Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1881-07-07
Insects killing Insects.

1t is often found that human interior
ence. with the arrangements of animal
life does more harm than benefit. Many
u time the destruction of birds as the
supposed foes of the farmer has left the
ground free for the worse devastations
of unchecked insect life. In a recent
article, commenting on some of Sir
John Lubbock's chronological observa-
tions, the writer says:
"While men have been devising
scientific schemes for the amelioration
of insect plaques, and fondly imagining
that upon ourselves has rested the bur-
den of keeping the animal world within
proper limits, the insects themselves
have taken the matter in hand and
been actively carrying into effect the
plans and suggestions which, IL left TO
us. would never have got beyond the
preliminary stages of consideration. In
the orchard the fruit farmer watches
with lamentation the depreciation of
the wasps among his plums, and his
children come crying to him with the
tale of their sufferings. how they picked
up fallen pear and were stung by
the wasp inside. Yet all ,this time,
so naturalists tell US, there are
wasps that sting wasps and hornets that
lie in wait among the tempting fruit TO
carry off or decapitate the smaller dep
redators. In the hot summer days flies
annoy us, but it is comfort to know
that whenever they sit down on bushes
their enemies are on the watch for
them; that not only spiders catch and
eat them, but winged things of their
own kind devour them readily. The
cockroach is an abomination in kitch-
en-, but if he ventures to walk abroad
the PompiLus takes him by the nose,
and, having stung him senseless, drags
him away to some convenient chink
that serves it for n larder. The spiders
that creep about where they have no
business TO DE, and spin threads across
pathways, so as to catch the faces of
passers-by, are constantly beset by fiy
foes, who treat them with a delightful
contempt. using their fat. round bodies
to lay their eggs in, and even stor-
ing them up like apples to feed the
young flies when they are Matched.
The caterpillars that destroy our
vegetables and work havoc in the
nower garden are not the irresponsible
tyrants that they seem, for they 60 in
mortal terror OF their lives all day long,
not only from other caterpillars that eat
them. but from number of winged
creatures that take n truculent delight
in their tender bodies. The beetle which
we call cockchafer, and which in
France does almost incredible damage,
has another beetle told off to it, whose
only duty is to hunt and kill it. The
wbeat-hy, snug though il thinks itself
tucked up inside the husks Of the grain,
is found out by special ny whose
whole work in life is to lay its eggs
in the others body; and even the gall
flies inside their secret chambers, the
clover-fy hidden in the little flower.
and the wireworm under ground, are
each of them the particular objects of
pursuit and slaughter to appointed in
sects- To this complete chain OF crime
and punishment, man can add nothing.
but he can at any rate take the broad
hint which the insects give him, and
assist them to indulge their beneficial
appetites."