Nashville patriot. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1858-1860, 1859-06-20
The Locusts--Cfcada. Tredium, or
SeptemdecIm.

The locusts appear in Mississippi and sew
eral of the Northwestern States eUery thirteen
gears; hence the specific name ] have given
them; that is. in each locality they emerge
from the earth every thirteen years. There
are many districts of them. In some they
appear in one year, in other at other years.
Last year they appeared in Mississippi west
of the dividing ridge; this year east of that
ridge. The eggs deposited in the branches of
trees this year will hatch in July. The young
insects fall to the earth. make their way into
it, seek nourishment by tapping up the mois-
ture from the surface of the vegetable roots
and from the earth. cause particles of earth
to adhere around them by viscid humor
| they exude, and thus form little cells in which
they remain. AS they grow larger these cells
are enlarged, but they never leave them I'M
| til the time arrives to emerge from the earth.
Externally these cells do not differ in appear
ance from ordinary humps of earth; hence
they are never discovered unless some are
broken open by the spade that exhumes them,
the plough rarely going deep enough to
throw them mp. They undergo no changes
during the thirteen years except TO grow IN
| size. They never descend deeper in the earth
| than the bottom of the vegetable soil. where
| they may always be found in the interval by
spading from fifteen to twenty-four inches
deep, and carefully breaking and examining
the Jumps of earth thrown up. mean OF
course in places under trees, where they were
a previous season. Each insect is IN per-
/ fectly solitary state during the whole of the
thirteen or seventeen years. There is
| never but one in each cell, and, though
| the cells may be within an inch of each
| other, there is never any Intercourse
between them. They always emerge from
| the earth at the same place they descended.
| About the LIST of March of the year they are
| to emerge they leave their cells full grown,
| and begin to dig passage to the surface,
packing the displaced Garth behind or below
| them, and extracting all nutritious moisture
| from it. On arriving within half an inch of
| the surface they form an arched roof over the
| hole, which is now six or eight inches deep,
| to keep out surface water. In this chamber
they remain until the day and hour for final
exit arrives, exactly thirteen years from the
time their parents emerged previously. They
then. at the first dawn of daylight, leave the
earth. seek the first object that offers, post
or fence. tree or shrub, and, ascending foot
or two, cling closely to it till the air dries
their shells, which they then rupture on the
back at the shoulders of the wings, gradually
draw themselves out of it, cling to the old
shell till they have expanded and dried their
wings, and, by the time the sun has fairly
risen and shed its rays fully upon them they
are ready for flight. In few days the males
commence their peculiar music, and in a few
days more the females commence the work If
depositing their eggs in the branches aud
limbs of trees and shrubbrry. In three or
four days more the males and females die
They do not all leave the earth at the same
time. If they first emerge on the 18th OF
April there will be an Increased number
every day till the 23d of April, and then a
decline every day till the Both of April. The
reason there is such diversity Of opinion
about their periodical appearance arises from
the fact that there are numerous faHtlies OF
them, each occupying distinct district OF
country. and each having its own years for
emerging. | have on my recO d. some forty
districts of country occupied by them, each
separate and distinct from all others, and
some emerging at one time and some at au-
other, so that every year, except three, they
appear IN some of them. All the I0cuSts south
| of Tennessee and west of middle OF Georgia
are of the thirteen years, and all north and
east of that line are of the seventeen years
varieties.
Respectfully, GIDEON B. SMITH.