Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1853-10-19
The Great Worm Story.

A recent work purporting to give truthful his
tory of Coos County, New Hampshire, contain
the following account of the greatest "Dlet
Worms' that was ever known in the annals q
the world-at least we have never met, in ou
reading, anything that would compare with it,
The ARMY OF WORMs.-In the summer @
ITO the whole section of country was visited b.
an extraordinary calamity such one as this coun
try never experienced before or since, beyond wha
| shall hero specify 1t was an army Of worm
which extended from Lancaster, N. H., to Nofth
field, Mass. They began in the latter part July
l770, and continued their ravages until Septem
ber The inhabitants denominated them th'
'Northern Army" as they seemed to advance
from the North to the Northwest, and to pass eas
and south, although did not learn that they eve
passed the highland between the Connecticut aRt
the Merimac rivers. They were altogether in
Vulnerable for multitude DR.. Burton, of Thet
ford, Vt, told me that no had seen pastures SC
covered that he could not put down his finger In
single spot, without placing it upon worm. de
said he had seen more than ten bushels in heap
They were unlike anything the present genera
ton had ever SEEM There was stripe upon the
back like velvet; on either side yellow stripe
from ends to end; and the rest of the body was
brown. They were sometimes seen not larger
than pin; but in their. maturity they were seen
as long as mans finger, land proportionately large
in circumference.
| They filled the houses of the inhabitants, and
entered their kneedsg troughs, as did the frogs OF
Egypt. They would go up the sides of the hous-
es, and cover it in such compact column, that
nothing of the boards and shingles could be seen.
They did not take hold of the pumpkin vines,
peas, potatoes or flax; but wheat and corn disap-
peared before them as by magic. They would
climb the stalk of wheat, cut them off below the
head. and almost as soon as the head fell to the
ground, it was devoured. To prevent this, the
men would 'draw the rope" as they termed 1t;
that is two men would take a rope, one at each
end and pulling from each other until it was near
" Strengthened, they would then pass through the
wheat fields, brush off the worms, from the stalks,
and by perpetual action they retarded the distruc
ton of their wheat, but it was doomed finally to
extinction.
There were fields of corn on the meadows in
Haverhill and Newbury VT, standing so thick,
large and tall that in some instances it was diff
cult to see man standing more than one rod in
the field from the outermost row. But in ten days
from the appearance of the "Northern army"
nothing remained of this corn but the bare stalks.
Every expedent was resorted to by the inhabitants
to protect their fields of corn, but in Vain They
dug trenches foot and a half deep, hoping this
might prove defence but the bitches were soon
| filled. and the millions that were in the rear
went over on the backs of their fellows in the
trench. and took possession of the interdieied food
About the first of September, the worms sud
denly disappeared, and where they terminated
their earthly career is unknown, for not the car
cass of a worm could be seen. In just eleven
months afterwards, in 1881, the same kind OF
worm made its appearance again, and the fears
of the peope were much excited, but they were
comparatively few in number, and none of the
kind have ever been seen since.
This visitation, which destroyed the principal
grains for that year, was felt severely by all the
settlements for it not only cut of their breadstus,
but deprived them of the means of making pork 10
great degree, and reduced their quality of fodder
for their cattle. The settlements at Harverhi
and Newbury did not feel this calamity quite 50
much as those infant settlements in the towns north
and south of them. They had been longer in their
settlements, had some old stock of provisions, and
had the means to procure supplies from Charles
town, or by the way of Charestown. Jonathan
TYLER of Piermont, related to me that the settle
ments In that town were left without the means
of subsistence from their own farms.
His father drew hay on a hand sled upm the
ice from the great ox-bow, to support his cow the
following winter. And had it not been for two
sources open for their support they must have de-
serted the town. One was the extraordinary crop
of pumpkins in Haverhill and Newbury. The
corn being cut off, and the pumpkins remaining
untouched by the worms. they grew astonishing
| ly, and seemed TO cover the whole ground where
the corn had stood, and the yield was the largest
ever seen.
The people of Haverhill and Newbury gave the
settlers of Permont the privilege of carrying of
gratis as many pumpkins as they would. They
went up,rnade kind of raft ,and transported them
by water to Piermont. The raft was simply an
enclosed space made by four timbers, within
which the pumpkins floated on the water. II
was towed by men in a skiff.
Another source of support was open to them in
the immense number Of pigeons which Provl-
dence sent them Immediately on the disappearing
of the "Northern Army" Nothing could equal
their number, unless it was the worms that had
preceded them. TIE Tylers, of Piermont, Da-
vid, Daniel and Jonathan commenced taking pig
cons on the meadow west of Haverhill corner
and in the space of ten days,they had taken more
than four hundred dozen. They carried them tc
Piermont, and made "bee" for picking pigeons
and two or three times week the people of Hav.
erhl were invited down to Mr.. Tyler's to pick
pigeons. Those who went had the bodies of al
they picked, the Tylers having the feathers, ant
they made, says Jonathan Tyler, -four decent bed:
of those feathers. The bodies Of these pigeons
when dressed, dried and preserved for the winter
were very palafable and nutritious, and proved
good substitute for other meats-Power'S Htstorl
Of Coos.
ONE HAPPY HRARr-Have you made or,
happy heart to-day? Envied privilege! How
calmly Won can seek your pillow; how sweetll