The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1891-08-21
BUGS ON THE TRACK.
They Swarm in q Quarry and Stop
a Locomotive.
Thousands Of the Insects Crushed Be
meath ths Iron Wheels with Re
ports Resembling TX
ploding Torpedoes.

Southeast of Brighton Corners on the
Lacl5awanna railroad are extensive
limestone Quarries which have been IN
operation for many years and have
penetrated deeply into the rock, says
Syracuse correspondent of the New
York Tribune Through the cut thus
made and into the quarries a branch
track has been laid from the Iacka-
wanna road for the hauling OF the
hcwn stone. Night work being neces-
sary large part of the time, an arc
light has been placed high over the
track of the darkest part of the cut
Several ears were loaded for shipment
and left on the switch pending the
observance OF Memorial day. At night,
in preparation for drawing the cars out,
the electric light was put in and an
engine with the necessary crew left the
citv for the quarries. What was the
surprise OF all hands upon reaching the
scene of operations TO find the track
beneath the electric light completely
thronCed with strange insects OF great
size. some of them lying perfectly still in
punches and some of them playing q sort
ofleap-frog game. They covered a space
of not less than sixty feet along the
=
the occupied territory they grew fewer,
rs the rays of light began to grow dim
mer These picllets- or sllirmishers,
were one and all of a most lively dispO-
sition, and ran over the ground with
that lightniuglille rapidity which char
acterizcd the movements Of the electric
light bugs that made their appearance
all over the country soon after the sys-
hasgTr0t ~
eral adoption in cities.
The locomotive continued on its way,
and as the drivers rolled over the in
sects the insects died with a cracking
sound like the successive explosions of
toy tOrpedOes. But this was at the be-
ginning of the swarm. As the iron
monster plowcd its way along the bugs
became more numerous and the crack
ling grew to n mOnOtOnous din, as
though some firccraclzer stOrchOuse had
been touched of in n hundred places,
until in the thick Of the swarm the en-
CINE was brought to a stop, the drivers
refusing to catch on the now slippery
rails, creased by the crushed and
slaughtered bugs. An examination of
the insect, showed a rescTl lblance to the
electric-light bug, though they are
somewhat larger than those bugs, the
outer shell OF the back being about the
size and shape Of half a shanghai-eEg
shell. II was this turtlcIike armor
with which the insects are equipped
that made the cracking sound as the
wheels passed over them. The shell is
black and partalzos of the nature Of
stone. having Il slatcy structure and
being brittle. This property of the
shell set the more thoughtful people to
thinking and observing, and after a
time search along the sides Of the cut
revealed innumerable small holes in the
rock. which seemed to have been bored
into it by some agency not that of man,
and in them were traces Of n peculiar
ovula sorlc Matched and some apparent
ly blighted. An cruGite recluse whose
abode is in the ncighbOrhood of the
quarrics had by this time appeared for
news of the strange occurrence had
spread rapidly His opinion was that
the bugs that blocked the track were
the issue Of a rare species of hthodome, a
rocll-borins moLusk-crossed with some
kind OF predatory insect, To secure
tne shipment OF the freight 1t became
necessary to let the loaded train from
above in the quarry come down the
grade Of the cut. Gathering momentum
all the time its impetus when it came
TO the obstruction carried it by the
burs