20 
BEANS. 
r 
The beetles are only about the sixth of an inch in length, of the shape 
and pattern of marking figured at 2 (magnified); the colour black, 
with various markings of brown and white; and they are furnished 
with ample wings. Imported seed has long been known to he often 
greatly infested, and the beetles have been recorded as very injurious 
in our Pea and Bean fields, especially in Kent; hut as a general thing 
(even if present), the attack has not been much brought forward until 
the present year, when serious damage was reported from various of 
the more southerly or easterly counties. 
The first communication regarding last year’s attack was sent me, 
on Feb. 16th, from Tenterden, Kent, by Mr. J. Ellis Mace, who 
mentioned, with respect to some Winter Beans, regarding which we 
had previously been in correspondence, as follows :—“ The crop turned 
out fairly successful for a dry year, yielding from six to seven sacks 
per acre. On threshing out the crop, we found numerous holes 
in the Beans, which were put down as the work of the maggots ; but 
yesterday, on examining some crushed Beans, we found the work was 
done by a little beetle or insect of some kind, which I never recollect 
to have seen before. The insects, being alive in some cases, 
I am afraid will get into other corn, and will necessitate immediate use 
of the Beans.” These beetles I found, on examination, to be the kind 
of Bruchus now known as rufimanus, and, for further certainty, I sub¬ 
mitted them to examination of Mr. Oliver E. Janson, who confirmed 
my identification as correct. 
On Feb. 21st, Mr. Ellis Mace mentioned :—“ I do not recollect to 
have noticed anything in the seed, but we unfortunately sowed some 
of these very Beans last autumn, and the men noticed, when drilling, 
that there were some cases, and put it down to maggot.” On the 
25tli, Mr. Mace gave further notes as to unusually large amount of 
Bean-seed attack; also the history of the seed reported on ; and like¬ 
wise the deficient amount of germination which had been observed in 
the case of the infested seed. Mr. Mace mentioned:—“A large 
miller in this country tells me these insects are very common this 
season. He thinks nearly every sample he has seen since harvest was 
affected : he has often seen it before, but never to so great an extent. 
Last Tuesday, at Ashford, he says he bought a sample of ‘ ticks,’ and 
directed the seller’s attention to the fact that nearly every Bean was 
bored. He does not advise drying on oast-hair, but thinks great care 
should this year be exercised in selection of seed-samples. We 
unfortunately sowed ours in September, and the Beans not coming up 
evenly was attributed to the very rough state of the ground, which my 
men did not work sufficiently before the drill. I do not think I told 
you about the seed; it came from Wrotham, near Sevenoaks, and was 
i 
