244 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
but go through their transformation in the place where 
the larvae has been nourished. The pupa is enveloped in 
a dark brown case, and from a little resemblance to a 
flax-seed, this stage of the insect has been called the 
“ flax-seed state.” As soon as the fly comes out, it pre¬ 
pares for another generation and dies. 
In the more southern portions of the country, the fly 
often attacks the early sown wheat in the fall, and a ge¬ 
neration is sometimes produced before winter. The lar¬ 
vae produced in the fall, are supposed to be uninjured by 
frost, and that they are brought forward to maturity by 
the warmth of spring. In the fly state, it is said a very 
slight degree of frost will destroy the insect. 
Thus far, the best remedy against the Hessian fly, has 
been late sowing. By this means, the farmer avoids rai¬ 
sing a crop of insects in the fall, to be ready to go on 
with their work of destruction in the spring. The injury 
occasioned by the fly, is most severe on poor and indif¬ 
ferent land. On rich soils, the injury is much less; the 
vigor of the roots continuing to push up new stalks, after 
the tty has stopped its work. Where the fly is known to 
prevail, it is advisable to sow wheat only on good land, 
anil by no means to sow the same land twice in success¬ 
ion. A top-dressing of ashes, or any substance calcula¬ 
ted to give a quick growth, would be a great advantage 
to wheat attacked by the fly. Burning the stubble has 
been recommended. Some kinds of wheat are more ex¬ 
empt from injury by this insect than others. The Medi¬ 
terranean wheat has been considered 44 fly-proof,” and has 
on this account been considerably cultivated in some parts 
of Pennsylvania, Maryland, Ohio, &c. Its security 
against the fly is said to be owing to the lower part of the 
leaf, or the sheath, adhering so closely to the stem that 
the larvffi cannot work its way in. In some cases it may 
be an object to sow this variety of wheat, though from its 
thick skin and dark color, it is not considered so valuable 
for flour as some other kinds. 
Many years ago there was much controversy in regard 
to the economy of the Hessian fly, but the matter seemed 
to have been pretty well settled until the publication of 
Miss Margaretta H. Morris's communications on this sub¬ 
ject in 1840. She contended that the egg from which the 
fly is produced, is deposited in the kernel, and as a secu¬ 
rity against the ravages of the insect, recommended pro¬ 
curing seed wheat from uninfected districts. This has 
been tried in repeated instances, but did not prevent the 
crop from being destroyed by the fly. Miss Morris is 
undoubtedly mistaken in her notions of the habits of the 
fly. The larvse of which she speaks, as having been seen 
in the kex-nels of wheat, must have been that of some oth¬ 
er insect. 
The Hessian fly is assailed by several parasitic insects, 
the chief of which is the Eurytoma destructor, ( Cera - 
phron destructor of Say.) 44 This,” says Dr. Harris, 44 has 
often been mistaken for the Hessian fly, from being seen 
in wheat fields, in vast numbers, and from its being found 
to come out of the dried larvae skin of that fly. In the 
month of June, when the maggot of the Hessian fly has 
taken the form of a flax-seed, the Eunjtomia pierces it, 
through the sheath of the leaf, and lays an egg in the mi¬ 
nute hole thus made. From this egg is hatched a little 
maggot which devours the pupa of the Hessian fly, and 
then changes to a chrysalis within the shell of the latter, 
through which it finally eats its way, after being transfor¬ 
med to a fly. This last change fakes place both in the 
autumn and in the following spring. Some of the fe¬ 
males of this, or of a closely allied species of Eurytoma, 
come forth from the shells of the Hessian fly, without 
wings, or with only very short and imperfect wings, in 
which form they somewhat resemble minute ants. Two 
more parasites, which Mr. Herrick has not yet described, 
also destroy the Hessian fly, while the latter is in the pu¬ 
pa or flax-seed state. Mr. Herrick says, that the egg-pa¬ 
rasite of the Hessian fly is a species of Platygastcr, that it 
is very abundant in the autumn, when it lays its own eggs, 
four or five together, in a single egg of the Hessian fly. 
This, it appears, does not prevent the latter from hatch¬ 
ing, but the maggot of the Hessian fly is unable to go 
through its transformation, and dies after taking the flax¬ 
seed form. Meanwhile its intestine foes are hatched, 
come to their growth, spin themselves little brownish co¬ 
coons within the skin of their victim, and in due time are 
changed to winged insects, and eat their way out. Such 
are some of the natural means, provided by a benevolent 
providence, to check the ravages of the destructive Hes¬ 
sian fly. If we are humiliated by the reflection that the 
Author of the universe should have made even small and 
feeble insects the instruments of His power, and that He 
should occasionally permit them to become the scourges 
of our race, ought we not to admire His wisdom in the 
formation of the still more humble agents that are ap¬ 
pointed to arrest the work of destruction.” 
THE JDARK AGES. 
The learned of the present day talk most complacently 
of the dark ages, those times when the great mass of 
mankind was not only ignorant, but contented with their 
ignorance, and looked with most suspicious glances on 
any one who dared to think or act a little in advance of 
the multitude. The cause of this is easily explained. 
Knowledge in an individual, is a constant reproof to those 
who have it not; and always produces in them, one of 
two effects, a desire for similar acquisitions, or an intense 
hatred of the possessor. We are accustomed to speak as 
though these dark ages had passed; but the following 
from the Farmer’s Cabinet will show that so far as agri¬ 
culture is concerned, there are places where the dark 
shadows are still lingering. We hope for the honor of 
our country, such places are not numerous. The extract 
is from the letter of a gentleman, who was endeavoring, 
in connection with his ordinary business, to obtain a few 
subscribers for that valuable paper. 
44 I have lately taken a ride of twelve miles from —— 
and returned by a different road. I saw but one building 
that could be construed into an apology for a barn. 
1 How do you manage without barns,’ said I to one of the 
best farmers I met with. 4 Oh,’ said he, 4 we have no use 
for barns, we have nothing to put in them.’ 4 How do 
thresh your wheat ?’ I inquired: 4 We do not make any 
wheat.’ 4 Your rye then V 4 We do not make any rye.’ 
4 What do you do with your hay V 4 Neither do we make 
any hay,’ was his reply. 4 What do you give your horses 
during the winter?’ 4 The tops and blades of the corn.* 
4 And how are your cows provided for V 4 We let them 
take their chance in the fields among the stalks; they 
make out to live till spring.’ The same farmer told me 
he had not manured an acre of land, nor a hill of corn 
for nine years! 4 And what,’ I asked, 4 is an average crop 
of corn ?’ 4 A barrel to the thousand hills.’ 4 And how 
many hills do you reckon to the acre V 4 Two thousand.’ 
4 And how many bushels to the barrel V 4 Five.’ 4 Then 
your crop of corn is ten bushels to the acre. ’ 4 Yes, we 
are satisfied with that, and half of us do not get that 
much.’ 4 Have you marl here,’I inquired. 4 Yes, we 
have plenty of it three or four feet below the surface, but 
it is too much trouble to dig it.’ I mentioned your Pou- 
drette— 4 O,’ said he 4 a dollar and fifty cents a barrel, 
would make it cost too much.’ Seeing a little girl busi¬ 
ly engaged in shaking a quart bottle, I asked what she 
had in it ? She answered cream, and that she was ma¬ 
king butter! I conclude, therefore, that a farmer who 
has a horse and cart—a wooden plow, rope traces, and a 
corn-husk collar, and a quart bottle to churn his butter in, 
feels himself amply prepared for conducting a farm in 
these diggins, without wasting a dollar a year in paying 
for the Farmer's Cabinet!” 44 A most legitimate conclu¬ 
sion truly,” adds the Editor. 
It is astonishing what an obstinate adherence to anti¬ 
quated and ruinous opinions may occasionally be found 
among farmers. We know a man who resided on a fine 
farm some fourteen or fifteen years, and who glories that 
he has never sown a bushel of plaster and scarcely a bush¬ 
el of clover seed upon it during that time. The practice 
of manuring he discountenanced wholly; and as a natural 
consequence, his farm originally of the best quality, had 
become so reduced, that he was obliged to dispose of it 
to satisfy his creditors. Such men should have lived cen¬ 
turies ago, or perhaps, so far as the march of improve¬ 
ment is concerned, they might find a suitable residence in 
the district described by the correspondent of the Cabi¬ 
net. 
