Knoxville Whig and chronicle. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1875-1882, 1875-05-05
NO. 1878
BUFFALO CHATS.
over Three Hundred Horses and
Mules Killed In shelby County.

D
Mules Killed I'm shelby Comfy.
The Memphis appeal of Thursday
says:
Buffalo gnats are killing large
amount OF stock in this and adjoining
river counties. Over three hundred
head OF mules, horses and cattle have
been killed i'm Shelby county, and the
loss from the attacks of these insects is
larger than was caused by the epizootic.
Mr.. John Oshbrook, worthy gentle
man of the sixth district, has lost all
of his stock. On one farm nine mules
were killed in one day, and on another
eleven. One planter, in order to pro-
tect his stock from the gnats, built
fire, but the sparks from this fell upon
his hay and fodder stacks and they
were consumed. In Fayette county
between two and three hundred head
Of stock have been killed within the
last few days, and it is now feared that
the planters throughout the lowlands
will be caused severe loss.
The Memphis Ledger publishes q
letter from planter near Macon, Fay
cite county, which says: mot less
than 200 horses and mules have died
during the past three days within ten
miles of this place. / went down to
my farm yesterday, distant six miles,
and counted thirty-seven dead on the
way. / have lost four on my farm,
and DR.. Hunter five, while some plan
tiers have lost "a high as thirty head.
1t looks like starvation to people
without money Some Of the farmers
will be compelled to turn out part of
the crop planted, as they have no
money to replace the stock.n
Their Ravages aud what They Are
The Memphis avalanche of Friday
says:
In consequence of destruction of
stock by buffalo gnats, the mule trade
Is at present the most active branch of
business in the city. There is scarcely
n farmer in this vicinity but what has
lost one or more mules, and as we are
in the midst of the planting season,
they are in much the same predica-
ment as the gopher hunter-it is mules
or no crops.
! The Appeal of the same date says:
| The ravages of the buffalo gnats daily
grow more severe. Yesterday 1t was
annoying to walk along many of the
| thoroughfares as the insects were to be
met with in swarms. 1t is feared that
much stock will be killed throughout
this country, and that IA serious draw
back may result to the planting inter-
| ests.
An editorial in The Cincinnati Ga
zette describes what these insects are
as follows:
| The buffalo gnat is credited with oc-
casoning widespread mortality
among the horses and mules of West
| Tennessee. Many farmers have lost
all their working stock at a season of
the year when they can least afford to
do without them. The bite of this in
sect seems as deadly as that of the
African tsetse, the pest of all travellers
in South Africa. Man and wild ami
mails appear to be invulnerable to the
tsetse, but camels, dogs, oxen, and
horses can not long survive its attacks.
In one expedition DR.. Livingstone
! lost forty-three oxen from this cause.
He was inclined to believe that the ass
was biteproOf,, but the experience of
his last journey convinced him that he
was in error. The donkey, though
not so susceptible as some of the other
animals above mentioned, still sue
cumbs before the little brown fly with
yellow stripes. Its proboscis pierces
! the skin of its victims, and draws
thence plentiful supply of blood.
| No special harm at first seems to have
been done, but in few days the eyes
and nose of bitten animal begin to
run; swelling makes its appearance
/ under the jaw HE muscles grow weak,
and finally Ihr digestive organs are
di-ordered aud death soon follows.
| When dissected, the cellular tissue I'M
der the skin is found to be injected
! with air, as II soap bubbles were scat
/ tered over il. We have not yet re-
ceived full details of the operations Of
the Tennessee insect, but whatever it
is, its ravages are quite like those Of
! the tsetse.