159 



for planting*, stock feeding, or for fertilizer, would practically cease 

 to be the important factor in the spread of the weevil which it is at 

 present. 



FUTILE METHODS FREQUENTLY SUGGESTED. 



MINERAL PAINT AND COTTON-SEED MEAL. 



The very serious nature of the boll weevil problem is constantly 

 illustrated b}r the manner in which various useless devices and nos- 

 trums are brought to public attention. At one time it was widely 

 spread about that mineral paint would act as a specific against the 

 weevil. An equally fallacious theory that also received considerable 

 popular attention was to the effect that cotton-seed meal exerted a 

 powerful attraction for the pest. 



SPRAYING. 



Probably the most important useless recommendation has been that 

 of spraying. It was supposed for some time by certain parties that it 

 might be possible to poison weevils economically by attracting them 

 to some sweetened preparation. The experiments detailed on pages 70 

 to 74 of this bulletin regarding the attraction of various sweetened 

 substances demonstrate the fallacy of the theon^. Even if these sub- 

 stances exerted as much attraction as was supposed, there would be 

 insurmountable difficulties in the application of the method in the 

 field. Except in special cases spraying of a field crop has never been 

 a success, and, unless entirely new methods are eventually perfected, 

 never will be of any practical importance. It is true that it is possi- 

 ble to destroy a certain number of weevils in regions where seppa 

 cotton occurs by heavily spraying the earliest plants, but this method 

 is of immeasurably less importance than the simple practice of cultural 

 methods. 



SULPHUR. 



The old idea, the fallacy of which has been explained repeatedly 

 by economic entomologists for the past fifty years, namely, that sul- 

 phur can be forced into the system of the plants to make them 

 immune to insect attack, sometimes crops out with reference to the 

 boll weevil. It is needless to state that the method is entirely useless. 

 Sulphur is not soluble either in water or in acids. It is, consequently, 

 impossible to cause it to be incorporated in plants as sulphur. In 

 chemical combinations in which it might be incorporated into the 

 plants it would probably not have especial insecticidal properties. 



PARIS GREEN. 



Undoubtedly the most important fallacy regarding a remedy for the 

 boll weevil was that which received so much attention during the sea- 



