52 THE CHINCH BUG. 
ago. viz, that this can be done only in cases of excessive abundance 
and during* wet weather, the basis for infection being provided by some 
central propagating station from which farmers can receive promptly 
an abundant supply. I believe that for myself I could manage to get 
considerable benefit from their use in destroying chinch bugs provided 
I was located within the area of the frequent occurrence. This could 
be done only by watching the seasons carefully, and in case there should 
occur two years in succession wherein the breeding periods were covered 
by drought, then every preventive measure known should be adopted, 
notably the burning of leaves, dead grass, and other rubbish during 
winter or early spring followed up by sowing small plats of early millet, 
Hungarian grass, or, better yet perhaps, spring wheat, in low damp 
places in the fields, with a view of attracting the females or in fact 
massing the bugs, and then freely applying the fungi in their midst. 
Whether the ordinary farmer, with his present crude ideas of entomology, 
can do this successfully or not is very uncertain. It is almost impos- 
sible to determine even a few weeks in advance whether a season is to 
be favorable or unfavorable to the development of the chinch bug, 
which would of itself cause occasional false alarm, and the precautionary 
measures rendered entirely unnecessary by a few timely and drenching 
rains just at the critical time. Before we can expect to be eminently 
successful in this matter, the farmer will have to be more thoroughly 
educated, while both the entomologist and meteorologist have each 
much to learn in order to properly enlighten him. 
THE QUAIL. 
The chinch bug has few important enemies among the birds of the 
northern United States. To what extent the coast birds feed upon 
them I am unable to say, but inland the common quail, Colinus vir- 
ginianusj is the only species that can be said to devour any consider- 
able number. As this is one of our most highly prized game birds, it is 
slaughtered annually in tremendous numbers. Dr. L. O. Howard* some 
years ago published a table showing the season during which quails 
were protected by law in the States where chinch bugs are known to 
commit their most serious depredations. At that time (1888) some of 
the Northern States had no laws whatever for protection of quails, 
while some protected them only during the breeding season. In the 
majority of States the open season extended from October or Novem- 
ber until January or February, in some instances until April. In 
Dakota quails were protected absolutely until 1890, since which time I 
am unable to state what the laws are in regard to the matter. Colorado 
protects them all the time.f 
*Bull. 17, U. S. Dep. Agr., Div. Ent., pp. 24-25. 
tThe last general assembly of Ohio, 1897-98, restricted the open season for quail 
to within the dates November 10 to December 15, and prohibited at all times the 
catching or killing of these birds for the purpose of conveying the same beyond the 
