The Brookhaven leader., 1883-03-01
The Srar! owl


The individual who in ignorant pursu.
ance of hobby INTRODUCES ! or helped &c
introduce the English 81 arrow into
America may comfort h msef with
the idea that lie hai rougbt upon his
country an infection which will cause
his name to be held il Geiesiation by
every farmer in the land. When this
wicked, tyrann.cal, Spis'', miscl:eyous
and destructive bril- was frs. introduced
tried in van 10 utter warning
| through d popular acT cultural journal.
Rut as that would have been going
against the current of popular feeling
just then my urresti, lis were sup.
pressed. and il stead tl:c Ettle p ST was
praised and u. ell aTdgoOd 20 nts at
| iribntcl to him which he dill not and
never did ! osScss, While ell his evil
habits we're ion ,rcl. IL is almost Ger.
tain that the Cnly service which ho was
| believed to have crforH el was in no
! case his work, but the result OF natural
agencies, which are always o. e'ative to
reduce the number of insect PESTS when
| they, at times, lccUme unusually
numerous The sparrow was brought
| here to destroy the measuring worms
| which infested the trees Of the Eastern
| cites lie came. and the worms went.
And it was supposed the sparrows de.
voured them. The present year we
have had a perfect dcluge of worms and
the trees have leeI so overwhelmed
| with them that thousands have been de-
rived of their leaves. These are the
| fall web-worms, VIII ch leave then
webs when fully grown and spread
J everywhere. They CevOur the leaves
| Of G ms, Lars, w lows, piums. cher
RES. APP les, Virginia CT eyer .;iad Other
trees aud PLANTS. ard they have swarmed
over houses and nto item so as 10 have
] cen sweg It out with the brc ON. But
nary arrow touched a worm.
On the contrary, they have been en-.
gagged in their natural work, which is
grain eating. They have broken down
the wheat and rye and deToured the
grain they have focked upon the
shocks, and have torn the grain from
the ears; they ave to open the corn
husks and have dcvoured the milky
grain, and now that the corn is in
shock they may be counted by the hun
dreds in the cOrn-i.elds still stealing
the gra II. This is their old trick, and
English farmers have been used TO hire
boys with guns and men with nets to
destroy the pests by thousands to save
their crops Aud we must soon do the
same thing.
Legislatures have passed laws pro.
tecting the e pests. urged thereto by
persons OF TIE same type as those mis-
guided and ignorant ones who have
procured laws by which farmers are
prevented from selling pure sweet
skinned milk under any circumstances
in the { it es. TO the infinite loss and det-
riment Of thousands OF poor children
who would lind in it wholesome and
cheap article of food. The farmers
should insist u on having these laws
abolished. Sparrows are not insect
eat nc birds. They devour the buds of
trees in winter and in summer devour
fruit, grain and seeds. They are, there
fore, out of the Let OF useful birds.
] hey are, however, err good eating.
] hey are always plump and fat and are
as good game as the reed birds. They
axe sold in the English. and French
markets, and are accounted delicacy
when entombed under the crust of
pie. 1t would be piety to turn them
to this use here. and as farmers are un-
doubtedly iu ,titied in savin.g their crops
from the despoilers, they can not only
do this, but secure an agreeable varia-
ton from the frequent pork and bacon
by shooting or trapping them and hav-
ing them served up in pies or rosated
in the oven. Cor. N. !. Times.