Oxford Democrat

COAL OIL FOR INSECTS. A gentleman formerly connected with coal oil business in this city, tells us that several years ago, in taking a lot of sample bottles of oil on a journey for exhibition, he accidentally had a bottle broken, saturating the sawdust in which the bottles were packed. When he arrived at his stopping place, he put the sawdust at the foot of a plum tree, it being about the time of the blossoming of the plum trees. The result was watched, and it turned out that the curculio which ravaged the other plum trees in the orchard, gave this one a wide berth, and the plums were saved to ripen.

This circumstance led to further experiments, with like favorable results. The sawdust thus saturated-which can be done with the cheapest kind of coal oil-retains the odor for a long time, which is offensive to the fastidious tastes of the little Turk. The borer also will not put his gimlet into the trunk of a tree which is encircled with this stuff. [Ohio Farmer.