Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-06-01
THE PACIFIC COAST sCoURGE.
Millions of GrasshOppers That Are
Reared by the Glorious Climate.

Millions of GrasshOpDers That Are
Reared by the Glorious Climate.
From the San Francisco Chronicle.
1t would not be pitching the present
article in an alarmist key to say that a
large portion of the fOothill region of Cali
fornia is not only threatened, but is being
devastated by such swarms of grass
hoppers that they amount to nothing short
OF plague. The line of march has been
Westward across the centre Of the State.
All authorities and reports appear TO
agree in fixing upon the desolate wastes
of the Sierra slopes as the birthplace Of
the insects. There among the stones and
scrub the eggs lie hidden year after
year, until some peculiar climatic or
physiological condition bring them to life.
Last week an army Of grasshoppers in
vaded the agricultural lands contiguous
to Wck's, s or 10 miles from OrOyille,
on the Chico road. They annihilated 50
acres of grain in short order. GrasshOp-
pers have appeared in lone valley in such
numbers as to amount to scOurge. The
grain crop, which only promised about
half yield before, is now likely TO be
utterly ruined.
In the neighborhOOd of Latrobe and
White Rock the stencil arising from the
dead bodies Of the hoppers that clog up
the running streams is more offensive than
the worst aggregation ofslaughter houses.
The country for miles around, usually at
this time of the year covered with long
grass and bedecked with wild flowers,
presents most desOlate appearance and
looks as though it had been swept by fire.
The large farmers in that neighborhoOd
have lost their entire crop and the feed on
their pastures. Those IN the neighb0r-
hood OF White Rock and GlarksYille have
suffered equally as bad.
The grasshoppers are eating the foliage
from orange, peach and apple trees ABOUT
WyandOtte, and are also destroying the
vegetables in the gardens. The NatOma
vineyard is said to be suffering severely.
A gentleman from ROcklin states that the
California Raisin COmpany's vineyard,
near that place, has been entirely denuded
by the grasshoppers. Capt. Westcott,
the manager Of the cOmpany's property.
says that while the raisin product OF the
vineyard was last year many thousands
of dollars, the fruit Of the entire 100
acres of bearing vines Will not this
year be over $500. The destruction
is almost complete. A Sacramento
paper states that "A 10000 acre stock ranch
in the southern part OF I'll Dorado county
has been entirely denuded of everything
green, pine and willow trees stripped OF
their foliage, and in nearly every instance
the trees, vines and shrubs have been en-
tirey killed. The springs, wells, reser-
vOirs, bitches, water in troughs and
streams are filed with dead bodies of
myriads of the insects in a putrid state,
the water has became poisoned, stock re-
fuse to drink IL and the stencil arising
therefrom is nauseating IN the extreme.
In Grass valley the insects are eating
the peaches down TO the pits. In attacking
a vineyard they commence with the near
est row, and after eating the vines down
to the old wood proceed to the next.
and so on. The California and Oregon
freight train Of thirty-hye cars got stalled
abOut mile from kOseville Wednesday
night in consequence of the number Of
grasshoppers that had collected on the
track. IL was found necessary 10 cut the
train IN two, take part to Roseyille and
then go back after the remainder.
They are so thick all along the line
Of the railroad that the officials are
planning a kind OF a plow or scraper to
clear them from the rails. In one Of their
attacks on an orchard near Gait they not
only cleared of the leaves and green fruit
and dug out the pith from the tender
twigs, but also delyed down below the
surface and ate up the young roots.
Away up in the Sierra, on the mountain
meadow pastures, grassnOppers and
crickets are cleaning on the heritage and
are crOwding up 70 the retreating snow
line IN advance OF the arrival OF migratory
flOcks Of sheep. Near Stockton farmer
was 80 oyerrun with them that they not
only flled up his well, but also forced
their way into his house, which. in despair
and disgust, he was finally obliged 10 shut
up and leave.