Clinch Valley news. [volume] (Jeffersonville, Va.) 18??-2019, 1891-05-15
QUEER BUG TALES.
sO--S CURIOUS BELIEFS lie.
G.ai;DING INSECTS.
Ants rs Big as Foxes = Firefiias,
Glow Worms, Rearhorscs
ana -Firefiics
as Illuminators.

~ 'he ioreSts Oh GUIANA dwell some
very largo and exceedingly ferocious
black ants, which thrown up hills fifteen
and even twenty feet in height. They
Will not hesitate to attack a man. and
their headquarters are usually given a
wide berth. The traveller NIalouet speaks
OF having witnessed the destruction of
one OF these fortresses and its inhabitants
IN way that was certainly extraordinary.
4 trench was dus entirely around it and
filled with dry wood, which was set fire
to simultaneously Mt all points. Then n
tram OF artillery was brought to bear
ana the hill knocked to pieces with can
non balls. The ants, seeking to escape,
were all burned in their attempt to cross
the fiery gutter. On more than one oc-
casion ants have done so much DAMAGE in
converts and elsewhere as to be formally
accommodated by the Church of Rome.
In South Africa the hill of the white
ants, known as "tcrmites," have often
been employed for purposes of torture,
the human victim being partly buried in
one of the heaps and left there until his
flesh was eaten from his bones.
a belief is, or used to be. current
among the NIormons, who suffered
grievously from the pest, that the locust
was cross between the spider and the
buffalo. In China the popular notion is
that insects of this description are
Matched by the sun from the spawn of
fishes that are left ashore by reccdlnp
waters. The history of the locust hav
ing been Il series of the greatest
calamites from which mankind suffered
1T is not surprising that they have been
looked upon for ages with superstitious
horror. By the Arabs this speech is put
into the locust's mouth "Wc are the army
of the great God, and we lay ninety nine
eggs; were the hundrcdth put forth, the
world would be ours" According to
the statement of these people, the locust
has the head of the horse, the horns of
the stag, the eyes of the elephant, the
neck OF the OK, the breast of the lion.
the body of the scorpion, the hip of the
camel, the legs of the stork, the wings of
the eagle and the tail of the dragon. A
common belief in this country is that the
wing of the insect is always marked
either with letter w, portcnding war,
or the letter p, promising peace. Di-
odrus Siculus, who lived about COB. c.,
described tribe of locust caters in
Ethiopia, who were accustomed to pro-
cure their yearly supplies of food by set
ting much combustible material aiire in
valley when the swarms of locusts
passed over, so that they were stifiied by
the smoke and fell to the ground in vast
numbers, to be subsequently gathered in
heaps with salt and so preserved. Owing
to their peculiar dict these people never
lived TO grow old, being eaten up by
maggots which bred in their flesh.
Locusts are much used for food in Africa
to-day. Flights of them are considered n
blessing by the natives in many parts
that the rain doctors are employed to
fetch them by their nominations.
In certain parts of Africa crickets are
said to constitute an article of COM
merce. People rear them, feed them in
confinement and sell them. The natives
are very fond of their music, thinking
that it induces sleep. Superstitions re-
garding the cricket's chirp are very va
ried. Some believe that it is ominous
of sorrow and evil, while others consider
it to be a harbinger of Joy.
One of the most curious of insects is
the mantis or "rcarhorse," which is so
common in Washington. The popular
beliefs are familiar rs to its powers of
prophecy and other supernatural attri
butes. Presumably the notion as to its
supposed sanctity is derived from its ia
voritc "praying" attitude. If girl
takes mantis to the junction of three
roads and asks it from which direction
her lover will come it will respond truly.
When the insect kneels it sees an angel
in the way. Surprising that 1t lights
upon your hand, you are about to make
the acquaintance of distinguished per-
son. If it Injuries you In any way, which
1t does but rarely, you will lose valued
friend by calumny. Never kill mantis,
as 1T bears charm against evil In the
works of Piso it Is stated that the mantis
changes into green plant of two hands
breadth. The feet are fixed into the
ground first, it is said, and from these
roots grow, SO that the animal by de-
grees becomes a vegetable. Although
this seems like an absurdity it Is in real
ity not impossible that such n thing may
have occurred, for it is true that an in
sect will sometimes, under favorable con
ditions of heat and moisture, produce
plant OF cryptogamic kind. From Ger
tain kind of caterpillar that burrows in
the ground an edible mushroom that is
very highly priced commonly grows. 1t
often happens that the chrysalis of bee,
or wasp, or cricket throws out stem
and changes in every respect into veg
etabie, though at the root the shell and
external appearance of the parent insect
are still retained. Specimens of these
vegetated animals are frequently brought
from the West Indies.
In the Argentine Republic a wcevil
known as the "diamond beetle" is in
great request for breast pins and other
ornaments. The palm weevil of the West
Indies is regarded in that country as
great luxury, fried or proiled. 1t is
eaten in the larva stage, in the shape of
big white worm, which is found in the
fan6nreef ,>ort of +bo ,,,,o1lo-