56 
ner, with the evident idea of broadening the scope of the Association, 
introduced an amendment to drop the word "official" from the title, 
and this amendment was adopted at the meeting at Champaign, 111., 
the following year. Notwithstanding this fact, the membership of the 
Association is today largely official ; out of 73 members 60 hold official 
positions, while the active work is all done by those with whom eco- 
nomic entomology is a means of subsistence. At the last meeting, that 
held in Eochester in August, 1893, every member registered belonged 
to the official class. 
The organization meeting at Toronto on the 30th of August, 1889, 
presented a strange contrast to this. It was held, as may not gener- 
ally be known, upon a wooded knoll at a landing called Scarborough 
Heights, overlooking the waters of Lake Erie. The beach below and 
the woods around were being scoured by industrious collectors of the 
old section F, of the American Association for the Advancement of 
Science. Professor Cook, who presided, occupied a dignified position 
astride a fallen log. Dr. Smith, who acted as secretary, had climbed 
with difficulty to the top of a tall stump and took his minutes on his 
knee. Dr. Bethune, Mr. Fletcher, Mr. E. Baynes Eeed, Mr. H. H. 
Lyman, Prof. C. W. Hargitt, Mr. E. P. Thompson, and the writer 
reclined with more or less grace, according to their physical conforma- 
tion, upon the ground or sat cross-legged upon convenient ant-hills. 
This group, which made the Association " official" in name, was com- 
posed of four official entomologists and five who were simply interested 
workers. 
This brief historical paragraph is introduced for the purpose of show- 
ing the interesting paradox that this Association was originally made 
official by non-officials, that it was subsequently made non-official by 
officials, and that since it was made non-official it has become more 
official than before. 
It is in part for this reason that I have chosen to bring together for 
presentation at this meeting some account of the rise and present con- 
dition of official economic entomology, but more largely for the other 
reasons that few of us probably have been able to take a comprehensive 
view of the status of our application of entomology the world over, and 
that a review of what has been done can not but justify our existence 
as a class and as an association and afford the strongest of arguments 
for the increase of our numbers and for increase of means and facilities. 
The ravages of insects on cultivated plants were doubtless coetaneous 
with the beginning of the cultivation of plants. Thus a necessity for 
economic entomologists existed at a very early time. The condition of 
the ancient husbandman with reference to injurious insects is voiced 
by the prophet Joel, when he says: 
That which the palmer- worm hath left, hath the locust eaten ; and that which 
the locust hath left hath the canker-worm eaten; and that which the canker-worm 
hath left hath the caterpillar eaten. * * * He hath laid my vine waste and 
