The Wichita city eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1872-1883, 1877-08-30
Investigating the Hopper.

Professor C. V. Riley, Of the United
States chronological Commission,
who arrived here on Friday, has been
to the extreme western part of Hen
nepin county. Being DESTROYS of as
pertaining the exact eastern limit of
the injury, he drove through the
country with Mr.. r. j. Mendenhali.
He does not intend to spend much
time in the State, which belongs to
the territory allotted to Professor
Thomas, but leaves this morning for
Fort Garry, whence he intends to ex-
plore the Saskatchewan country as far
as time will permit this season. The
vast plain regions of British America,
TO the northwest of us. are believed by
the Professor to he the principal
source of the more disastrous swarm-
that Overrun our country. For the
past three months he has been in the
field in Texas, Kansas, Missouri and
Iowa, and his views are we'll worth
knowing.
To the question SO repeatedly asked
"What has become Of the flying grass
hOppers? Professor Riley replied that
they have, for the most part. been
lost to view in the northern, little iu-
habited part of the State, and that
they have been dropping i'll scattering
numbers all over the country diseased
parasitic and dying. Events have
fully justified what he wrote last
spring as TO what would be the des-
tiny of the winged insets, which APP
pears as follows in his ninth report of
the State of Missouri
ss'Tbo "a; unoh inca.ts On tka ran
trary, will take their departure in
nOrtherly or northwesterly direction
at least this will be the prevailing
direction of those which rise during
the months of May aud June. The
course of those which rise later may
net be so constant. Those that escape
from the many vicissitudes that will
befall them in the Mississippi valley,
and which are free from disease or
parasites when they start, will, in all
probability, eventually reach the ex
IRENE northwest, and be largely lost
to view beyond our northern bOun-
Diary. They will not fly eastward SO
as to do any serious damage beyond
the line"
AS to the danger of further injury
this fall from fresh flyers, Professor
Riley re-iterates what he has on vari-
Gus occasions written during the sum
mer. There are, from all the facts
yet gathered, no insects of any conse-
quence to the northwest to fall upon
us as they did last year, and those
that left Minnesota lately toward the
south, passed over Iowa, and are now
passing over Kansas, dropping thinly
on the way and doing no particular
harm. To quote from his recent let
ter to the Colorado Farmer
"There is a constant struggle for
supremacy between the plant feeder
and its carnivorous enemies. The
Rocky Mountain locust got the upper
hand during the excessively dry sea-
sons of the early part of the present
decade, and has been so numerous for
the past three or four years that its
enemies have rioted in plenty, and at
last, in their turn, have increased in
ordinately. Nature maintains
her average in the long run, and few
seasons of drouth and locusts are apt
to be followed by period of more
rainy seasons and locdst decrease"
The Professor says that the COM
mission have accumulated vast
amount of interesting and valuable
information, and that their report
will be ready by the end of the year.
While it will be impossible to accom-
plish all that is necessary the present
season with the limited appropriation
at their disposal, they are determined
to do work that shall be creditable
and useful, even if the investigation
should not be continued by the next
Congress. The Professor expressed
himself in terms of praise OF Governor
and considers that he has
not only done much TO encourage aDd
relieve the farmers of the State, but
that the creation of this commission
OF investigation was largely due to his
eHorts.-.St. Paul Press.