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NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



defoliated in many parts of the state, but the pests were present in force 

 on shade trees in the streets of many villages, and by dropping on 

 passers, crawling under foot, occupying piazzas and sides of houses, brought 

 themselves to the attention of many who would otherwise have been 

 indifferent to their presence. The loss sufjered through this pest last 

 summer can never be expressed in exact figures, but, when it is remem- 

 bered that these caterpillars inflicted severe injuries in about half of the 

 counties in the state, in not a few instances defoliating tracts of many 

 acres in extent, it is seen at once that the total damage inflicted must be 

 enormous. Outbreaks of this insect are more or less local, and usually do 

 not last more than two to four years in a place, hence in some sections the 

 pest was much more injurious than in previous years, while in others it was 

 not as abundant. From Otsego county came as distressing reports as from 

 any place. The following is from a letter by Rev. H. U. Swinnerton, of 

 Cherry Valley : " Stopping trains is not a circumstance to what we have 

 here in the way of stopping things with worms. We would stop the 

 progress of the age, if it got across the way our worms were going." 

 He then proceeds to narrate how, because of the abundance of the 

 caterpillars, the train he was aboard was stalled three times between 

 two stations about eight miles apart. Delaware county appears to 

 have suffered very much, as the pest has been in certain localities 

 for the past two years. H. E. Wilford of Andes writes : " We are being 

 devoured ... by maple worms. Can you give us any assistance?" 

 Dr J. N. Wright of Grand Gorge informed me that the forest worm 

 was making bad work with the maples in his vicinity, and requested 

 information regarding the pest. In many parts of Greene county this 

 insect was very destructive. In Lewis county C. C. Merriam of Lyon 

 Falls writes that the forest worms are worse than he had ever seen them 

 in his life. Many similar expressions could be taken from the letters of 

 correspondents living in other parts of the state. During the latter part 

 of May and in early June a large amount of the correspondence of the 

 office related to this pest. Had it not been for most energetic efforts 

 on the part of both local authorities and private parties, a large pro- 

 portion of the thousands of sugar maples adorning the village of Saratoga 

 Springs would have been defoliated. So serious was the situation that a 

 special circular was issued and distributed through the village, in order 

 to place in the hands of every person concise directions for controlling 

 the pests. Shade trees in Albany, Schenectady and other cities and 

 towns along the Mohawk river were attacked, and in a number of 

 instances the trees were stripped of leaves. In certain towns 10 cents a 



