The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1891-06-26
A PLAGUE THREE FEET DEEP.
Tho Terriblo Rnvagcs OF Loousts In Aus
trallA.


tralla.
| In order to check, If possible, the an
nual plague of locusts that devours the
heritage and blasts tho hopes of graz
iers, farmers and fruitgrowers to q
greater or less extent in December, the
government of Victoria, Australia, pro-
claimed November and holidays for
scholars and shoolmastcrs in tho rural
districts, in order that they might CO.
operate with the settlers in DESTROYING
tho young locusts in the early stage of
their development before they have
been equipped with wings, enabling
them to take flight over the coun-
try to begin their work of devastation.
With this end in view preparations
were made in numerous parts of the in
terror to destroy the pest in various
ways, snch as by beating with branches
tho beds in the fields where the as vet
wingless creatures wore known to exist,
or in narrowing the ground, or turning
fioclss of sheep upon tho land, and also
by spreading straw over the plague spot
and setting fire to it In such ways
vast destruction was done to the armies
OF the young locusts in tho carly stage
of their existence.
1t was seen, however, says the Glas-
gov Herald that the raid upon the yer.
min should have been made somewhat
earlier, as numbers were already SO far
advanced rs to be on the wing on their
mission OF mischief; and, besides, the
attack on them. was not so generally
made as was desirable in some districts
OF Victoria, while north of the Murray
comparatively little effort was put forth
to cope with the evil, owing to tho fact
that on the New South Wales and
South Australian side of tho Murray
the bulk of the land is taken ND with
large squirting runs, and population is
sparse there, thus giving tho ravaging
locusts almost complete scope to prop
agate
People here can hardly conceive how
serious the locust plague is in these
colonies Recently the reports came
that these creatures masscd themselves
SO thickly along some of the lines of
railways that, although the brakes
were shut down, the trains could not bo
brought to u stand until they had gone
half mile beyond the stations, owing
TO the multitudcs crushed beneath the
wheels, causing the trains to pass along
as If the rails were covered with oil.
The wheels actually slid along the rails.
In many of the northern towns the in
habitants had to close their doors to
keep out the invading hosts. The plague
has now fairly begun work. In the
southern parts of New South Wales
and some of the northern portions of
Victoria the outlook is omnous
In and around Barnawathn, Victoria.
the insects are spreading in swarms and
causing great destruction. a resident
of that district reports that in travers-
ing that part of the country in a buggy
the wheels of his vehicle were com
plctely imheddcd in masses of young
caterpillars and grasshoppcrs, which on
many extensive areas covered the
whole surface to n depth of about four
inches. like gigantic and undulating
coat of green paint"
Where the country presented any de-
preston it was found impossible to pass
with buggy, and in several favorable
localities. such as low-lying lands, etc.,
the insects wcro surging about in
masses some two or three feet deep.
The ground in their wake is quite dcsti-
tutc of grass. Such arc some of tho
breeding grounds from which the fully
developed creatures take flight to waste
and destroy other parts of the country.