Smyrna times., 1885-02-11
WHOLE NO. l,547.
NEW ORLEANS MOSQUITOES

Parson Heckmen, a Dallas clergy
man, who enjoys the reputation of
being somewhat forid in his language
has returned from brief trip to New
Orleans.
" How did you enjoy yourself at the
New Orleans expOsitiOnP" asked
George Stecketee
THE exposition is grand. Every
body ought to go and see it. I,liked it
very much. The saloons are superb,
and the eating is the best l ever had.
just lived on gumbo soup while was
there, but there was one drawback"
What was that ?"
1.-THE mosquitoes? They are the
worst l ever saw. You get into all
kinds of trouble until you get used to
them. They even stop the street cars"
replied Parson Hickman.
Now look here That is coming it
just a little too strong. I've heard of
grasshoppers being so numerous as to
stop railroad trains, but l draw the
line at grasshOppers. Nobody, not
/ even if he is a clergyman, can make
me believe that mosquitoes can stop
the street cars"
"They do it all the same. You see
the mosquitoes attack people on the
streets. The pedestrians, of course,
are compelled to defend themselves.
/ They strike at the mosquitoes with
/ their hands or try to shoe them away
/ with their handkerchiefs, or they
+ would be eaten up. The people ON
/ the sidewalks are kept so busy with
their handkerchiefs and making mo-
tiuns with their hands, that the drivers
are deceived, and stop the cars every
few yards, thinking that the people on
/ the sidewalks are hailing the cars get
ON board. 4 conductor is bounced if
he doesn't stop car as soon as he is
signalled. 1t took car | was in half
an hour to make one block Most of
the passengers got out and walked.
That's the way the mosquitoes stop the
cars. OF course, | didn't mean that
the mosquitoes lifted the cars off the
track
Well, that's something new to me-
That's nothing. You know Henry
Tours He was in New Orleans when
was there. He got himself into II
peck of trouble on account of the mos
quitOes. lie was in the hands of a
doctor for three days, and he walks on
I
man he is, and how polite he is to the
fair sex? Well, the very day he got
there lady on the street waved her
handkerchief across the street. Henry
Immediately went up and began to
converse. She hit him a lively whack
on the bridge of his nose with her par
a>ul and screamed. Her husband
came out of Il cigar store where he had
! been getting cigar and falling upon
: Henry, nearly telescOped him with his
= fist and boot. The lady was only
shaking her handkerchief to keep OIL
the mosquitoes. Tours was not think
, ing about the mosquitoes at the time
= Almost every day some prominent Wis
itOr from the North is taken to the
4 mOrgue on shutter, all owing to the
:, mosquitoes. There are several Ofthem
:, tell you they are SO quick that mar
} with seventeen hands could not keeI
= them off,"
~ Parson, don't you exaggerate .
= little ?''
u No sir, not bit. l should sa,
= there were billions of them to thl
d cubic inch. When l first arrived a
u New Orleans, l imagined that som,
= very exciting news had just been re
- ceived. l saw groups of men VIII,
- appeared to be labOring under mos
- terrible excitement. They were gestic
:. ulating in a most eXtravagant manne
= as if they were on the opposite sides il
= politics. never saw such elOquenc
: either on the stage or in the pulpit
-. They were really all on the mos
- friendly terms in the world, and wer
y merely frightening off the mosquitoes.
a 8 Do they bite severely ?"
~ "They are very ravenOus, indeed
= In fact they bleed a stranger NOR
IL than the hotel and boarding hOus
b. % keepers do"
u, Can nothing be done to abate tn
10 nuisance ?"
~ Every remedy has been tried br
le in vain. 1 heard before l left Ne
~ Orleans that the city authorities wer
" training pelicans to catch them, but
IL" don't know how that will work.
,o saw some of the pelicans myself" sal
w ParSOn Hickman.
li Parson, if you make one more tr
81 to New Orleans, people will belieN
Nv Nv You are connected with the press"
y" That's all right. Lets hunt up
.A' saloon and have a drink. Ten
,1 90 .SiftiHgS.