408 Reports of Consulting Entomologist. 
Corbett and Mr. C. D. Wise, respectively the superintendent and 
deputy superintendent of the Toddington fruit grounds. Mr. 
Fletcher, the Dominion entomologist of Canada, favours us with 
very serviceable advice from time to time, and I am doing all that 
lies in my power by co-operation, and also by identifying specimens 
sent me by the committee and neighbouring gentlemen, so that we 
might know with certainty what we were dealing with, and (approxi- 
mately) the date of the first appearance of the caterpillars. 
From examination of eggs sent me, known to have been laid last 
autumn (on isolated apple twigs) by female winter moths, I have 
been able to note and record the measurement and colour, and 
change of tint before hatching, of the winter moth egg, and from an 
enormous quantity of specimens, the result of the work of three 
men for three hours in trimming infested ends of apple twigs (sent 
me by Mr. C. Lee Campbell, of Glewstone Court, near Ross), I have 
also been able to note the manner in which the eggs are placed, and 
to see that although these dull reddish oval eggs, only about the ^.j 
of an inch in length, are hardly visible to the naked eye, yet before 
hatching time, when the caterpillar is taking its full colour, or after- 
wards when the iridescent transparent egg pellicles remain on the 
bark, then the whitish or greyish mould-like specks, where several 
eggs were near together on a bough, showed sufficiently to be of 
practical use in guiding to where caterpillars were establishing 
attack. 
The date of first hatching or attack might be put this year at the 
end of March. At that time winter moth caterpillars were beginning 
work near Ross, although they were not then noticeable at Tod- 
dington, and I was myself able to note their appearance as they 
made their exit from the egg and entrance into life, ' looping ' as 
dexterously and markedly as in their later days. 
The March moth, another very injurious kind, was then laying 
its bands of eggs ; and Mottled umber moth was also about. 
In my own suggestions as to applications I limited myself to 
advising trials of ' Paris green ' spray, as with this application we 
had clear information from the U.S.A. and Canadian Government 
reports of the exact proportions in which it was to be used, and of 
every detail concerned, and also of its success, and warnings as to 
requisite caution in use, it being a poison ; for those who did not 
care to try it (by advice of the Dominion entomologist) I suggested 
the use of washes of soft soap and mineral oil. 
The Experiment Committee has wisely made a trial and recorded 
results of many applications, and of these after the committee 
meeting at Toddington on the 1st of May last the committee 
decided that they would recommend the following for spraying on 
infested trees : — Paris green paste, in the proportion of one ounce 
to eight or ten gallons of water for plums, and one ounce to twenty 
gallons of water for apples ; London fluid (that is, a mixture of a 
preparation sold as ' London purple ') one part to twenty parts. 
Roth of these the committee recommend as effective in destroying 
the caterpillar, while they did no material harm to the foliage. 
