﻿112 
  REPORT 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  ENTOMOLOGICAL 
  COMMISSION. 
  

  

  €st 
  blades 
  of 
  some 
  favorite 
  grass 
  or 
  grain, 
  leaving 
  tlie 
  midrib 
  of 
  the 
  leaf 
  untouched, 
  

   but 
  when, 
  in 
  the 
  " 
  struggle 
  for 
  life," 
  each 
  has 
  to 
  do 
  the 
  best 
  it 
  can 
  for 
  subsistence 
  ; 
  

   nearly 
  all 
  grasses 
  or 
  grains 
  come 
  alike 
  welcome, 
  and 
  all 
  but 
  the 
  hard 
  stems 
  are 
  de- 
  

   voured. 
  In 
  the 
  oat 
  field 
  all 
  the 
  blades 
  are 
  eaten 
  and 
  the 
  caterpillar 
  ascends 
  the 
  stalk 
  

   to 
  the 
  very 
  top, 
  and 
  finishes 
  by 
  biting 
  off 
  nearly 
  all 
  the 
  grains 
  and 
  letting 
  them 
  fall 
  

   to 
  the 
  ground. 
  As 
  they 
  do 
  not 
  eat 
  the 
  grain 
  this 
  may 
  be 
  looked 
  upon 
  as 
  wanton 
  de- 
  

   struction. 
  We 
  learn 
  that 
  in 
  wheat 
  or 
  other 
  grain 
  fields, 
  they 
  often 
  cut 
  off" 
  the 
  ears 
  

   and 
  -let 
  them 
  fall 
  to 
  the 
  ground. 
  The 
  only 
  cause 
  for 
  this 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  that 
  they 
  eat 
  a 
  

   portion 
  of 
  the 
  finer 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  peduncle 
  or 
  stalk. 
  If 
  the 
  grain 
  is 
  cut 
  previous 
  to 
  the 
  

   worm 
  leaving 
  the 
  field, 
  and 
  left 
  out 
  to 
  dry, 
  the 
  insects 
  will 
  still 
  continue 
  feeding 
  on 
  the 
  

   -cut 
  grain, 
  and 
  thousands 
  may 
  be 
  found 
  during 
  the 
  heat 
  of 
  the 
  day, 
  sheltered 
  beneath 
  

   the 
  swath 
  or 
  bundles, 
  so 
  that 
  it 
  becomes 
  necessary 
  to 
  remove 
  the 
  grain 
  as 
  soon 
  as 
  pos- 
  

   sible 
  after 
  cutting. 
  The 
  resting 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  Army 
  Worm 
  is 
  during 
  mid-day. 
  Their- 
  

   feeding 
  time, 
  morning, 
  evening 
  and 
  night, 
  and 
  at 
  these 
  times 
  they 
  also 
  travel. 
  Wh^u 
  

   resting 
  they 
  are 
  usually 
  coiled 
  up 
  in 
  circle 
  or 
  snake 
  fashion. 
  When 
  traveling 
  they 
  

   move 
  at 
  a 
  moderate 
  pace, 
  avoiding 
  all 
  steep 
  places 
  if 
  possible, 
  and 
  preferring 
  level 
  

   land. 
  They 
  can 
  climb 
  well 
  enough 
  if 
  the 
  ground 
  is 
  firm 
  or 
  covered 
  with 
  herbage, 
  but 
  

   if 
  loose 
  and 
  friable 
  they 
  lose 
  their 
  footing 
  and 
  fall 
  back 
  while 
  endeavoring 
  to 
  climb 
  

   ^ny 
  steep 
  ridge. 
  (Kirkpatrick, 
  Ohio 
  Agricultural 
  Report, 
  1860, 
  pp. 
  352,353.) 
  

  

  In 
  regard 
  to 
  numbers, 
  we 
  may 
  quote 
  tlie 
  following 
  passage 
  from 
  the 
  

   JS[ew 
  Yorlc 
  Sun 
  of 
  June 
  11, 
  1880, 
  concerning 
  the 
  damage 
  done 
  in 
  Mon- 
  

   inoutli 
  County, 
  New 
  Jersey, 
  in 
  1880; 
  ^ 
  

  

  A 
  journey 
  through 
  a 
  large 
  pare 
  of 
  Monmouth 
  County 
  revealed 
  a 
  singular 
  state 
  of 
  

   aff"airs. 
  Trenches 
  were 
  seen 
  extending 
  for 
  miles 
  along 
  the 
  roads 
  close 
  to 
  the 
  edgeB 
  of 
  

   the 
  fields 
  ; 
  but 
  the 
  crops, 
  for 
  the 
  most 
  part, 
  were 
  withered 
  and 
  lifeless, 
  and 
  it 
  was 
  

   •evident 
  that 
  the 
  precaution 
  had 
  been 
  taken 
  too 
  late. 
  Very 
  often 
  a 
  long 
  trench 
  ran 
  

   across 
  a 
  field 
  of 
  wheat, 
  showing 
  where 
  a 
  farmer 
  had 
  abandoned 
  one 
  portion 
  of 
  his 
  crop 
  

   and 
  tried 
  to 
  save 
  the 
  remainder. 
  Occasionally 
  a 
  field 
  was 
  seen 
  intersected 
  by 
  nume- 
  

   rous 
  trenches, 
  indicating 
  that 
  the 
  proprietor 
  had 
  fought 
  manfully 
  against 
  his 
  per- 
  

   secutors, 
  and 
  disputed 
  the 
  ground 
  with 
  them 
  foot 
  by 
  foot. 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  In 
  many 
  places 
  

   the 
  road 
  was 
  literally 
  covered 
  with 
  the 
  worms, 
  all 
  in 
  motion, 
  and 
  all 
  moving 
  towards 
  

   -fhe 
  fields 
  on 
  either 
  side. 
  Thousands 
  and 
  tens 
  of 
  thousands 
  were 
  crushed 
  beneath 
  the 
  

   wagon 
  wheels 
  and 
  under 
  the 
  horse's 
  feet 
  ; 
  but 
  the 
  rest 
  pressed 
  on. 
  And 
  at 
  intervals 
  

   •spots 
  were 
  passed 
  where 
  an 
  imaginary 
  line 
  seemed 
  to 
  be 
  drawn 
  across 
  the 
  road 
  beyond 
  

   which 
  the 
  army 
  worm 
  could 
  not 
  pass. 
  For 
  a 
  certain 
  space 
  beyond, 
  sometimes 
  for 
  as 
  

   long 
  a 
  distance 
  as 
  two 
  or 
  three 
  miles, 
  not 
  only 
  the 
  roads 
  but 
  the 
  adjoining 
  country 
  

   was 
  free 
  from 
  the 
  pest. 
  Not 
  a 
  worm 
  was 
  to 
  be 
  seen, 
  until, 
  the 
  clear 
  space 
  passed, 
  the 
  

   "wagon 
  was 
  again 
  rolling 
  over 
  millions 
  of 
  them. 
  

  

  We 
  have 
  spoken 
  in 
  one 
  of 
  these 
  quotations 
  of 
  the 
  rate 
  of 
  travel, 
  a 
  

   writer 
  in 
  the 
  Prairie 
  Farmer 
  stating 
  that 
  an 
  army 
  of 
  the 
  worms 
  was 
  

   observed 
  to 
  travel 
  sixty 
  yards 
  in 
  two 
  hours. 
  This 
  would 
  be 
  at 
  the 
  rate 
  

   of 
  one 
  foot 
  and 
  a 
  half 
  per 
  minute. 
  To 
  show 
  that 
  this 
  is 
  not 
  overdrawn, 
  

   it 
  may 
  be 
  well 
  to 
  state 
  that 
  individual 
  worms 
  have 
  been 
  timed 
  when 
  

   moving 
  over 
  a 
  smooth 
  surface 
  under 
  the 
  impelling 
  influence 
  of 
  a 
  hot 
  sun, 
  

   and 
  have 
  been 
  found 
  to 
  crawl 
  at 
  the 
  rate 
  of 
  two 
  feet 
  and 
  a 
  half 
  i)er 
  

   minute. 
  * 
  

  

  Time 
  of 
  appearance. 
  — 
  A 
  few 
  years 
  ago 
  a 
  paragraph 
  could 
  have 
  been 
  

   written 
  under 
  this 
  head 
  with 
  the 
  utmost 
  ease. 
  Within 
  the 
  past 
  two 
  

   years, 
  however, 
  facts 
  have 
  been 
  gathered 
  Avhich 
  complicate 
  matters 
  con- 
  

   siderably. 
  During 
  the 
  winter 
  of 
  1879-'80, 
  worms 
  were 
  received 
  at 
  the 
  

   Department 
  in 
  March, 
  February, 
  and 
  even 
  January, 
  from 
  localities 
  

   as 
  far 
  north 
  as 
  Tennessee 
  and 
  South 
  Carolina, 
  and 
  noted 
  as 
  damaging 
  

  

  