The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1875-05-20
THE GRASSHOPPERS
EASTWARD wtND TgEIR w.


coESTRY-nsvAsTATIoN MARKS THE PATH
WAY OF THE PLAGUE.
The Chicago i lines has Specials from the
following places regarding the grssshoppers
now winging thar way eastward:
FROM PHEASANT HILL, Mo,
The grssshoppszs still devastate this
psst of the state, aa'd have eaten all the
WHEAT, corn, cats, and everything else that
has been planted, apG have totally impov-
erishsda great many farmers. Everyone
is discouraged 81 the prospect ahead. The
grassIoppers are constantly Matching the
smallest being tue size of a small fy, the
largest not quite q inch long. It is hard to
tell when they will leave. Prof Reilly,
state en50mologiss, says by the middle Of
June they will have acquired wings and fly
away either southw srd, or TO the west, from
where they came l2sf year. Their numbers
are incredible. A farmer near here had an
80 acre fiel1 of corr, six inches high, and
| in II hours they baa, eaten it entirely up.
That is one CT numbsl] l]ess instances. They
eat everything, from wheat TO goat fennel.
A great many people are lesving this vi
cfnity, and numbers would. but lack the
means.
FROM L-snasTY.
|. Millions of sIasshoppsui infest this and
adjoining couEsies. As yet they are very
small, without wings, and no general or
serious damage has besn done. Gardens
here and there have suceu mbed to over.
wheimiDg numbers. They seem TO havo
particular love fe1 clover, and very little
has escaped them Consider able timothy
has shared the same fate. The crop of
| oats has also bsen danag1d to some
extent. The corn las recei ped but little in
jury. Farmers are uneasy. but by no
means discouraged. Stock il suffering on
account of the insects clearing til pastures
Opinion is greatly divided as to how soon
| they will disappear, er how much further
damage will ensue from their visit. The
excessive cold weather greatly injured the,
| wheat in this section and our farmers will
keenIy Ieel the grasshoppers il snrther dam
ageIs done.
FROM INDE7ENDKScE-.
The srasshopper sco1rge formss5be sll-ab--
| sorbing topic of conversation n this sec
| ton. Never before was such corsternation
manifested, not even when Ewing's famous.
L" Order ~ o. IL % was promulgated, which
depopHlared this county. No ons who has
not experienced it can form any conception
! of their ravages. In many localities in this
| section the meadows, wheat, eatss and
/ clover fields, which a few days
| since presented a fms appearance to-
day are as barren as the Travelled
| highway. CorD-felds share tho same
fate. AS fast as the corn makes its appear
ance above the ground, it is cut down.
Farmers have abandoned their work, and
flock into town to talk over the mst.sr, and
| consult as 20 the best. course to ,--rsue
Many attempt to destroy them i'm various
| ways, and, after succeeding in DESTROYING
bushels and bushels, finally give up N de-
| spsi-, saying -that-tbey can hardly miss
them. The stock is absolutely starving, and
in some localities they are cutting down
| trees for thsm to subsist on. while, fnanv
Others are moving theif stock out of the
| country. The extent of this scourge, from
| the best information, cove-s an area CT about
one hundred and fifty miles in brea5kn and
thrse hundred in length.
FROM ST. JOSEPH.
| 1 give you a brief statement of tss grass
hopper depredations in this section. NY
source of information is from farmers and
other residents. The lines OF thsraid are
confined 70 district aboat 50 miles. IN width
by nearly 200 in length, taking ST. Joseph
| as the center OF the line north ard south.
That is 20 say, % miles west of here there
are no grasshoppers, andthere 8rs none as
| yet that distance east. Twenty miles north
| there are none, bus they extend south
nearly TO the state line. In this small area
of territory they are not universal, but are
| most proiific on the high lands. the grass
choppers generally desositing their eggs
Lon groundS slopiDg to ibe south.
The extreme hot weather we Asve had the
past week has had TIE effect of hatshing
them out by Millions and ir, places they
cOft- .uo SlOuuu 10 Inc OoEC1 OF Doif an
inch or more. On their first appearance
they are about the sizs OF an ordinary grain
OF wheat, and wlthin2i hours they attain
size sufficient TO enable them 70 commence
oPe1stions. We arc reliably informed that
wien they commence their line OF march,
their course is due east, and shat thSy march
in straight lines. Everythin grssr. that
comes in their way is utterly destroyed.
Wheat, oats, and corn felds, apd even
meadows, are entirely stripped OF herbage,
1 hzra 7r-o
OF acres IN this see5iol have been stripped
clean, and if they do not lake to themselves.
wings and fly away soon, there will be no
crops raised here The 1armers- n this SEQ
ton feel pretty biue, an0 not vii s-sOut reason.
FROM LEXINGTON
l A more abundant crop Of zrasshorpers
ihan any one expected is now Matching out.
AS general thing the eggs wsre deposited
\ in hill sides lying to zse south. Frora what
!, have observed they remsin where batched
> abou5 fortS-e12 hours befsve STARRING on
, the march. They then go in a body. At
! | starring they vary IN siE6 from ene-six->
teeCth to three -eigAss OF an inch in length.
They can not jump more than yar6, and
ms.ny of them not.that distance Thav move
3 slowly, passing ossr space of 90 20 loo feet
. IL day. They take everything green in
? | their way, even - dog fsnnel. In order that
you may 'udge of the quantity l give the
e Sesult oE an experiment. took my hat and
l swung 70 IN u circle scout f0ot from the
kground and caught fully pint OF
Ethem. They are noa scattered all oger the
v tcountry, but are in aroves near the batch
= ing places. In approaching a drove, you VIII
- not see it until right nron il. They persist
d iu going ons way, &ad when disturbed lump
y in that direction. I have not heard of
u drove which has travelled over half 6 mile.
D. Bot little damage has been done 10 crops as
g yet. Clover and bluegrass have suffered
a most Our wheat Was nearly ali winter
IL killed. That which was not has not been
a disturbed. With 5us few exceptions, our
II / farmers generally are going an with plant.
IS ing. Some lew hive given up, discouraged
10 Those who know In0at about the grssshop-
70 pers ssy they are in such numbers that.