viii 



THE GYPSY MOTH. 



territory. It is a question of time and intelligent labor. I say- 

 intelligent advisedly. Right here I would suggest very earnestly 

 that the committee or commission employ a scientific man upon it. 

 This is the advice I gave, with all the force I could, to the former 

 commission, for there are a thousand and one things constantly 

 coming up in work of this kind, and it is necessary to have some 

 one who knows and is able to answer questions. As to the ques- 

 tion of territory, I only raised that to know how it had been 

 determined. It is possible it is not so extensive as indicated, but 

 it may be. 



Professor Shaler. I thought it best to put it at the highest 

 figure. My own opinion is that we shall not have to deal with an 

 actual area of more than nine or ten square miles. 



Professor Riley. Is it not true that so far you have found this 

 pest chiefly on orchard trees? 



Professor Shaler. On orchard trees and elms. 



Professor Riley. That is unfortunate, because it increases the 

 difficulty of treatment. 



Mr. Craig. They are more numerous on and generally select 

 orchard trees, but even pine trees have been attacked by them 

 and in some cases the branches stripped. Maple trees are also 

 attacked. 



Professor Shaler. I have seen them on some maple trees and 

 heard of others, but it seems to be a case of starvation when they 

 come to that. 



Mr. Craig. My observation is that the older the tree the more 

 they will attack it. 



Professor Fernald. With regard to a scientific man on the 

 commission, if you can get an entomologist who is also a business 

 man you will be fortunate, but in my judgment it is important to 

 have a business man too. 



To go back to the question of territory, I agree with Professor 

 Riley that it is rather stupendous ; but if you can destroy the 

 insects over a small area, why cannot you over a large one? The 

 whole thing is experimental ; it is unprecedented to destroy so 

 many insects scattered over so large a territory, but my impres- 

 sion is that they can be destroyed. The question is, how to do it. 

 I was informed last summer that Paris green destroyed the larvae 

 of this insect up to a certain size ; beyond that size they were able 

 to eat it and grow fat. I urged the commission to try a branch 

 with caterpillars that had not eaten any Paris green, but I cannot 

 learn that they did it. If their statements are correct, I must lose 

 the little faith I had in regard to the efficacy of Paris green. My 

 experiments at Amherst on the use of Paris green do not seem to 



