STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
865 
ARMY WORM. HOW TO PREVENT ITS VISITS. 
that in the spring of 1789, the Northern States experienced a 
dearth approaching to famine. Vegetation was tardy, beyond 
what could be recollected by the oldest persons living. Part of 
the succeeding summer was excessively hot. And finally, we are 
told that the spring and summer of 1790 were “mostly rainy.” 
Really, when I opened the book from which I hav.e been quoting, 
I little expected to find in it evidence so strongly sustaining my 
hastily formed views. 
Now that I become more confident that I have correctly pene¬ 
trated the circumstances which bring the.army worm upon us, I 
feer that I may venture further and indicate the manner in which 
I think we are to subdue this insect, and avert the terrible calam¬ 
ity of a visit from it in our cultivated fields. It seems as though 
nature had ordained that this most destructive creature should 
keep huddled together in flocks, purposely to enable man to des¬ 
troy it, as he could not do if it lived singly and more widely 
scattered about. 
Whenever an unusually dry summer occurs, we should not 
allow an extensive swampy tract in our vicinity to go unexam¬ 
ined. If a colony of these army worms is found there, it may be 
the merest trifle to smother and destroy them by setting fire to 
the dry moss and turf under them. But if danger.to fences, to 
trees, or aught else of value, renders this measure inexpedient, 
ascertain where the worms bury themselves after they have done 
feeding, and surround the spot with a temporary fence, and 
inclose swine therein. If the chrysalids lie as thickly in the 
ground as I suppose them to, an acre of them will be of more 
value to the lucky finder, as food for his swine, than an acre of 
potatoes. Thus nature would appear to have offered a bounty to 
us, to induce us to search out and break up the colonies of these 
insects in their accustomed haunts, and thus prevent them from 
becoming so multiplied as t'o take flight and alight upon our grain 
fields, if a wet season should happen to follow the dry one. 
As I stated when first announcing the name of this insect in 
the Country Gentleman of July 25th (vol. xviii, p. 66,) a short 
sketch of the history of this species, as it appears in our works 
of science, will interest the reader. Long ago a preserved speci¬ 
men of the moth of ofir army worm found its way into the then 
celebrated collection of Mr. Francillon in London. Upon the 
[A®. Trans.] SS 
