Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1876-09-29

FARM DEVASTATED IN AN HOUR.
From the New York Times.


From the New York Times.
The following is from private letter to
a gentleman IN this city.
SALINE CoUNTY, Kan, Sept. 5. lS76.-
Ny Dear Father To-day lost 60 acres of
wheat, eaten INTO the ground in less than
an hour. | thought | had seen locusts two
or three years ago, but | was mistaken.
At about 10 o. clock this morning | no
ticed a heavy smoke rising in the west.
said 10 myself, that Is stranger-looking
smoke What causes it2 / sat on my
wheat drill and watchedit il. Rapidly II arose
SMOKE rising to the south, to the north
to the northeast In few minutes the
column of smoke extended from the south
around by the west TO the northeast-to the
extreme vision. While | was saying to my
self, Yes, | understand you now." my
heart sank slowly. Unhtching my team,
put my full wheat sacks IN the wagon,
hitched to it, drove to the granary, unload
ed, drove to the house got my gun. and went
prarle-chlcken shooting. My vile locke Il
at me in mild surprise. Quitting work on
a-5eautiful day to 20 shooting was queer
thing, she thought. did not have the
heart TO tell her that IN less than four
hours her nice garden would be cleaned out
and that all our wheat would be gone.
Soon the low hum, as of distant threshlng
machine, filled the air-the advance, OF the
lOcusts. Louder, louder, ever louder the
hum, till IN roar the countless billions OF
deyourers were on US, all around US. Ihe
air was stiff with them. | could look at
the sun without blinking. They settled
constantly. The earth was covered with
them, yet not one IN thousand stopped.
To the east they went IN vast cloud. a
west wind, gale, blew them. For six
hours they flew, solid cloud ard tonight
there is not wheat plant LETT in any OF the
counties about here. | sat on hill and
watched them, and smiled as | saw some
huIdreds tackle a snntOwer, and laughed
as | saw that sunhower vanish. How thick
they were How harmless they looked :
but, great Jove, how they ate All what
appetltes they. Ii would make dSspeptic
turn green with envy to see the way they
fasten TO anything and everything edible.
| The characteristic of grasshoppers ap-
| petite is, that all he eats runs to appetite.
| Sixty acres of my wheat was up. Now 1t
| Is down-the outlets of the l0custs. | sup
pose they will take the residue as 1t comes
/ through the ground. Well, shall have
to re-seed, that is all. Bat loss OF seed and
! labor IS pretty sore on me this year. |
have JOY in saying that | have 80 acres OF
corn that will try their teeth somew hat. 1t
/ is as hard as corn can be. | walked down
this afternoon to see how they wero making
out with it. They had the stalks all strip
ped Of leaves, and were saving at the corn.
But could see that 1t was no go. Their teeth
slipped over the bright yellow surface.
have gone to haying again, and will hay
until the locusts leave. Sull keep three
plows running, and will re-secd as soon as
possible. Our garden is perfectly cleared :
beans, cabbages, tomatoes, melons, every
thing utterly gone. The vines TO the to-
matOes are gone. and am expecting boss
hopper up here at any minute to request
the loan of spade to dig up my potatoes
with. | shall refuse his request with scorn.