554 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. [February i, 1890. 
round hole, leaving the cardamoms perfectly empty. 
Cootee,' also attacks horse and cow-gram (Dolichos in- 
fiorus and labial) and will utterly destroy solah pith 
hats, bread, baskets, mats, &o." 
The insects which Mr. Anderson sends be'ong to a 
species of Bostrychidea Beetles (Apatides), which, how- 
ever, it has not been possible to identify precisely in 
Calcutta; specimens have therefore been sent to Europe 
i .e comparison.* It may be observed that all thesnb- 
^ .anoes which Mr. Anderson mentions, are not likely 
1 o be attacked by the same species, though they may 
be attacked by species which are very nearly allied to 
each other. The idea which prevails with regard to 
the effect of the moon is a curious one, an 1 would 
really seem to have some foundation of fact to rest 
upon, the writer having been told that it prevails 
generally, both in Behar and also in the North-West. 
About the only explanation that has been put toward 
is to the effect that the 'cootee,' like most other wood 
boring insects, prefers to lay its eggs in wood which 
has commenced to wither, and which consequently has 
no longer a healthy flow of sap to interfere with the 
insect in its burrow, though still full of nutritive juices 
on which the insect feeds. If this is the case, the time 
immediately after the bamboo has been cut down 
would be the most likely one for it to be attacked ; 
and moonlight nights would give the insect a quiet 
time, with plenty of light, for finding the bamboos and 
ovipositing in them. This explanation, however, is 
little more than a guess and requires confirmation. 
It seems to be the generally received idea that soak- 
ing bamboos, and al6o other timber, in water, for a 
considerable time, immediately after it has been felled, 
makes it less liable, than it otherwise would be 
to suffer from boring beetles of all kinds. It is sup- 
posed that not only does the water prevent the beetles 
laying their eggs during the time the wood is immersed 
in it, but that it also drowns the larvae already at 
work, and dissolves much of the nutritive matter on 
which they would otherwise feed. 
It is notorious that bamboos suffer very considerably 
from the attack of small boring Bostryohid (Apatid) 
beetles. The writer has found that sponging the bam- 
boo over with kerosine, in sufficient quantity to pene- 
trate into their burrows, destroys the insects effec- 
tively and prevents further damage. This treatment, 
however, is obviously only applicable in a limited 
number of cases. 
The mango weevil (Cryptorhyncus mangiferd) is 
represented as spreading in India. Next we have : — 
12 — Deemestes vulpinus, Fabr. 
Plate IV, fig. 2, a larva {dorsal vieiv), b larva (side view), 
c pupa, d iniurjo ; all enlarged \ fig. 2, e imago (nat. size). 
Some specimens of Dermestes' vulpinus, the leather 
beetle of America, have recently been sent to the 
Indian Museum by Mr. J. Oleghorn, of Rajshahye, 
who says that the larva? attack eggs, worms, chrysalids 
and moths of the mulberry silkworm. During the 
rains cocoons having often to be reeled off, on account 
of damage done by this inseot, within a fortnight of 
having been received, instead of being allowed to 
ripen as in the hot weather, The cocoons are thereby 
depreciated in value, sometimes to the extent of 1112 
per maund. Mr, Cleghorn has observed that the in- 
sects are most abundant during the rains, their num- 
bers diminishing during the months between October 
and May, though causing loss of produce even during 
these months. 
So long ago as 1839 Westwood, in his Modern Classi- 
fication of Insects, wrote that Dermestes vulpinus oc- 
curred throughout Europe and America, and also in 
Java ; that it had at one time done bo much damage 
in skin warehouses in London that a reward of £20,000 
* Specimens of 1 his insect were submitted to Dr. 
Giintber, who had kindly undertaken to have them 
examined, He has since reported on them as belong- 
ing to a species of Sinoxylon which is unnamed in the 
collections of the British Museum. He also reports on 
a second species that was obtained by Mr. R. D. Old- 
ham, in Dehra Dun, from a tent pole, whioh it had 
completely destroyed, as belonging to a species of 
Dinoderus, not in the British Museum collection. 
was offered for an available remedy, without, how- 
ever, any being discovered, and that an entire cargo 
of cork had been destroyed by it, the insects also 
damaging the timbers of the ship. 
We quote the following with reference to the re- 
vival and we trust the full success of cotton cultiva- 
tion in Ceylon : — 
The Bollwobm. — In the Museum collections is a 
specimen; of the Noetues moth Jfeliothis armigera, 
ticketed as having done iujury to the poppy crop in 
Patnain March 1879 ; there is also a half-eaten poppy- 
seed capsule apparently eaten by this worm, which is 
ticketed as having been damaged by an insect known 
as kujra ; that is also injurious to the potatoe. 
In March 1887 specimens of Heliothis armigera were 
received from Arrah, where the insect was said to be 
injurious to poppy. Id 1887 some caterpillars doubtfully 
referred to this species, were received from Mr. J. 
Cameron, of Bangalore, who writes that they live 
chiefly on pul«e crops, and especially on Dolichos lab- 
lab, A single caterpillar, ako doubtfully referred to 
this species, was received in January 1888 from Mr. 
R. Rainey, of Kulna, who reported the insect as having 
been injurious to paddy. The Museum contains speci- 
men of the moth which have been obtained from seve- 
ral localities in India, and the species has been re- 
corded as occurring in Ceylon, Europe, Africa, America, 
Jamaica and New Zealand. 
In America it is known as the "Bollworm," and has 
proved most destructive to cotton, Indian oorn, legu- 
minoese, and many other plants. A most complete ac- 
coust of it was given by Dr. Riley in the fourth re- 
port of the United States Entomological Commission, 
p. 354 (1885). In the case of the American insect, Dr. 
Riley notices that the eggs are deposited all over the 
cotton plant, the larvae pupating in the ground and 
generally hybernating in the pupa state, though gene- 
ration after generation is produced until the approach 
of the cold weather. Dr. Riley recommends autumn 
ploughing for destroying the pupae, in countries where 
there is frost ; the destruction of the moths by poisoned 
sweets and lantern traps ; the destruction of the early 
broods of larvae, in the restricted areas where tbey first 
appear, by hand-picking, or better by Pyrethrum ; also 
the encouragement of insectivorous birds and poultry. 
♦ 
THE AMSTERDAM CINCHONA AUCTIONS 
IN 1888. 
[It is rather strange that the complete return 
for 1888 is only given in the Chemist and Druggist 
of 4th January 1890. It will be seen that the 
total of bark sold was equal to 4,977,410 lb. which 
averaging 4 - 12 per cent, of sulphate of quinine was 
quite equal, we suppose, to about 10 millions of 
Ceylon bark. Java most certainly, rather than 
Ceylon, may be said to rule the cinchona market 
in the future. — Ed. J 
Our Amsterdam correspondent sends us the follow- 
ing statistics relating to the cinchona sales which took 
place in Amsterdam in 1888 : — 
§ "g Of which were :— 
0 
— n a ,g o o » 
^o. go .-5 "-2 
^ "a & 'B m a 3 5 
r—. — • B £ * M 
OCT" [> « * |> ~ 
B < < 
A H m ^ 
Kilos. Kilos. Kilos. Kilos. Cts. 
Jan. 17.. .234,179 43.U7 165,433 8,977 4-35 8Jto9 
Feb. 21. ..284,566 41,076 222,354 9,894 3 90 8 
Mar. 21. ..171,755 37,230 108,960 5,911 4-03 7to7J 
May 2. ..189,388 30,590 139,830 6,683 4 8to8A 
June 13. ..224,621 18,400 178,460 8,723 4-15 7 
July 18. ..175,096 15,340 148,160 6,689 4'13 7to7i 
Sept. 5. ..273,657 25,210 233,700 11,455 450 8Jto9 
Oct. 3. ..132,809 28,210 94 080 5,160 4 50 9£ 
Nov, 7. ..191,786 25,310 149,010 6,992 4 10i 
Dec. 12. ..196,064 31,260 115,850 6,606 3'68 9 
Total ,.,2,073,921 295,803 1,555,867 77,090 4'12 
