nish a key to the solution of this difficulty, by virtue of their grega¬ 
rious habits. It appears that they do not scatter themselves indis¬ 
criminately over the field, but that they move in large flocks, not 
unhke their fellow depredators—the blackbirds. Accordingly the 
cornfields are found to be damaged in patches, and it is thought to a 
sufficient extent to materially diminish the crop. 
“ This general diffusion of the Chinch-bugs over the corn fields after 
midsummer, taken in connection with the common observation that 
they remain there until late in the fall, has naturally suggested the 
expediency of gathering the stalks together and burning them, after 
the corn has been harvested, with the view of destroying the bugs. 
. t has also been advised, in order to make the remedy more sure to 
burn the dead grass and other rubbish which accumulates around the 
borders, fields and fences. My own observations have led me to the 
conclusion that this remedy also, in the way that it would be likely to 
be generally put in practice, can be of but little avail. Upon exam- 
lning an infested corn field late in October, I found that the bugs had 
left the upper part of the stalks and had collected about the one or two 
owermost joints, under the sheaths of which thev were congregated. 
Ihey had gone thither, partly perhaps to avoid exposure to the cold 
winds of approaching winter, but chiefly, no doubt, for the sake of the 
nutriment which they could still extract from the lower joints of the 
stalks after the upper ones had become dead and dry. Upon visiting 
the same field a month later, (Nov. 22), after winter had virtually set 
m, the mercury standing 15° above zero, the ground whitened with 
snow, after cattle had had the range of the field, very few bugs could 
be found. A few were found in deep cracks in the stalks, and a few 
weie lying torpid upon the ground close to the roots of the corn. 
pon c igging up a number of hills no bugs could be found beneath 
the surface Where the great majority of them had gone was not 
apparent. It is known that some of these insects hibernate under 
boards and flat stones, lying loosely upon the ground, and similar sit¬ 
uations. Dr. Shinier found many of them under the fallen leaves of 
apple trees, but nearly half of these were dead. I have heard of their 
being seen flying in flocks towards the woods late in the fall. I can¬ 
not vouch for the truth of this, but I found them this fall in small 
numbers under the loose bark of prostrate logs, in the edge of the 
woods, half a mile from any tillage land. I also found them congre- 
*° n t ] 1G unc | ei )side °f s °me flat stones lying upon stubble land. 
W ithin a few rods from them was a ravine filled with long dead grass, 
but I could find no bugs amongst the grass. It is proper to say, how¬ 
ever, that this last was not a badly infested locality. 
“With the view of obtaining further observations upon this part of 
tlie siibjectiS jll laknn the season, and especially in the badly in¬ 
fested district, 1 wrote to my friend Mr. Patten, whose assistance I 
nave above been happy to acknowledge, and requested him to examine 
some of the corn fields m his vicinity. From Mr. Patten’s reply, under 
date of Dec. 20, I extract the following valuable observations ■: 
. ‘ “ Since receipt of your letter, I have at different times exam¬ 
ined corn stalks with a view to finding Chinch-bugs, but have not 
succeeded in finding a live one. I have a piece of ground sown to 
fall wheat, from which I had carried what few stalks of corn the bugs 
