caterpillar makes its way to the newly-formed
boll, and applying itself vigorously, very soon gains an entrance. Here
it rests for a time, eating away at the best it can find. It ultimately
emerges and is transformed into the pupa, taking up its quarters in the
ground, until the next change takes place, when in a week or two's time
it appears as a moth much the same in size as its cousin the Alethia,
but coloured ochre yellow to dull olive-green and being more varied in
its markings. It will lay during one season about 500 eggs.

Many remedies have been applied for the extirpation of this particular
insect, but these only seem to have met with partial success. It will
readily be seen how much more difficult this pest is to deal with than
the preceding one. Living as it does in the boll and in the ground for a
great part of its existence, it will be exceedingly difficult to get
at.

In Mexico what is known as the Cotton-Boll Weevil (_Anthonomus grundis_)
appears to do great mischief to the Cotton plant. It does most damage
during the larvae stage, eating up the tender portions of the boll while
in residence here. When matured it is only a little under half an inch
in length.

Many other insects act injuriously upon the Cotton plant, but the
following may be taken as the chief: Cotton Cutworm (_Feltia malefida_);
Cotton lice (_Aphis gossypii_). Among the lepidoptera may be mentioned,
_Cocaecia rosaceana_, or "Leaf-roller," so called from its habit of
curiously rolling the leaves of the Cotton plant and then feeding inside
the roll. Then grasshoppers and locusts occasionally do some damage, as
well as a beetle named _Ataxia crypta_, which is noted for attacking the
stalks of the Cotton plants, but it should be pointed out this beetle
does not prey upon healthy and vigorous plants at all.

Scores of other insects could be mentioned as injurious, though some of
them do but very slight damage indeed to the Cotton plant.

It does appear, however, from long years of experiment and observations,
that little damage needs to be feared if the plants, while growing, and
during the formation of the boll, can be carefully watched and guarded.
The plants when matured are better able to withstand the onslaughts
which these predaceous insects make upon them.

Then again, there are large numbers of physiological diseases of the
cotton due to inherent weakness of the plant or failure of assimilative
processes.

And lastly, vast nu