28 THE DOMESTIC CRICKET. 
during the last two years. This happy condition of affairs 
has ceased toexist and in many places the potato-beetle will 
be almost as numerous as ever. Still this is not the case 
everywhere, and there may be broad acres where the insects 
still appear only in verysmallnumbers. If there is anything 
in the common saying ‘‘an ounce of prevention is worth 
more than a pound of cure’’ it can now be demonstrated. 
By killing the few beetles and their larvz as soon as they 
appear on the potato vines, we can prevent their increase in 
that locality for a number of years. This is necessary, even 
if there should be but few insects and not enough to cause 
any injury. Knowing that most insects are famous on ac- 
count of their fecundity, and that if left alone they soon 
increase past belief, a sensible farmer will take time by the 
forelock and prevent these enemies from increasing without 
let or hindrance. A good farmer will always do so and a 
poor farmer ought to be made to do so. This is like having 
certain contagious diseases prevailing in a given locality; an 
educated farmer will take the necessary precautions and eith- 
er prevent the introduction of such diseases among his own 
animals or stamp it out as soon as discovered; and a poor 
farmer ought to be made to do so by well framed laws thor- 
oughly executed. 
Of course it is not necessary to repeat here that in such 
substances as Paris green and London purple we possess in- 
secticides that always are successful 1f properly applied. 
THE DOMESTIC CRICKET. 
(Grillus domesticus Linn). 
Lovers of descriptions of the domestic life of European 
nations always enjoy the remarks about the presence of the 
musical insects so commonly found in the older houses and 
homes of the middle classes and farmers, and no description 
would be complete that did not mention the ‘‘cricket of the 
hearth” which sings all night, filling the air with melody. — 
Now this reads very well, but not every person is musically in- 
clined and what the one calls a sweet song is considered by 
the other as a miserable noise. As long as there was no 
chance to personally study the value of the music produced 
