PARK AND CEMETERY. 
113 
the application of the torch. In using the 
torch great care is necessary that no im- 
portant injury be done the tree; it should 
not be used in burning out nests except 
in the smaller branches and twigs, the kill- 
ing of which would be of no special im- 
portance. Nests in the larger limbs should 
be destroyed by hand, as the use of the 
torch may kill the bark, resulting in perma- 
nent injury. 
Tent caterpillars are readily destroyed 
by arsenicals sprayed on the foliage of 
trees infested by them. Any of the arsen- 
ical insecticides may be used, as Paris 
green, Scheeles green, arsenate of lead, etc. 
The first two are used at the rate of j/> 
pound to 50 gallons of water. Milk of 
lime from 2 to 3 pounds of stone lime 
should be added to neutralize any caustic 
effect of the arsenical on the foliage. Ar- 
senate of lead is used at the rate of 2 
pounds to each 50 gallons of water. 
The chestnut bark disease has become so 
serious that in the opinion of the United 
States Department of Agriculture it is de- 
sirable to quarantine New England, New 
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Dela- 
ware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, 
Ohio, North Carolina, Iowa and Nebraska, 
or such portions thereof as may be found 
to be essential. A public hearing on this 
question was held in Washington at 10 
o’clock on May 18. The proposed quaran- 
Harry S. Gillespie has been chosen 
■secretary of the Park Board of Vir- 
ginia, Minn. The board has decided to 
•erect a new band stand at Olcott Park. 
The Board of Park and Cemetery 
Commissioners of Grand Rapids, Mich., 
have $19,899 on hand of the $90,000 ap- 
propriated for them last year, according 
to their report. The total receipts of 
the board from all sources amounted to 
$128,703 against expenditures amounting 
to $98,800. Reports from both Oak Hill 
and Greenwood cemeteries also show 
■considerable cash on hand at the end of 
the fiscal year. An innovation in city 
forestry work is to be undertaken soon 
by City Forester Hugh E. Lynch un- 
der the direction of the Board of Park 
and Cemetery Commissioners. The 
change will involve taking the conserva- 
tion work directly to the homes of the 
citizens of Grand Rapids. 
The City Commission of Hutchinson, 
Kan., by unanimous vote recently 
adopted the ordinance providing for the 
bond issue of $12,000 to pay for the land 
owned by J. L. Ward, which has been 
condemned for park purposes. 
Citizens of Sioux Falls, S. D., recently 
•voted to adopt the Park Board plan and 
tine will restrict the movement from this 
territory of chestnut nursery stock and 
chestnut lumber with the bark on. 
The chestnut bark disease is compara- 
tively recent in this country. Its origin is 
not absolutely known, but it is believed that 
it was brought in indirectly from China, 
where it exists also. In 1908 it was found 
widely distributed in the Hudson River 
Valley and in the vicinity of New York 
City. It is caused by a fungus which rap- 
idly kills the native chestnut trees and is 
spread chiefly by the distribution of nursery 
stock. Once it has been established, how- 
ever, it is spread locally by wind, birds and 
insects. Migratory birds may also carry the 
disease for long distances. 
Since this disease is proving fatal to the 
native chestnuts in the infected area, it is 
quite probable that their place may be taken 
by chestnut orchards grown for the nuts 
in areas that have not as yet been infected 
and from which it is hoped that the pro- 
posed quarantine will keep out the infec- 
tion. At the present time the native chest- 
nut grows in practically all of the territory 
east of the Mississippi except a section of 
the coastal plain of the Southern states, 
the northern half of Maine, and parts of 
Illinois and Michigan. For two years after 
the tree has been killed by the fungus the 
timber remains valuable, but deterioration 
sets in after that time. 
a Board of Park Commissioners will 
soon be appointed. 
The Board of Park Commissioners of 
Indianapolis, Ind., recently issued their 
annual report for the fiscal year ending 
December 31. 1914. Perhaps the most 
noteworthy improvement made during 
the current year was Maple road, from 
Capitol avenue to Fall Creek parkway. 
This road is about 8,600 feet in length, 
consisting of a 40-foot roadway and a 
30-foot lawn on each side. The pave- 
ment is asphaltic concrete on a six-inch 
concrete base. Two rows of sugar ma- 
ple trees were planted on each lawn 
space and six-foot sidewalks construct- 
ed. The total cost of this improvement 
was $114,533.98. Money was acquired 
under the Barrett Law, abutting prop- 
erty and property lying within 150 feet 
of the improvement being assessed. 
The annual report of the Park Com- 
missioners of New Bedford, Mass., for 
1914 states that the work, care and main- 
tenance of the parks has been much the 
same as in former years, but little new 
work has been accomplished, and that 
principally at Buttonwood Park. In this 
park a new road was constructed 900 
feet long and 22 feet wide through the 
woods to Hawthorne street. The total 
cost of labor in the building of the road 
was $2,215.60 and material $1,082.13. 
As shown by the annual report of the 
Park Commissioners of Fitchburg, Mass., 
for 1914, small parks have been kept up 
to the usual standard, and at Coggshall 
Park the work was continued as long as 
means would permit. The dam has been 
completed, or nearly so, some roadways 
outlined and some extended. During the 
spring Longwood avenue will be extend- 
ed to a new outlet in Mt. Elam road. 
Quite extensive improvements were also 
made in several of the playgrounds. At 
Daniels playground, on the ball ground 
a new wire backstop and two rows of 
benches for players and spectators were 
erected. New steel apparatus was in- 
stalled at Goodrich playground and the' 
entire ball field was graded and drained 
at Salem playground. 
The annual report of the Forest Com- 
missioner ’of Newton, Mass., describes 
some very interesting improvement work 
accomplished by that department dur- 
ing 1914. During the winter and spring 
the regular work was performed on re- 
moving brown tails and treating the 
r.ests of the gypsy moths. The past sea- 
son was a very bad one for brown tail 
moths, as the flight of the summer of 
1913 was particularly abundant. The 
1914 flight was very small, however, and 
very few brown tails were discovered on 
the trees. During the spring a consid- 
erable amount of planting was done on 
the public grounds and small squares. 
Some 1,6C0 shrubs and about 50 trees 
were planted. Owing to the poor con- 
dition of the spraying machines and the 
delay in getting them repaired, not as 
much spraying was done as heretofore. 
The fifth annual report of the Board 
of Commissioners of the Park District 
of Rockford, 111., was recently issued. 
Many improvements were made, al- 
though no construction work of any 
magnitude was done. A 22-foot drive- 
way leading from the main drive to the 
new shelter and back again was laid out 
and will be built this spring in Black 
Hawk Park. Many people took ad- 
vantage of the golf course in Sinnissippi 
Park and a new well 411 feet deep was 
completed here. 
New Parks and Improvements. 
Consideration by the Park Board of 
Dallas, Tex., of a plan to make the 
city’s property at Bachman’s reservoir 
into a big, model park was asked by 
Water Commissioner A. C. Cason. It 
was suggested that swimming be al- 
lowed in the lake, that boating and fish- 
ing be allowed as at present, and that 
the land surrounding the lake be beauti- 
fied. The board took the matter under 
advisement and promised to investigate. 
The City Council of Wichita Falls, 
Tex., recently awarded the contract for 
curbs and gutters on the Thirteenth, 
