~ Gx 
Arlo M. Vance has been transferred from the Charlottesville, Va., 
laboratory to the corn borer work, and will assist K. W. Babcock in his 
European investigations. Mr. Vance reported at Arlington March 15 and 
sailed for Europe March el, 
Recent visitors to the Arlington laboratory included S. S. Crossman, 
C. W. Muesebeck, P. B. Dowden, W. A. Osgood, and Pp. W. Dempsey. 
—_— 
STORED—PRODUCT INSECT INVESTIGATIONS 
&. A. Back, Entomologist, in Charge 
On March 25 Dr. E. A. Back conferred with officials of D. Auerbach 
and Sons, candy manufacturers in New York City, with a view to aiding in 
the solution.of their insect problems. 
On March.9. Dr. R.' fT. Cotton was present at an interesting ship 
fumigation in Cleveland, Ohio, where powdered calcium cyanide was used. 
in March the Newark Museum opened with a leather exhibit. This 
Bureau furnished the Museum with an interesting exhibit of insects and 
photographs illustrating damage to skins and hides. 
tn the first week in March A. 0. Larson, of Bean Weevil Inves- 
tigations, visited Stanislaus and Merced Counties in California to confer 
with County Farm Bureaus regarding the cooperative work planned for the 
coming season. In cooperation with the Bean Weevil Control Committee 
of the Merced County Farm Bureau, the Agricultural Extension Office at 
Merced arranged for meetings of bean growers at the farm centers of 
Stevinson, Hillmar, McSwain, Fruitland, Arena, Ballico, and Livingston. 
Much interest was shown by the attendance at these meetings. The 
Srowers admit that the bean weevil has caused a loss of from 10 to 5 
per cent of their blackeye bean crop,-and are just waking up to the fact 
that a large percentage of this loss can be eliminated by effective 
cooperation in applying the control methods advocated by the Bureau, 
It is needless to say that Mr. Larson has earned the hearty support of 
bean-growing interests and Staite agricultural officials. 
iS at To | Hitchcock, of the Australian Commonvealth Prickly—pear 
Board, a member of J.C. Hamlin's staff in Australia some yeers ago, re- 
cently visited Mr. Hamlin at the Dried-Fruit Laboratory, Fresno, Calif. 
Mr. Hitchcock was en route from Brisbane, Australia, to Uvalde, Tex., 
where he will assume charge of the North American phase of this unique 
project in the diological control of noxious plants. He reports that 
very gratifying field results are: being obtained with a number of the 
carlier introductions, cochineals being especially important. A more 
recent addition from the Argentine Rénublic (Cactoblastis sp.) has in- 
creased tremendously in a very brief period, the numbers increasing from 
20,000 eggs in one generation to 3,000,000 eggs in the next. Mr. Hitchcock 
