June i, 1894.] 
THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 
A STAFF OF ENTOMOLOGISTS WANTED 
FOR INDIA. 
Sir Aithur Havelook and his advisers can 
scarcely hesitate to grant the Tea and Coaonut 
oultivatcrs in Ceylon, the advantage of one 
Entomologist, when he reads the following im- 
portant paper showinf; that a " Staff of Entomo- 
logists " is bespoken for the benefit of Agriculture 
in India. We trust there will be no hesitation, 
therefore, in acceding to the request of the 
Planters' Association — a request really made in 
the intereata of Agriculture throughout the island. 
The following official correspondence is deserving 
of careful perusal by all planters aa well as by 
the Government : — 
PREVENTION OF INSECT RAVAGES IN 
INDIA— OFFICIAL COKRESPONDENCE. 
To Sir E. C. Buck, Kt. G. S. I., Secretary to the 
Government of India, Revenue and Agricultural 
Department, 
Calcutta, 2nd April, 1891. 
Sib, — I have the honour to forward for the con- 
sideration and orders for the Government of India, 
20 copies of a Memorandum on the Mitig»tiou aid 
Prevention of Insect Ravages in India prepared by 
the Hon. J. Buckingham, 0. I. E., of Amgoorie. 
2. The General Committee can add liut little to 
the BuggestioDS contained in the Mcincrandnm, which 
they consider a most valuable document in every 
way, but they desire to impress in the strongest 
manner possible upon Government the great im- 
portance of having a strong staff of entomological 
otfictr?, for the organization of which a echeme which 
appears of a practical nature is suggested by Mr. 
Buckingham iu his Memorandum, au'l the Committee 
trust this will have the careful attfntion of Govern- 
ment. 
3. There can be no doubt from the fads detailed 
in the MemoraDdum that this country is very far 
behind the rt'st of ih« civilized world in this important 
branch of sciencp. — I have the honor to be, sir, your 
mostobedit nt tervaut, (Signed) S.E. J.Clarke, 
Secretary. 
Memokanddm by the Hon. J. Buckingliam, C. I. E., 
ou the Miiigaiion and Prevention of Insect R-'Vjyeii 
iu India, submitted to the Indian Tea Associaii n for 
tr»n6mi3''iou to the Government of India, Department 
of lleveoue and Agriculture. 
1. Tbe Indieu Tea Ae.sciation baa recently sub- 
scribed R760 supplemented by R250 from tbe Assum 
Governnient, and R250 from the Government 
of Bengal, towards certain prizes for the en- 
oonragement of the study of the insects which at'aok 
the te» plant in India. It is hoped th*t these prizes 
will bave a bentfioial effect in the direction of adding 
to what is known upon the subject, but they are only 
a first step tow-irds placing this important matter 
upon 0 proper footing. The question afficts not only 
the tea iudustty but also eviry agricultural and forett 
crop that is grown iu India, and it requires to be 
dealt with far more comprehensively than is within the 
power ot any suigle Association. The tci plant is 
known to be aitacked by more Ibau tliirly distinct 
apecics of insects each with a complicittd life hittory 
of lis own, and each liable to do more or iesg con- 
siderable damage by itself. To take a single example, 
the fact that mosqnito blight frequently stopj pro- 
dnoHon over a large portion of a sa'den for moiilbs at 
a time, is euthcieut indication of the serious nt ture of 
an evil wli cb too often turua wbai wonM otherwise 
have been profit in'o actual loss, and it is well known 
that red spider, green fly bligtit, and otho- instct,, 
though loss genornlly prevalent, are sometimes f-lmost 
equally destructive over more restricted urea*. 
2. The case with other crops ia very much tbo 
same. Sir Edward Buck has recantly estimated the 
loss occasioned in India by the wheat weevil, wliich 
is only one of a number of insects which attack 
wheat, at five roillions of rupees anuually. Sorghum, 
which forms tbe staple food of a large portion ot 
tb« population, has been estimated bj another 
authority to suffer on an average atmually from 
insects, to the extent of one ptr cent, of the total 
3iold. In its early growth, cut worms often injure 
pad'iy to the extent ot making it necessary to replant 
whole fields at a time. At a later stage supposing it 
escape! the rice Hisjm, an i tbe numerous grasr- 
hoppers which also attack it, padJy is in danger 
from tbe ricc-sapptr, wliich ia fai.i sometimes to 
render the crop over large areas hardly wo th the 
cut'.ing. A teeth cf the maize crop around Amritsar 
is taid to have beeu desSroyed by the stalk borer in 
1890, and this is merely an example of the eitent 
in which this crop is liable to be attacked. A quarter 
of the whole Biigarcane' crop of a neighbourhood is 
no uncommon proportion to suffer; inileed cot so 
very many years since tbe cultivation of a specially 
profitable vari' ty of sjgarcsno is said to have been 
practically driven out of several districts in Bengal 
owing to the attack of one particular iuseot, the 
sngarcine bortr. Jute fields are often completely 
stripped by caterpillars. A leak forest in Burma has 
been described as attacked by an imeit which does 
as much dim;ig(! as a ft rest tire ^ while it is notorious 
how lirge was the part plajei by green bag and 
stem beetles in the olmoot annihilation of the coffee 
industry of Cejlon aui in tbe prolonged decadence 
of lhat of Eouthern India. Again, indiijo, gronnd- 
nu's, oilse ids, opium, and almost every other form 
of agricultural and terest growth suffer from insects 
to an extent which seriously affects tbtir cultivation. 
Indeed it is not tbo much to say that hardly a year 
passes without a very appreciable portion ot the labor 
of plauter.', cultivators and forest offioeis alike, being 
simply thrown away owing to the a'taok of eoraa or 
otlier ot the hof.ti of the Oestruotivo iusects which 
thrive and multiply in India. 
3. Iu fo vast a country depending a^ it does for 
its mattriil welfare almost entirely upon agrioultutf, 
the total lots occasiouo'l by ioeecls is simply appal- 
iug to contemplate. In the United Sta'es wui'-h, 
wiieii taken colli ctiv?ly, are to some extent couipat- 
able with India in area, the damage due to insects 
has been cilculated us amouutii g to an average of 
niorci than tnrec hundrei millions of dollars nnnuilly, 
and figures approachii g- these in magnitude would 
have to bo imploycd to represent anything like the 
true state of tbe case in Icdia, 
4 Iu the Ui'ited States, as also in Canada and 
paits of Australia, tbe matter has been sern udy 
taken up t.y tbe Government, wiih the retuU of the 
introduction of now metbois of treatment which ia 
?ome cases have already tffcrted an enormous saving. 
It is sutEcient to refer to the uunin-ous insecticides, 
both liquid on 1 gaseous, and the apparatus for apply- 
ing them, rieaigBed to meet the var ous requirements 
of different creps and different species of iussots, 
which are now widely employee with the best results, 
to b by the ajricjiturists aud fruit-growers in all 
parts of America, a'6o to the general adoption of the 
syst^m of lite sowing agaioss llei.-.ian fly, the 
fceduig oil' the first crop clover early enough to 
catch the clover see 1 midge before it is sufliciontlj 
matured t) leave tlm heads aud hide itself in the 
ground, the adaption of the band system against 
canker worm, a ^d tbe iutroducti ju of the AuatrAlian 
I'tdalia bee' lea which have proved sj beneficial io 
Ca'ifori.ia Hgoiti.st the destructive fluted scale insect. 
5. It IS true that most of the methods of iueeoti- 
cido :rtatiiienc, though very promi^iug for adaptation 
to the rcquireiucnti of such valuable crops as tja 
and loffc-, which are cultivatml under Europeaa 
suporvinion, arc too costly to be liksly to be appli- 
cable to the imperfect methods of agriculture wnich 
exist amongst Indian villagers. This is not the ojse 
howtvcr with such systems as that adopted against 
tho clover fceJ midge, which depends eoUly up.m 
improved kncwlaiigcd of tho habits of tbe iuaect. .Still 
lu>a dots it npply to tbe importation of tli^ Vatialin 
btetle, t or tSis benefit has beeu cunfoired up >ii tha 
Uuiud States almost eiitiruly iudependi iitly of any 
action upou the put of the ctiltivalors. 
t) It would of courdw be out of tbo t(<iesticn to sup- 
{loati tbut uuj^ Kotioo, wbiuU could pj»ibly bo tttkea 
