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THE HENRY EDWARDS COLLECTION. 
We notice from Science of March 18, 1892, that the friends of the late 
Henry Edwards have subscribed $10,000 and the American Museum of 
Natural History $5,000 for the purchase of the Edwards entomological 
collection, which will be placed in the American Museum. This enter- 
prise has been carried through by Mr. A. M. Palmer, manager of the 
Madison Square Theater. It is gratifying to know that this collection 
will be kept intact and that it will remain in this country. 
LOCUSTS IN EGYPT. 
We have several times referred to the great damage which was done 
in Algiers during 1891 by the migratory locusts of the East. It seems, 
from a report just published by the Ministry of Public Instruction at 
Cairo that a great deal of damage was done in Lower Egypt as well, by 
swarms of the locusts flying eastward from the higher regions of Trip- 
oli. This report, which is submitted by Prof. Williamson Wallace, of 
the Tewfikieh College of Agriculture at Gheezeh, contains a summar- 
ized account of the life-history of Pachytilus migratorius, which differs 
in no way from its life round in India and Algeria. The first swarms, 
although attracting considerable attention, did not rouse the people to 
the necessity of attempting any remedial work. When they began to 
breed, however, a most energetic effort was made to rid the country of 
the plague. Orders were issued from the Ministry of the Interior 
pointing out the gravity of the situation and instructing the moodeers, 
or governors of districts, to use every means in their power for the de- 
struction of the locusts. By the 15th of May the locusts had spread to 
every province of Lower Egypt except Dakahlieh. It was found that 
the eggs had been principally deposited on the sand islands in the 
course of the western branch of the Nile in cotton fields. 
In the fields occupied by the winter crops, such as wheat, barley, 
beans, and clover, scarcely any eggs were found, as the ground at that 
time was too hard to be pierced by the ovipositor of the insect. This 
restriction of the infested area was a great advantage, as the young 
cotton plants gave but little cover to the locusts, and the proprietor of 
the field, as a matter of course, immediately reported the presence of 
the locusts, since instant action could alone save his crop. The old 
simple methods of destruction were found to be the most effectual. 
Long, dry trenches were dug, into which the locusts were driven by 
bands of men and children often numbering several hundreds, each 
armed with a palm branch. They were then covered with earth or 
burned with straw or cornstalks. In the course of six weeks the in- 
sects were practically exterminated. Few of the young ones ever 
reached full growth, and these few were speedily destroyed by birds, 
among which the common Crow was particularly active. The Cypriote 
screen-and-trap system was tried, but is not recommended by Prof. 
