NATIONAL CONTKOL OF INSECT PESTS. 97 



ply with many and diverse laws to their great inconvenience and 

 annoyance, they evinced interest in securing national legislation on 

 the matter. The chairman of their committee on legislation recently 

 expressed to the writer his earnest desire that national legislation 

 might be enacted upon the subject, but after practical experience in 

 presenting the matter to Congressional committees seemed to feel 

 that there was but little prospect of securing such action in the near 

 future. The writer does not remember any serious discussion of the 

 matter by any entomologist since Doctor Howard's article in 1898. 



In many States the nursery and orchard inspection is now handled 

 by separate State officials, relieving the entomologists of the experi- 

 ment stations and State entomologists of this onerous police work. 

 But in many States it is still a burden to the entomologist who would 

 prefer to devote his time and thought to problems of research. That 

 this work has impeded the development of economic entomology in 

 many respects can not be doubted, though on the other hand it has 

 undoubtedly had the effect of bringing many of us into closer touch 

 with the people whom we are trying to serve. It would seem there- 

 fore that the entomologists of the country should be most interested 

 in securing national legislation for this phase of insect control at 

 least. That it is perfectly constitutional and practicable can hardly 

 be doubted. The present work could be accomplished with much 

 more efficiency, with greater protection to the horticultural interests, 

 and with far less annoyance to the honest nurserymen of the country, 

 and probably to the greater detriment of the man who fails to clean 

 up his nursery. Why the economic entomologists have failed to 

 interest themselves in this matter has always been a mystery to the 

 writer. 



But at this same national convention of 1897 a resolution was 

 passed concerning Congressional appropriation to aid Massachusetts 

 in its fight against the gypsy moth, as follows : 



Resolved, That this is a question of national importance, and that the National 

 Government should assume the work of extermination or render substantial 

 financial assistance to the State of Massachusetts for that purpose, that the work 

 may be carried to a successful conclusion and this continent be thus saved from 

 the ravages of another terrible insect pest. 



In passing this resolution the convention recognized the responsi- 

 bility of the Federal Government in protecting the uninfested States 

 from the spread of the gypsy moth, which by precedent would involve 

 the same aid for all other insect pests of sufficient importance to war- 

 rant it. It is in this phase of the question that New Hampshire is now 

 particularly interested. We can probably, with the aid of an appro- 

 priation from the State legislature, which would not be burdensome 

 and which the writer has no doubt will be made at the next session, 



31024 — No. 60—06 m 7 



