150 



THE BOOK OF THE ROSE 



CHAP. 



for use " of his specific were disclosed, it appeared that 

 each creature had to be caught and a little of the 

 powder inserted into its mouth, death following infal- 

 libly. The obvious objection to this invention was that 

 when once finger and thumb held the victim no more 

 aid was required. 



The aphis brush, deftly used, may take the place of 

 actual fingers where the pest has attained some dimen- 

 sions : and when, through neglect, or such a sudden and 

 wholesale attack as sometimes occurs, wholesale means 

 must be applied, a syringe and the quassia and soft 

 soap mixture will probably prove the best resort. 



Mr. B. R. Cant's directions for the use of this remedy 

 are : " Take 4 oz. of quassia chips and boil them ten 

 minutes in a gallon of soft water ; then strain it, and 

 while cooling dissolve in it 4 oz. of soft soap : to this 

 may be added another gallon or two of water." The 

 plants should be syringed with this in the morning or 

 evening, or badly infested shoots may be dipped in it. 

 Pure water should follow the next day to cleanse the 

 leaves and shoots. For pot plants under glass smoking 

 with tobacco is the usual remedy, but the too much 

 despised finger and thumb should check the pest at its 

 first appearance. 



Occasionally there is a visitation of winged swarms 

 late in the season in such abundance as to be formidable 

 from sheer multitude. Such an invasion occurred in 

 Suffolk one autumn some years ago ; it was like a 

 miniature plague of locusts, for they literally covered 

 the whole of the plants on which they alighted till it 

 seemed as if there was not room for one more. With 

 me they lighted principally on green peas, but at 

 Colchester a good many Roses were injured and even 

 killed outright. Syringing on a large scale with a 



