o 
as Deputy Quarant ine Officer:for the State’ of Calitonnin at ‘that port. 
The cleanup work in connection with the pink worked in western Texas 
has been substantially completed with a corresponding reduction in the labor 
force, Scouting and tracing of the movement of cotton products is being con= 
tinued, No further evidence of pink bollworm infestation has been found. . The 
Legislature of the State of Texas, now in session, has passed a-new pink boll- | 
worm act, amending the: original act so.as to give greater leeway in quarantine 
matters and part icularly to.provide for the growth of cotton in quarantined . 
. districts under restriction, The regulated cotton zones under this act have al 
ready been established by. proclamation of the Governor of the State. . This act 
provides for its administration in part through a commission on which Dr. W.. 
D. Hunter is the representative of the Federal Horticultural Board. 
 U. C, Loftin ané K, B. McKinney returned at the end of February to 
Lerdo in the Laguna in Mexico “A resume their. research work on the pink boll- 
worm, 


RvR. Sasscer and i Kent Beattie will proceed to the: Mexican border 
about the first of April to inspéct and test out the fumigating houses which 
have been under construction for some months at the principal ports of entry 
from Mexico, Mr, Beattie has recently returned from the border where he has 
been supervising the completion of these houses, . The largest’ of these plants, 
the one at Laredo, is now substantially completed and the others are practical- 
ly completed also, On completion of these working-out tests, the Department — 
of Agriculture will take over the fumigation of all .cars and. freight from 
Mexico, This fumigation hitherto has been a car fumigation in | private hands, 
but under the supervision of inspectors of this Board.. 
The possibilty of entry. of dangerous plant pests.with ships’ ballast | 
was referred to in the January number of the Monthly News Letter. The investi- 
gation of this subject indicat es that the wreat bulk of the ballast consists | 
of sand, gravel, broken. rock, ashes, and soil. In.the main, the soil seems to, 
have een derived from river ‘ante oF from excavations for construction pur- 
poses; in other words, primeval soil which probably has no, or little, touch 
with cultivated ‘land, Sand and gravel thus received are sold for building 
purposes, The broken rock and earth are used for filling in near-by points, 
but some of it is towed out to sea and dumped. with city waste, The amount of 
such ballast has been vastly increased owing to war conditions and the need of 
many transports returning from France substantially empty, This situation no 
longer exists, and the probable dmount of ballast in the future will be very 
much reduced, It is evident that the risk from such ballast is very small, 
Norman Perrine, representing the Board, and Mr, I. E. Neifert of the 
Bureau of Chemistry, are conducting an interest ing series of tests to deter- 
mine the amount of gas absorbed by fruits and vegetables, The information 
thus obtained will Be valuable in relation to any oC fumigation of 
commercial imports of such. products, 
A public hearing was held ‘at Washineton, March 25, relative to the pro= ~ 
poséd quarantine on aecount.of ‘the flag smut. ana takeeall diseasés of wheat, — 
oats, ‘barley,. rye,. and rice, “The ‘exclusion of Oriental. wheat has certain 
ent onological importance inasmuch as it will, if authorized, prevent: also the 
entry of possible new stored-grain pests, : ail 
te Gin ene oo cen avs Obs Gans pus tl le a oes Oop ove eae oe 

DIBRARY 
Mabel gateenan Librarian, 
Naw sedi al 
Agricultural index: Subject index to a selected list of agricultural periodica 
