NOTES AND ABSTRACTS. 



809 



outside of the bags, and fumigation was promptly resorted to. The 

 moth is a near relative of the flour moth (E. Kuehniella Zeller) and 

 the dried currant moth (E. cantella Walker), both very destructive 

 pests. The eggs are laid in small clusters on the walnut shells and 

 are hardly visible to the naked eye. The larvae enter the shell at 

 the stem end, where the two half-shells meet, and feed upon the 

 kernel, completely destroying it. — V. G. J. 



Western Hemlock, Mechanical Properties of. By O. P. M. 



Goss [U.S.A. Dep. Agr., Forest Service, Bull. 115, January 18, 1913). — 

 The timber of this tree, which is principally used for barrels and boxes 

 for shipping foodstuffs, is odourless and tasteless, while it is fairly strong 

 and light for its bulk. Many interesting tests have been carried out 

 with the timber which show that it is valuable for a great variety of 

 purposes ; but dry rot, to which it is addicted, restrains its more extreme 

 utility for purposes where lasting properties are of first consideration. 



A. D. W. 



Western Larch, Mechanical Properties of. By O. P. M. Goss 

 (U.S.A. Dep. Agr., Forest Service, Bull. 122, January 27, 1913). — 

 The Western Larch or Tamarack (Larix occidentalis) has been little 

 used and the knowledge of its properties is therefore extremely 

 limited. The results of many tests made by the Forest Service upon 

 structural timber of the Western Larch, Douglas Fir, and Western 

 Hemlock show the following strength ratios : — 



Douglas Fir 100 per cent. 



Western Hemlock 88 



Western Larch 81.7 

 Windshake is very common in the butt section of timber of this 

 larch — a serious defect, though the wood generally is valuable for 

 second-class constructive purposes. There are numerous valuable 

 tables which clearly illustrate the average strength values for different 

 species when compared with the tree in question. — A. D. W. 



While Flies in Florida, Natural Control of. By A. W. Morrill, 

 Ph.D., and E. A. Back, Ph.D. (U.S.A. Dep. Agr., Bur. Entom., 

 Bull. 102 ; Sept. 1912 ; 9 plates, 1 fig.). — A report on investigations 

 carried on in Florida for the control of white flies and cloudy-winged 

 flies by natural means, such as fungus diseases of these insects and 

 natural insect enemies. — V. G. J. 



Wind and Plant Life. By Gunther H. Kroll (Beth. Bot. Cent. 

 xxx., Abt. 1, Heft 1, pp. 122-140) . — A general essay on the various ways 

 in which wind affects plant life directly and indirectly. — G. F. S. E. 



Wire worms, False, of the Pacific North- West, The. By James 

 A. Hyslop (U.S.A. Dep. Agr., Bur. Entom., Bull. 95, part v. ; 

 April 191 2 ; 6 figs.). — The Tenebrionidae, to which this genus belongs, 

 feed on dead vegetable matter in the soil, and occasionally on dead 

 animal tissue as well as on stored grain and other food products. 

 Superficially the larvae resemble the true wireworms, and on account 



