The Oklahoma State Capital. (Guthrie, Okla.), Vol. 17, No. 252, Ed. 1 Sunday, February 4, 1906 Page: 4 of 8
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Oklahoma Digital Newspaper Program and was provided to The Gateway to Oklahoma History by the Oklahoma Historical Society.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
•I'.
' JC \ STiTF riPTTil. "Urvr^^y.WBMKO JCKJiBIIi'Ma.
V i
4i_'—
; '4, 1006.
\ The Ravages
of the Gypsy and |
Brown -tailHothj
Great Men ace
m
HA Y *FlA.rTfMJE.TOtf
RTSsinHHnnmnnHHl
v~ WBd 1*
If-WJl
•-* r>*s
im
W7%
m mm
Cj Jl^OW'-rA. ijz 1%. o tit
SWZNTEIZ ~W%CB3 OF THE
iBROWIf- TAIL JibT/f
OITSJVG-LLttf CAK
•- - ■ -c -w i. iu -
BT FRANKLIN n. WISNTWOHTH.
Nilll
m
e*$^E35S&
... ,r- ' * Jn
. -■
GKiila
£Lez~O\TIH-<
1&IXJX. G-ZOWTJtFJ2XX1 iZTFflSTI2£?>3?XOar£AMZ?
TLRZlToRY 2fOH
r the
mntry would
loubt would have
liable
uniting th
I he yen p.
July ami Auj
Tbat th* crowning glory of the old
towns In which their fathers were liorti
tho** grand old elrna which were planted
mayhap by tbelr fathers' own bands
■bou Id actnally ha?o their existence
threatened l>y a vulgar lusact; this la too
much for the equanimity of the New Mug
land mnn and woinAO.
The thought that In a few" years ihe
beautiful Interlacing branches which
cover the street* tu which they pi:\.\ed
aa children shall be awept away with
tbelr grand old supporting bol . and fie-
directs themselves become as barn and
unbaautlful as tboae of a boom town
this lusplrea a kind of freniy.
And yet for uearly *0 years the "gypsy"
moth has been layjug her eggs, her eater
pillars Increasing In geometrical progrea
alon, until today the people atand aghast
at their destructive work, and the i.js
lature baa paused long enough In Its
granting of public favor* to private cur
porafloni to declare the gypsy moth a
"public nuisance." But the gyp-j ,,,n,
does not seem to njltid leglslatlie ,
deuinatlona, and alnc* It has been Join,.,:
Id Ita work of devastation by the "hrown-
tall" moth, the area of Ita operatlona bus
Increased In eitcnt n thouaandfold. wr,,
patchea of beautiful woodland nr. *
■tripped of foliage by the end of .Tune
that they boar the aspect of Noveu
Orchards are euten clean of leaf and Im l
destroying all possibility of fruit.
even the rugged white pine Is f.-d upon
by these caterpillar peats until It with,
unto death, and stands blackened nod
■tripped of bark as by a blast of llghtulm,'
Only those prairie people of the West
who remember the years In which n 1 ml
of grasshoppers darkened the sky and
passed, leaving not a spear of grain to
harvest; ouly such havs any parallel by
which to Imagine the destruction that
New England now faces.
The gypsy moth caterpillar will attack
all fruit, shade and woodland trees. „!
though IV shows a preference for the
apple, oak aud elm. It will devour ou
occasion nearly every useful grasa. plant,
flower, shrub, vine. bush, garden or field
crop that grows. Throughout the already
Infested portions of Massachusetts It
swsrms and drags Its loathsome length I
along ihe walk, upon the house fronts u'n.l |
verandas, and does not even leave the In-
terlor of dwellings free from lis hated
presenca. ,
It Is usually conceded tbat the natural j
1st la a superior person. The nearer a
man comes to understanding natural ,>•, '
Jects and pheuotnena tie more likely t* h
to confer some sort of lasting benefit upon j
the race. But no rnle was ever for- i
lated without at leaat the concept of its j
exception occurring to anmei> l> . nn 1 so
tbe naturalist who Introduced t'; * | ,
moth from Kurope Into this country la at
present remembered only for the harm h I
has done.
As far back ss authentic records exist
•ha gypsy moth has been a destructive I
pest In th* Old World, at times lucres !
Jig enormously and disastrously, then fm !
ither periods decreaalug. only to Increase I
icalu and renew Its extensive >.
it the present' time It Is most m, « 1
Hid destructive In Southern It **in i
m the year 11*18 It was unknown in the !
sestern hemisphere. It was
rsar the Insect waa brought from
ly so eiperlmenter living In the •>,, f
tied ford, Muss. Ths experiment of it,
iropagatlon In A marl'a was distinctly
kiccessfnl. Numbers of the troths .
•aped from their captivity and spread
U o rnauy cities and towns of Pastern
laasachusetta, and. Increasing euormous
i, became l.y INtKI so serious a prst
hat th* stat* began extsruiloatlve work
featnst them. .
This waa continued for In yeara i
r pagatlon of th* peat so hindered
y that tb* p*ople forgot about It aud re
lied their .igllanc*. No sooner, how
.fir, had th* atats ceased Ita ayst ith
pe rat ions than the moth l>egan rapidly
ga!u headway, and today It . um iu
SOtumus numbers over a vastly larger
e half Inches
quarters of an Inch
e inotha live but a short
lio food; nil damage to
y the caterpillars. Tho
I flsmale dies after depositing her egg mass
| It la thus during th caterpillar stage thnt
the moth spreads chiefly While they do
not crawl very far from the place In
I which they hatch, except when there Is a
scarcity of food, they have the habit when
small and young of spinning down on
their sllkeu threads from trees and fail-
Ing on vehicles and other moving objects,
id are thus carried from place to place.
Electric curs, pb
hides, bicycles and automobiles are thus
media for their transportation. It Is for
t|ils ran son that the state in Its Initial
warfare Oil the pest devoted Its energies
chiefly to trees and woodlots and orchards
adjoining the highways and their moving
vehicles Tbe caterpillars often crawl
upon vehicles standing In an Infested spot,
nnil when the same are moved extend the
Infested area The egg clusters them-
selves may also be transported by any of
on the shady side of*tree trunks, beneath
large limbs, under rough or loose bark.
In holes In trees, under feme rails. In
walls, stonebeapM, rubbish plies -In short,
I;i any accessible place affording shelter
from discovery.
This habit of the caterpillars of feeding
at night and hldln during the day has
•suggested one mean:; for their destruction,
espivliilly in orchards and upon shade
trees. All one hns to do Is to f .rnlah a
good and convenient place lu which they
may hide, and then slaughter them in the
broad day, when they may readily he seen
l> uncovering their prepared refuge. As
way aa any, and one which lias
that
nd th* I
| are youug. W|
lien mature they have a
the nuu
colored l ody. Along the
laid. 1
back, counting
from the bend, which Is
blue spots, folk
iwed by a double row of
their e
lie row of spots may be
seen very dlst
back of a*
t a noes.
5iS£'i"'
Inch and a half or more, j
Prom
pairs'of rod' 'so,
't'or" New" l'ngU,dn|«.Hva
moth e
along it| i-a :
row of red and blue spots
trunks.
half, however. I
1 dl ;t1 nelly "'Hie ma lure
s *
When fully gr.
aw ti. usually In July, the i
Ing out
caterpillar spins
a lew threads of silk ss
fences.
ante work, casts Its skiu j
have b
and changes Into
a pupa, or, as It Is some- i
rlety o
time* called, a
chrysalis. The pupa Is
seen In
ch.volate In color and
too rem
nkled with light, reddish ;
eucy Is
itely. It resembles closely
or Inner
the pupae of cerl
lain other uioths found In
the moi
New Kugiand, si
id cannot be identified at
aometlm
a glance except
by naturalists or experts.
and th.
Tbi} thinly spriti
ikied, light reddish lislrs
plentifu
are, however, chi
iracterlstlc.
allien-
Pr6m about Jt
lly 1A to August 15 the
From
winged moths eu
large from the pupae, the
date varying ace
* to the season r.ml
diminish
theVlh',' «'f I'-
ipatlon. The mal* moth
middle i
ll brownish yell
ow \ arylug to gfeeulah
ones api
brown In color
He bus a aletidei body
ti pa lly i
and expands aho
ut one and a half Inches ,
they gr
aud flies actlvelj
• by day with a peculiar j
skin sev
Elgxng flight. TI
lie female molt) Is nearly
are chn
white, with uou;
leroua small black mark
of the ti
Freight
imi inside buildings.
*t tho caterplllara
'S itaftS of growth,
numbers after tbe
" spring the smalt
llags, feeding prln-
de of tbe leaf. As
. It. "<*•
these molted skins
is of the presciio*
ud sluggish | slr.e
«*. Tbe fiM*; to I
tb* spread I tbe*
to feed onHr at night and during
seek shelter generally in clusters
ve | been quite extensively followed Id Mas-
sachusetts. Is to tie a short skirt of bur-
lap upon the bole of the tree, and If a very
large tree <>n some of the larger limbs as
weli. When the daylight comes tho cater-
pillars leave off feeding on the tender
leaves aud crawl to the trunk of the tree
in long pr > csslotis Finding the hurlap.
they crawl under It and compose them-
selves to rest through the heat of the day.
unty their enemy, man. cornea along.
iy of | lifts the burlap skirt ntid scrapes them off
y are the tree trunk Into a pan for burning
l! :t to dress all Ihe trees In the Infested
erlod 'llstrlct with burlap skirts and attend to
irs In them dally would require the servient of
may Intl.* the |> pulatlon of New ICuglatid. Tbat
r dls- | iy merely a way to protect ertalu trees
the ifter the eggs have lieen hatched. There
"re great acreages of brush and sprout
isses nid In which the pest also breeds, and
' tin* no hurlap method woulil here avail. When
In such a plot becomes Infested there Is but
trie oue thing to do—clear It aud burn It. and
fered thus destroy tbs ejr.rs. I^ut the burning
trees must lie well done. As the eggs with
The stand the rigors of the New Kngland wl
!>ery. 1c so are they a Is remarkably reilstnnt
Msh. ti fir e. An Im i:is(# heat applied directly
a',ti ' • ihe .«ltis •. s required to kill them.
1' Where low cost woodland and nnlin
rhry proved tracts of brush are extensively In
v | rested, and It Is not desired to save any
of the young saplings. It Is sometimes
n<,f I thought wise to burn the ground over
end with oil after tbe brush Is cleared, to de-
nver «troy egga scattered In cutting. If it is
vlien i'."Hired to save tbe saplings they require
they to be carefully gone over, aft.r the brush
Is cleaned out and burned, th* egg olus-
tors searched out anil cn-tnfred by paint-
ing with a mixture of creosote To scrape
them off would ffr<t avail; It would simply
scatter the eggs. Then, this labor ac-
complished. the trees must b* sprayed In
the spring with ■ solution of arsenate of
lead to kill the young caterpillars, aud
burlapped through the Vinimer to kill
those which escnpe the spraying. Th*
labor that must actually be performed,
which must lie persistent aud neter Slid-
ing If the pests are to be kept from dis-
astrously multiplying, not to speak of
their possible extermination, Is enough to
stagger the mau who own* * few acres of
orchard or woodland.
But the gypsy moth does not ravage
alone. Parly in the IHi's another variety
of pest of the name general character
was Imported Iuto Massachusetts, aup*
*edly In a shipment of roses from Hol-
land. It was the "brown tall" moth. This
Insect, although slightly differing In Its
habits from Its predatory companion, Is
every lilt as destructive, and In some lo-
calities has been distinctly more so. 8om
ervllle, Mass . has the honor of letting
loose this pest npon the country, lu Eu-
rope It has long been a pest of fruit and
shade trees, and Is called the "common
caterpillar. ' In America it began Its
feeding almost wholly upon fruit trees,
but within the past Ave years It has
adapted Itself to the taste for various
species of forest frees, notably the oaks.
In the spring, as soon as the buds unfold,
the young caterpillars begin to feed. and.
where they are numerous, completely
strip the tree, however large. When tbe
food supply gives out they swarm' along
fences and walks In search of foliage.
I nlike other <at«rplllan, most of which
may be handled with Impunity, when the
' ;iterplllar • .t' the brown tall moth comes
In contact with human flesh there Is pro-
duced a most severe and painful nettling
This Is due apparently not to any poison-
ous secret 'on In the hairs, but rather to
the finely barbed and brittle hairs them
selves, which enter and break off in the
flesh. So severe Is this affection that In
luauy cases In Massachusetts people have
i-oei made distinctly III by It. and ss It
swarms In som* places In Immeuse num-
bers ill the V tntty o> the house, which It
fptquently enters, It may often be touched
Inadvertently.
I he egg mass of the brown tall some-
what resembles that of the gypsy, but It
Is seldom laid u| ou n tree trunk or any-
where save on the underside* of a leaf. It
la smaller and more elongated than the
gypsy egg .•luster, and >f a brighter, red
dish brow" color. But here comes In a
radical difference ln habit Th- eggs of
the brown tall do not hatch until August.
One would conclude from Hits that the
• aterplllara could do little damage, being
born after the foliage hns pructlcally
served Its pentose and Is ready to turn
sere and wither, and they do caus* but
little damage the year In which they are
born. When they first hatch they feed
for a willis ou the upper surface of the
leaves, but soon commence the work of
spinning their winter webs. In maklug
tbe web s number of leaves are drawn
together, and a tenacious silken thread Is
woven about them. The web In grayish
In f lor, composed of dead leaves and
silk, and Is very hard to tear apart.
Bach web contains about 250 caterpillars,
and varies In length from four to sit
luehes. With the approach of cold weather
th* caterpillars euter the web aud closo
tbe exit holes.
Then Is demonstrated tbe ctrange phe-
nomenon of a caterpillar "wintering over"
.JCTJU-Iira-, THE J2G<i3
Vizlocr.3 JTAO-SJ OF THE CrfP.i'i' MOTlf
J FuLLCreown Catezpt&laz3 z FcrrA _
O. Female. Iforii ZAY/wz-Zcry Qii/srsss)
lug the fill
: spring to complete its i
inrier grown and smerg I
extremes of cold In New
HeeHi to affect these In i
hey emerge In the
nrly In April -oat llrst
•ti the bloHsoms and at
if fruit trees as soon as
full grown caterpillar Is
In length, with a broken ,
'Ither side and two con 1
splcttotis red dots on the back near the
posterior end. Stripping the folla;.e of one ,
tree, they go to others and continue to
ent until full grown, when the cocoon*
are spun within the leaves at the ends |
The inotha are
life history Til
| Kngland do not
Berts adv finely
spring usually
I the buds and t
I tack the foliage
It develops, lh
about two incbe
white stripe on
■ male, is a strong, swift flier, and
•ry her eggs long distances before
Ing them. For this reason the
all hns spread much farther from
t of Introduction In Massachusetts
,.s tho gypsy. In Its flight It ta
Ided by strong winds, and Is also
rtcd on steamboats and In electric
am car«, to which It Is attracted
t by the lights.
wn fall is already known to
ir id at least as far northeast as
'. Me., and as far south as Cape
west It has been found at
Ma'-s. The eastern portion of
i'isc'h from north to south Is now
1 ly Infested, although less so
Boston, ami the moth, doubt-
- In mnny communities lu and
the state from which It has uot
ii feported.
' lent that the extermination or
i of these pes's can never be
i << upllshed by leaving the
to :i Mvldunls. Unless a parasite
found to prey tipou and destroy
•f these moths and the State
1 i-letts Is already exjierimeiit-
n tluy fly which It Is hoped
els i
liovlng vehicles.
While the gypsy Is
be egg. the brown-tall
the
ef ill
lervlce
destroyed In
ost accessible
I In the caterpillar web The winter welm
or nests containing the hibernating enter
pillars lire conspicuous objects at the
tips of twigs from October to April
These webs may be sought out and re
moved by ttfe use of pole shears or long
handled pmners. and then carefully col
lee ted and burned. When a light snow
Is on the ground the work of web .o
■traction can be best carried on ns when
the web Is brought down by the shear* ;t
Is not apt to be overlooked upon tbe
■now. W^iere toil trees nre Infested two
men, one to point out the nests from the
ground and tho other to cut them off,
can work to best advantage.
The female winged brown-tall moth.
as a state ns
it .will
of the peo-
In-
bead-
If the mania of the
ollectlon of birds' eggs
nto ns ardent a liking
of the nests 'of the
tall moths, the New
render n distinct and
but the lack of vnrl-
nId probably mean it*
bile It Is a condition which con-
• ew England and not a theory,
rees nre to .be saved, the labor
expended to save them, even
esses Into the service of moth
the ■mail boy ns well as tli«
v's parents.
Buying Antiques for Selling.
In tbla practical nge there are few
people who nre not glad to take odvan
tnge of the opportunity to add to their
Incomes should* the occasion occur. And
for persons who keep their eyes open
there are many channels at the present
day In which any man or -woman may,
If so Inclined, tnrn their energies to
profits. Perhaps one of the be«t of these
Ilea in the securing of many kinds of
antiques and art trensures in demand
by collectors which are to be found In
very large numbers all over tbs country
If only one' knows where to look for
them.
Tbe most likely places of all where
this kind of thing Is to be found are in
the out of tbe-wny villages, and It Is no
exaggeration to say that a number of
priceless relics are In existence at the
present moment In humble cottages, al-
though tbelr owners nre quite unaware
of tbe value of their possessions. The
line old grandfather clock Is audi a fa
miliar feature of the cottage's kltched
that' most persons will scarcely attach
much value to this article.
Yet, In fact, there Is a very real
demand amongst dealers for this relic of
a bygone age. With n few trifling ex-
ceptions these big clocks are not manu
factored at* all nt' the present day, >o
that any "grandfather" which one may
come across Is almost certain to be really
an old one. Good specimens in working
order. If the case be of some solid wood,
■uch as oak or rosewood, will sell for
$100 easily, and tbe value Is a good deal
enhanced If the clock has an engravwd
brass face.
It la quite possible that anyone might
come across one of the finest docorntod
grandfather clocks. These wero made
about 130 years ngo, and tho particular
feature about tbein Is that the caacs, al-
though manufactured In Englaud, were
sent out to the Far Bast to be enriched
with mother-o' pearl and generally dec
orated. These arc very much wanted at
tbe present time, and such a clock In
good preservation would sell easily for
several hundred dollnra. One word of
caution may be given to the speculator In
grandfather elocka. At all costs avoid
"grandfathers" which only go for 3D
hours; there are many of these about,
and altiiouih they are old, yet they are
worth very little.
Many kinds 'of candlesticks commonly
adorn the mantelshelf In the cottage
These, If of brass, are not worth very
ti 1 h. even though old. The searcher
should keep Ids eyes open for those
known ns Sheffield" fnake. These are
always In g'ood request, especially If ho
shape Is elegant. Tills kind of candle-
stick was as n rule made of eopper and
then plated with sliver, and tb* red rolor
of the former metal may be generally
discerned at the worn edges. If not, a
tiny portion of the article scraped with a
penknife will reveal the nature of the ma-
terial underneath. The mere hitt of thn«*
Sheffield ■candlesticks being In a dirty con-
dition does not tako awray from th* valus
ut all nnd. Indued, Is likely to enhance It
ns being In some *ases a sign ot gr t
age.
Of course, vlollna ar* rather difficult
things for tbe amateur buyer to value,
and before specalatlng to any extent It la
wise to engage In some small course of
study a* to the varlona makers.
Still, one cannot go far wrong In rlaklng
j two or three dollars on any old violin,
j Not so very long,ago un old violin was
mentioned In the I<ondon papers an hav-
ing beeu picked up at a conntry auction
j sal* for about |8. This turned out to
' be n "Paganlnl." Of course, It sold
easily afterwards for an Immense sum -
moning Into thousunds of duilsrs. It
may be instructive to mention that tb*
( i a me of the maker of the violin of repute
I Is us tin ly to be seen ot^tbe Inside of ths
Icase, looking through one or other of the
curious "8" shaped hole« which appear
on tbe face of the Instrument.
The appraising of the value of pletur*a
| Is a thing of Itself, but a Uttl* study of
the works of loum of the great painters
j will soon give tbe treasure-hunter iuf-
flclent knowledge to prevent belug douo.
| Most particularly one should be on the '
lookout for small water-color paintings
1 i-y Biicb a man as Mason, for Instance.
These are often somewhat insignificant
to look at, and yet worth,a great deal
i of money. A chs,. In point is thnt which
' happened to a friend of the wrlter'a. A
| small water OOiOr plcfcue gbOQt six inches
square waa picked up tor $2. The
vsrsd it wss by a eels-
J sold It lo s dealer In
It Is known thst there
■ r of Turner's pictures
f the country, and ths
il of n'nny other famous
lucky buyer dlsc<
bra ted pali.ttr
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Greer, Frank H. The Oklahoma State Capital. (Guthrie, Okla.), Vol. 17, No. 252, Ed. 1 Sunday, February 4, 1906, newspaper, February 4, 1906; Guthrie, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc126019/m1/4/: accessed April 25, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.