numbers of eggs presently developed by the female, together with 
the early disappearance of the winged fly, are all evidence that 
the eggs are soon laid. The time of hatching w ? as not ascertained. 
Our first observations on possible injuries by these insects were 
made at Albion, in Edw-ards county, April 6, 1888, when these 
larva? were found in great numbers at the roots of timothy and 
clover which had been killed the previous year,—the injury first 
attracting attention shortly after the fields had been mowed. The 
timothy had here suffered w^orst, the bulbs, whose roots had been 
cut aw^ay just below the surface, lying in great numbers on the 
ground. The larvae w T ere at the surface in April, feeding largely 
on dead vegetation. In some parts of the field they averaged one 
or two to the square foot; and occasionally nearly every stool of 
timothy was infested. April 16 a similar condition of meadows 
w r as found at Edgew r ood, similarly associated with the tipulid 
species above described,— the injury being here much more gen- 
. era! (chiefly in timothy meadows) than in Edwards county. Here, 
as in the other situation, the timothy bulbs could often be raked 
up by the bushel, the roots having been generally eaten away. 
The fields infested were of various ages, one of the worst on 
which there had evidently been an excellent stand—being but two 
years old. Here, as before, the maggots varied in number from 
one to two or three per square foot. 
As there was nothing in these observations to make it certain 
that these larva? had done the damage with which they were con¬ 
nected, experiments were made to ascertain their feeding habits. 
Tipulid Tarvsh from these situations were placed, April 16, in pots 
of sand with growing oats and wdieat, and ten days later w r ere 
dissected for a study of their food. A single larva examined had 
the alimentary canal w^ell filled with vegetation, full ninety per 
cent, of it fresh roots. The dead matter was not impossibly from 
food taken before the experiment began. 
On the other hand, two specimens from among the dead grass 
at Albion, collected there the 6th of April, had these proportions 
of food reversed, about four fifths to nine tenths being now derived 
from dead grass and the remainder from living. At Edgew T ood, 
however, where the vegetation was less thoroughly killed, about 
tw r o thirds of the food of two specimens and about one half that of 
another consisted of fresh grass leaves. These particulars 
create, it must be admitted, only a presumption to the effect that 
these tipulids w T ere responsible for a considerable part of the 
damage to meadows in Southern Illinois; but their habit of mixed 
feeding makes evident their capacity for mischief where they are 
exceptionally abundant, and where drouth or other unfavorable 
conditions render grass specially sensitive to insect attack. 
To learn the extent of the phenomena above reported, a cir-j 
cular of inquiry containing a brief description of the larva and of? 
its supposed injuries v T as addressed to the crop correspondents ofj 
the State Department of Agriculture. In reply, Mr. C. L. S\veet,| 
of Glenwood, Cook county, wrote April 25 that he had found an: 
