The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1891-02-13

49,. Nav Now be- Found "a Walk
Through the Woods-
Y, = winter day. when the serc land
..... n .nliyened by an uncloudcd sun,
q, NJ. genial rays tempt the reader 70 .
..nJl n the Pennsylvania woods. lie
NAV Ne cheercd by no bird song; no
,,Iants except few evergreen leaves
imav hightcn his path; but insect life
,.;il ~ there 10 welcome him,
ql,o>. merricst Of dancers. the gnats.
-,n,. forth from the moist earth al the
~all IL the sun. Mosqnito-like. they
,sx. passed their immature life in the
eater and the cases Of the little wiring
,ers Are ready 10 burst open and liber-
s,e the winged insects whenever the
I'm peeps forth from the clouds. This
nav occur on sunny day. even when
,be temperature Of the air is far below
the freezing point
Arctic explorers tell ms that as far
north As they have gone. away up in the
III fields Of Greenland. even where
,hsrc Is no vegetation. these gnats or
species 50 closely resembling them that
oply naturalists can detect the differ
ense. are found dancing on wing in the
sunlight or clinging to the sides Of boats
and sledgcs-
A. We continue our walk through the
winter woods we turn over log and
find crawling about beneath il small.
hack beetles. few tough-skinned.
hara.headed grubs, and now and then a
spaer. II the sun shines brightly. even
though snow may lie deep on the
ground. wasps will be tempted forth
from crevices OF bark in which they
have lain dormant with the cold. and
After becoming thoroughly warmed
tey win take wing through the woods.
4 butterfly known as the mourning
cloax richly dressed in brown and blue
velvet. bor.lcrcd with gold. comes forth
nom its snug retreat when tho winter
sun i. bright and wings its way through
the woods a. gayly as he would in mid
.nmmcr His hiding place has been Ia
,te w:nd-craclSs Of an old chestnut tree
81 bunch ~ clinging leaves. lie may
hc seen fitting even when the snow lic>
several inches deep. Far off in the
neekr mountains and among the Alps
a Switzerland butterflies Of various
species may often be seen flying over
tie snow and glacier ice.
1--we di~placc the rustling leaves that
t6yer the ground In the woods we notice
| row ami then large black beetle run
| ling quickly from under our feet. II
snow is Oh the ground we shall not see
him. tut in its absence we shall find
him eNyn on the coolest day. He evil
d,n.ir lknows where 70 hide himself
when \, u unwclcome snow and ice APP
Wherever wood is still sufficiently
|zb1ndant 70 be used as fuel. insect life
Zyl.nes forth from rotting chunks that
W. carried in and laid near the iir,.
shen these are picked up in the woods
signs Of such life may appear. but
4ter being laid in the warm room they
Varc soon swarming with ants Some 81
them may hc 81 the large black species
and Others the smaller red ones. When
hc heat from the stove or fireplace
Breaches them they awake from the
y'eaihlike torpor into which Jack Frost
has plunged them. often too late 70 Is
cape their fate in fiery furnace
Ihi- torpor Of insects j. a very differ
lent condition from the Information Of
warm-bloodcd animals. such as the bear
and the marmot In the latter a slow
and feeble circulation and respiration
are kept mp, and the creature lives On
'Ae fat that had been stored up in its
hedy before the winter sleep came on
Different insects are affected hy cold
u very different degrees. Many. like
ne common housc-fiy. become torpid
tftorc The temperature falls 70 the
freezing point. Long before frost comes
'hey succumb - the moderate cold 81
au'umn- There is no doubt that 81
Fercly cold winters are attended with
great loss Of insect life. which in a
nader season would have survived.
Philadelphia Times.