758 
ANNUAL REPORT OF NEW YORK 
MIDOR. AMERICA!* DISTORT. 1881 . IT RETCRE8 AOAIIf. 
wheat to the acre which had been grown by one person and ano¬ 
ther in their vicinity. Thus there was every indication that this 
great evil had left us. As one of our leading city papers, the 
New York Tribune, was suggesting the importance of importing 
the parasitic destroyers of the midge from Europe, as the most 
feasible means of subduing this enemy that was occasioning such 
vast losses in our state and country, that periodical was informed 
that from the present indications the measure it was proposing 
would be unnecessary. On maturely considering all the facts, the 
opinion to Which I arrived at this time, and which I expressed both 
publicly and in private was, that it must not bo supposed that 
this insect had wholly left us. Scattered here and there in the 
wheat heads, so sparsely as to elude detection, it was probable 
that a few of these larva; had been present, sufficient to continue the 
species. But if so, its numbers were so extremely limited, that 
it would bo impossible for it to come abroad the following sum¬ 
mer in sufficient force to do any appreciable injury to the wheat 
crop. Therefore this grain might be liberally sowed, in the eas¬ 
tern section of the state at least ; for, though other casualties 
might perchance occur to prevent so abundant a yield as had 
now been obtained, we had every assurance that this most dreaded 
of all enemies, the midge, could not multiply sufficiently to mo¬ 
lest this crop to any sensible degree the following year. 
Beyond the sphere of my own observation, it appeared from 
the statistics returned to the State Agricultural Society, and 
from information given me by persons assembled from the differ¬ 
ent sections of the state at the annual meeting of the Society, 
that a few of the yellow larvae had certainly been present in the 
wheat this year, in Seneca, Madison and other central counties 
of the state, whilst farther west, particularly in the Genesee dis¬ 
trict, they had been quite abundant, though probably, from the 
season having favored a vigorous growth of this crop, a good 
yield of wheat had been obtained, notwithstanding their presence. 
It was with the liveliest interest that I awaited the develop¬ 
ments of this present year, 186L I thought it doubtful whether 
I should see any flies of the wheat midge this year. But, punc¬ 
tually as the period for their coming forth returned they made their 
appearance, two being seen around the lamp, June 11th, and seve¬ 
ral more the following evening. And June 14th, upon repairing 
to a field of winter wheat, now little more than knee high and with 
