ON THE DESTRUCTION OF INSECTS.. 03 
proportion to its length. When disturbed, or taken into one’s 
hand, they feign death, and will remain motionless for a minute 
or two ; and their attempt to escape is by a sudden leap into the 
air, by some muscular power exerted between the thorax and 
abdomen. The larvse are yellow, with a brown head, and about 
three quarters of an inch in length : they are remarkably tough, 
and hence their provincial name. 
They are mostly brought into the beds of the flower garden 
among the finest foam employed for enriching the beds, and for 
forming suitable composts for the flowers. They devour almost 
any root that Mis in their way, particularly tulips ; and often 
destroy some of the most valuable bulbs. The best remedy is to 
bury pieces of turnips or potatoes in the bed ; and these being 
attractive to the worm, and examined from time to time, the 
depredators may be captured and killed. 
The earwig is a great enemy of the florist: they feed by night, 
so that they are not detected unless sought for by candle-light. 
Some time after the Schyzanthus porrigens was introduced into 
this country, the plants were observed to be sadly mauled by 
some insect, which stripped them of their parenchymatous bark 
during the night. A botanist, whose plants had suffered in this 
way, was resolved to detect the depredators ; and, taking his 
lantern, repaired at midnight to the border ; and there he found half 
a dozen “ peelers,” or more, on every plant. Searching for them 
by day, he found them concealed under the leaves of neighbouring 
plants, but so numerous as to make the capture of the whole 
impossible. 
The earwig is also a constant plague to the pink, carnation, and 
dahlia grower: and furnishing them with dry receptacles, such as 
lobsters’ claws, old shoes stuffed with hay, or small flower-pots, placed 
on the top of the props, for them to retire to on days, is perhaps 
the best plan for taking them. This is alluring them by sympathy , 
which, with such hardy insects, is more effectual than driving 
them by antipathy , as no harmless application to the plants can 
kill or offend the mail-covered earwig. Flower-stands are some¬ 
times set in pans of water, to prevent the approach of creeping 
insects ; and this is a defence against full-grown earwigs, because 
when old they never use their wings ; but against young earwigs 
it is no defence, because they fly by night as well as any other 
winged insect. 
O 
