  following 
  account 
  of 
  its 
  advent 
  at 
  Fort 
  Madison, 
  from 
  a 
  letter 
  

   from 
  Dr. 
  A. 
  W. 
  Hoffmeister 
  : 
  

  

  "The 
  Army 
  Worm 
  was 
  very 
  troublesome 
  in 
  some 
  localities 
  near 
  Fort 
  Madison, 
  

   About 
  the 
  first 
  of 
  June 
  immense 
  numbers 
  of 
  caterpillars, 
  one-half 
  inch 
  long, 
  were 
  ob- 
  

   served 
  in 
  low 
  grounds, 
  subject 
  to 
  overflow 
  or 
  standing 
  water. 
  Their 
  eating 
  created 
  a 
  

   noise 
  which 
  could 
  be 
  heard 
  at 
  a 
  distance 
  as 
  a 
  dull 
  grating 
  or 
  sawing 
  sound. 
  About 
  the 
  

   21-24 
  they 
  bored 
  into 
  the 
  ground 
  and 
  pupated, 
  and 
  in 
  about 
  two 
  wrecks 
  after 
  appeared 
  

   as 
  moths. 
  I 
  had 
  caught 
  the 
  Leucania 
  unipuncta 
  in 
  the 
  fall 
  of 
  1875 
  and 
  spring 
  of 
  1876 
  

   in 
  great 
  numbers 
  by 
  the 
  process 
  of 
  sugaring, 
  looking 
  at 
  both 
  seasons 
  very 
  fresh 
  ; 
  and 
  

   therefore 
  it 
  is 
  a 
  riddle 
  to 
  me 
  whether 
  there 
  is 
  another 
  brood 
  or 
  whether 
  some 
  pux)OB 
  

   remain 
  dormant 
  till 
  fall 
  or 
  next 
  spring. 
  All 
  my 
  pupae 
  hatched, 
  but 
  I 
  did 
  not 
  see 
  the 
  

   mo^hs 
  cohabit, 
  nor 
  did 
  I 
  find 
  young 
  or 
  new 
  larvae 
  during 
  the 
  summer. 
  This 
  fall 
  the 
  

   moths 
  are 
  less 
  numerous 
  than 
  last 
  fall." 
  

  

  During 
  the 
  latter 
  part 
  of 
  July 
  and 
  August 
  it 
  attracted 
  attention 
  in 
  New 
  York, 
  and 
  

   by 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  the 
  latter 
  month 
  was 
  swarming 
  on 
  Long 
  Island. 
  In 
  September 
  and 
  

   October 
  it 
  was 
  extensively 
  reported 
  in 
  New 
  England, 
  where 
  it 
  did 
  much 
  injury 
  to 
  

   Hungarian 
  grass 
  and 
  to 
  oats. 
  Mr. 
  B. 
  P. 
  Mann, 
  of 
  Cambridge, 
  Mass., 
  who 
  took 
  the 
  

   moth 
  at 
  sugar 
  as 
  late 
  as 
  October 
  27, 
  sends 
  me 
  the 
  following 
  extracts, 
  which 
  will 
  show 
  

   the 
  time 
  of 
  year 
  and 
  the 
  numbers 
  in 
  which 
  they 
  appeared 
  in 
  different 
  parts 
  of 
  New 
  

   England 
  : 
  

  

  "Army 
  Worms 
  are 
  very 
  destructive 
  to 
  vegetation 
  around 
  Machias 
  [Maine]. 
  There 
  

   has 
  been 
  nothing 
  like 
  them 
  since 
  1861. 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  The 
  Army 
  Worm^have 
  appeared 
  in 
  

   large 
  numbers 
  at 
  Colchester 
  [Conn.], 
  and 
  are 
  doing 
  much 
  damage 
  to 
  the 
  crops." 
  — 
  IBos- 
  

   ton 
  Daily 
  Advertiser, 
  August 
  10 
  and 
  11, 
  1875. 
  

  

  "The 
  Army 
  Worm 
  appeared 
  in 
  immense 
  numbers 
  on 
  Sunday 
  at 
  Sussex, 
  on 
  the 
  

   government 
  railway 
  line, 
  east 
  of 
  St. 
  John 
  [N. 
  B.], 
  and 
  since 
  that 
  time 
  the 
  ravages 
  

   have 
  created 
  wide-spread 
  alarm. 
  Fields 
  of 
  grain 
  have 
  been 
  destroyed. 
  Horse 
  rollers 
  

   run 
  over 
  the 
  road 
  where 
  they 
  crossed 
  did 
  not 
  perceptibly 
  lessen 
  their 
  numbers. 
  A 
  

   dispatch 
  from 
  St. 
  Andrews 
  says, 
  the 
  Army 
  Worm 
  invaded 
  that 
  town 
  yesterday, 
  cov- 
  

   ering 
  the 
  streets, 
  fields, 
  and 
  lanes 
  in 
  every 
  direction, 
  and 
  devouring 
  the 
  grass 
  and 
  

   grain 
  in 
  spite 
  of 
  every 
  opposition. 
  They 
  are 
  still 
  advancing." 
  — 
  lIUcl., 
  August 
  12, 
  

   1875. 
  

  

  "A 
  worm 
  has 
  been 
  discovered 
  in 
  Hollister 
  [Mass.] 
  in 
  such 
  large 
  quantities 
  as 
  to 
  

   lead 
  to 
  the 
  supposition 
  that 
  it 
  may 
  be 
  the 
  Army 
  Worm 
  again. 
  The 
  army 
  has 
  invaded 
  

   Delham. 
  They 
  have 
  devastated 
  an 
  acre 
  of 
  Hungarian 
  owned 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Greenwood 
  Fuller, 
  

   a 
  large 
  field 
  of 
  grass 
  for 
  Mr. 
  Luther 
  Fisher 
  ; 
  also 
  for 
  Mr. 
  L. 
  Baker." 
  — 
  lIMd., 
  August 
  16, 
  

   1875. 
  

  

  "The 
  south 
  shore 
  [of 
  Mass.] 
  in 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  Black 
  Rock 
  has 
  of 
  late 
  been 
  visited 
  

   with 
  an 
  innumerable 
  host 
  of 
  moths, 
  commonly 
  called 
  millers. 
  They 
  took 
  possession 
  

   of 
  rooms, 
  which 
  were 
  accessible 
  by 
  the 
  windows 
  being 
  left 
  open, 
  in 
  such 
  numbers 
  

   that 
  it 
  was 
  the 
  work 
  of 
  days 
  to 
  rid 
  the 
  rooms 
  of 
  their 
  presence. 
  Their 
  origin 
  is 
  a 
  

   mystery 
  ; 
  but 
  they 
  entered 
  rooms 
  facing 
  north 
  in 
  such 
  flocks 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  a 
  theory 
  that 
  

   they 
  came 
  in 
  from 
  the 
  sea. 
  In 
  one 
  small 
  room 
  800 
  were 
  killed." 
  — 
  llhid., 
  September 
  3, 
  

   1875. 
  

  

  The 
  most 
  noticeable 
  feature 
  connected 
  with 
  the 
  appearance 
  of 
  the 
  worm 
  in 
  our 
  own 
  

   State 
  was 
  its 
  harmlessness, 
  or 
  non-appearance 
  in 
  the 
  western 
  or 
  locust-stricken 
  portion. 
  

   Most 
  of 
  these 
  counties 
  are 
  large 
  stock-raising 
  counties, 
  and 
  abound 
  in 
  rich 
  prairie 
  and 
  

   good 
  meadows. 
  Under 
  ordinary 
  circumstances, 
  the 
  worms 
  would 
  have 
  flourished 
  there 
  , 
  

   but 
  last 
  spring, 
  though 
  I 
  have 
  records 
  of 
  their 
  appearance, 
  the 
  locusts 
  either 
  destroyed 
  

   them 
  or 
  caused 
  them 
  to 
  starve 
  before 
  they 
  acquired 
  full 
  growth. 
  The 
  following 
  list 
  

  

  