HEARINGS BEFORE COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE. 278 
off branches and put the caterpillar webs in the carts, and the men 
stop to smoke a pipe, and then go on to the next tree, and in the miean- 
time the caterpillars crawl off the carts and get onto the trees again, 
and then the men burn the lopped-off branches. The people in charge 
of the public parks, under the superintendence of the officer in charge 
of public buildings and grounds. have no control over the shade trees 
of the streets, and the parking commission, which has control over 
these, has no control over the reservations. While a little spraying 
is done for the elm-leaf beetle, as soon as the spraying is over the 
insects from the interlocking elms across the pavement, 15 feet away, 
follow right across and begin over again. 
Mr. Henry. Then that is labor lost. 
Mr. Howarp. Yes, sir. 
The Cuarrman. How old is the study of entomology? 
Mr. Howarp. The real scientific study of entomology began with 
Linneus, about the year 1745. But the real economic entomology 
began in this country with Thaddeus William Harris, of Massachusetts, 
in 1830. 
The Cuatrman. Are we subject to more parasite insects and tree- 
destroying insects in this country now than formerly ? 
Mr. Howarp. I think not, sir. 
The Cuarrman. How do these forest trees grow that are subject to 
these insects ¢ 
Mr. Howarp. I do not know that they do, but it may be. We have 
not any record of them for years—away back. 
Mr. Henry. Right there, what has been known of the elm-tree 
beetle until within the last twenty years? 
Mr. Howarp. It is an imported insect. It is a city insect, brought 
to us from Europe. 
Mr. Hewry. Like the San Jose scale? 
Mr. Howarp. Yes; that was brought from China. 
Mr. Lamp. When our settlers came here, had not the old forest 
trees died out, and the new ones were here when the settlers came? 
Mr. Howarp. Possibly. 
Mr. Buruxrson. Doctor, have you any knowledge as to whether our 
forests are more subject to destructive insects than the forests of 
Europe are? 
Mr. Howarp. No, sir; they are not. 
Mr. Bowrs. Are they better cared for, or not? 
Mr. Howarp. They are better cared for in Europe than they are 
here. The subject of entomology is made a serious study in schools 
in Europe. They are ahead of us in that direction, but only in that. 
In the whole subject of economic entomology we are ahead of them. 
The CHatrrman. Now you want $20,000 for your forestry ento- 
mology and $5,000 for your apiculture ? 
Mr. Howarp. We would use more than $5,000 in apiculture. 
The Coarrman. You have been doing something? 
Mr. Howarp. We have been doing very little. We have been pay- 
ing $1,400 for one of the best bee experts in the country. He has 
been largely engaged in answering letters of inquiry. He has pub- 
lished a number of bulletins on scientific bee keeping, and he has been 
making experiments on bee forage—as to different plants used as for- 
age for bee keeping. 
Mr. Apams. What is the most serious problem? What do you hope 
to do? 
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