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exchange experiences as to the best methods of work. The value of such an association 

 cannot, I believe, be over-estimated. The recognition which, during the past decade, has 

 been accorded to entomology as a branch of practical agriculture, makes it important 

 that as little time as possible should be wasted upon unnecessary reduplication of experi- 

 ments, and also, on the other hand, that successful methods of combating injurious 

 insects should be made known as widely and as quickly as possible. 



A small number of the States of the Union had employed their State Entomologists 

 for some years past and Canada hers since 1884; all of these officers had striven hard to 

 do good and useful work in the vast field which lay before them. Recently, however, a 

 great impulse has been given to practical science in all lines by the very important " Hatch 

 Expeiiment Station Act," which was passed by Congress in 1888. This act provided 

 that a sum of $15,000 should be annually set aside for the purpose of carrying on scien- 

 tific agricultural experiments in every State of the Union. In consequence of this act 

 there have already been organized over 60 experimental stations, twenty-seven of which 

 have entomologists on their staffs, and these officers have already issued much valuable 

 practical information in the shape of bulletins to the farmers of their respective States. 

 The operations of injurious insects are such an important factor in the success or failure 

 of all crops grown, and the recognition of that fact is now becoming so wide-spread 

 amongst the educated agricultural classes, that, before long, it is beyond question that the 

 directors of the other stations will see the advisability of adding an entomologist to their 

 staff. The result of this will be that we shall have in North America a large number of 

 men specially trained for the work they have undertaken, with sufficient time and means 

 at their disposal for carrying out any experiments which may be necessary. Surely under 

 such circumstances important results must follow. They all have the same object in 

 view : the discovery, as soon as possible, of practical — that is efficient, simple and cheap 

 — remedies for the various injurious insects which destroy produce. The work of all 

 these students will of course have to be carried on independently, in widely separated 

 localities, and a fact which will give special value to their labours will be that similar 

 experiments will be carried out carefully and scientifically under differing circumstances 

 and with varying climatic conditions. 



Such an opportunity for showing the value of science has never before occurred, and 

 it is incumbent on the men who accept these positions to recognise also the responsibility 

 of their offices. I would suggest that not only is extreme care necessary in the carrying 

 out of our experiments as official entomologists, but also great thought must be given to 

 the best means of publishing and making known results. Above all things it is necessary 

 to gain the confidence of those for whom we write. The editors of agricultural papers 

 are frequently inquiring for articles upon economic entomology, but they always say they 

 must be simply expressed or they are useless to them, because their readers will not read 

 them. Even amongst highly educated and even cultivated people you find many to whom 

 the very word " science " is a bug-bear, and much more is this the case with a large class 

 of agriculturists ; a class which, although it does contain many men of education and 

 culture, of course consists mainly of men who have not had the time nor opportunity to 

 avail themselves of educational advantages. They are, however, as a class, men who 

 spend their lives away from the distractions, largely frivolous and useless, of city life, and 

 as a consequence develop a faculty for observation, thought and practical application 

 which would indeed be a boon to many an aspirant to scientific fame. Writings upon 

 agricultural entomology should be, I think, couched in the simplest language possible; the 

 articles should be short and concise, without too much detail of the life history of the 

 insects discussed. Prominence should be given to the nature of the attack, so that it 

 may be recognised ; the essential points of the life history of the insect, so that its habits 

 may be understood and missing links filled in ; and, above all, the best remedy under 

 existing local circumstances ; and, lastly, a statement of such information with regard to 

 the pest as may be lacking. 



During a somewhat extensive intercourse with farmers, I have always found 

 them anxious to learn anything about injurious insects and the means of combating 

 them. As a general thing they are willing to devote both time and labour to any 



