The daily gazette., 1881-07-30
"A DELAwAREAN IN THE WEST.
Grasshoppors ON the Wing Social
Life ~ IL ts-The Country I'm
General.
THE GREAT FUTURE AND THE
MISSOURI RIVER.


Correspond ance OF the Gazette.
NORTHERN NEBRASKA, July "a.
A stin northwest wind is blowing and
the terrible grasshopper is hustling
through the air. Dismayed farmers
stand with hand raised to shade the eye,
and look beneath the SUMS intense
glare at the multitude Of white specks
which glisten with malicious light In the
atmosphere. This is the bete noir Of
the farmers hope. Although the insects
which now fly are but pioneers OF the
myriads which may come, they IN them
selves are sufficient to drive sane man
crazy. Should the wind lay for half an
hour these voracious visitors would soon
tire of their aerial flight and in short
time leave but grim vestage of the grow
ing crops. Only few stragglers can be
seen-complacently seated upon the
blades Of growing corn, but at ary mo-
ment may be precipitated such mum.
ber that even the wiry slough gra' g.
would not be LETT to support animal life.
II you wish to have proper conception
Of the grasshopper plague, go down upon
one of your own marshes. just before
sunset, look into her declining rays af-
ter some luckless COW has disturbed
their peacefulness, and multiply the
number Of mosquitoes you behold by
ten thousand. This will give you some
ides Of the visiting grasshopper. Last
year there we're comparatively few, but
the sun was almost darkened by their
passing over. This year they seem to
have come from longer distance, for
they fly low and seem weary. As one
nears the ground he gives up all hope,
like q shot buzzard, and falls in q whir-
ling zig gag course. When this and
other indications are grounded the fears
that millions will halt with the falling
wind to recuperate their exhausted en-
ergies. The pious pray that tie pests
may pass on-the profane are willing 10
curse fate and 60 to work again.
The visiting grasshopper like the
"visiting statesman" the carpet-bsgger
from the East, ispeculiar. He Is unlike
the native, both In outward appearance
and desire of appetite. He lays not hold
ofthe prairie grass In his first descent
but pitches upon the most luclous and
tender of the vegetable community.
Having extracted from him or her, as
the case may be, the life blood, he goes
TO the next In the descending scale OF
goodness, and so on, until his appetite
yearning for fresh fields carries him up
ward and onward again. If the wind
blows too hard for the grasshopper he
takes to wing again, although he has not
devoured all the luscious and tender tit
bits lust so with visiting statesmen and
jack LEG lobbyists. have seen political
crows fy towards what their own Sim
stincts told them was csrrion, and turn,
stung by the vigorous kick of the live
horse, to some more coDgenial cline.
When grassheppers light upon the bar
renclime they remain but short time
leave or wallow in the dust and die.
When these grasshoppers gather to-
gether. head to head, upon the new
est, freshest part Of some growing
plant and there chew the substance,
and deposit tier green scum-like
saliva upon the nude stems, they re-
mind me of that class of women (thank
God it includes but portion of the
fair sex) who fock together about
three times a week, ordinarily, and
more than seven times, extraordinarily
and there chew the reputation Of some
luckless creature until in has no more
taste in it than a rinsed dish rag, saw,
that which it contracts from their owl
deposit of saliva.
But at present we are not troubled
with these all.devoring eeeatures II
any great extent nor are we will
gossippipg women or jacksegget
lobbyists, hence let us 60 in the socia
| life Of Nebraskans-fr0ntier Nebras
kans--and talk about the country il
general and its great future and on
great agricultural interests-if onl.
facilities for transportation were open
ed up-every thing is great In th
West-evpn grasshoppers are great.
| Socially we live like all people o.
the frontier. Our houses small, i'll
ventilated, in 30 far as we take it as
prec Iutionary movement against tn
laccumuation of vitiatlng gasses, bu
sufficiently perforated, indeed, If W
wish to gaze on the starry constells
tioI, which A. Tennyson llkens unit
a silvery veil or to behold the nigh
hawk which fits silently and swl
about eur chambers apex or to gat
, er inspiration for our dreams from th
big rain-drops which refresh sleel
and $50 on" said our houses wei
small ; yes, and sleeping promiscuou
ly indalged but the rules of proprie'
and chaste decorum are as rigidly a.
: hered to as in the most capacio'
Eastern home. OF course some inco
yenience attends this order Of thin
and the modesty of an aesthetic.
oysr-delicate individual shocked b.
in the course Of q few months del
q cieus oblivion seizes upon you, yo'
soul is not narrowed by passing even
as much as in o country where 9
slumber of the sexes is divided
bolts and barred doors. The ina
goodness and virtue of man assum
It's proper functions and suppoi
him in the character Of a gentlem
more than all the superficial art
modern society in countries groI
;, prudish by an accumulation OF nj
l. distinctions. Any time after dark
ss the hour to retire and before bro
I -aA L.