The DeLamar nugget. [volume] (DeLamar, Idaho) 1891-1900, 1891-09-15
LOCUSTS IN INDIA.
A Graphic Description of a Battle
with the Pests.
The Natives Turn Out with Cannon and
Firearms But Are Unable to Stem
the Terrible Tide of Adj
vancing Insects.

/ see by the foreign kilograms that
north Africa is threatened by a swarm
of locusts, which reminds me, says an
India correspondent of the st. Louis
Globe-Democrat, that / saw devastating
attacks of those terrible insects in
southern and northern India. The
first was in the Tinnevally district,
Madras presidency, in the great famine
year. Twas finishing my Hbig break
fast" when the tehsildar came to my
tent and said: ''We are going to be
again troubled" ''What with?" ''Lo-
Gusts" l had heard of their visits and
pulled a long face. The famine was
practically over. The crops were just
beginning to show their greenery, and
everything was propitious. The gov
eminent was merely carrying the
natives over till such a. time as the grain
ripened and harvest commenced. / fol-
lowed the tehsildar to the door of my
tent and saw huge black cloud in the
east
1t came nearer and nearer, and soon
the sky grew darkened, the sun was
completely obscured and a whirr and
click like many millions of sewing ma
chimes were in the air. The noise was
terrific. Suddenly that great black
animated cloud settled on patch about
a mile distant and gave us breathing
time against their assault The tehsildar
hurried back to the village. My serv-
ants stripped the huge tents of their
verandas and placed the awning care
fully over young row of green peas.
Al III IL,
In the village all was turmoil. The
women were wailing and the men and
boys rushing aimlessly about with tom
toms, guns and other noise-producing
instruments The tehsildar had given
orders to charge full of gunpowder an
ancient fieldpiece, relic of the days of
Dutch supremacy. The fiat stone roofs
were covered with men carrying arms
and whistles and the great parapets of
the huge temple were alive with human
beings.
On came the locusts. The guns
barbed, the cannon Numbered, the
whistles blew, the tom-tom clashed, |
women screamed and men shouted, dogs |
snarled, but it was of no avail. The in |
sects settled down on the fields adjoin-
ing the village, and on the trees, and in |
a few hours the place was clean of veg |
citation / never saw such destruction, |
so complete, so absolute, so thorough.
of the pests were slain, but
the click of their jaws ceased not, and
when every blade was devoured, on
they swept. The next time I made the
acquaintance of the hungry locust was
in Agra. was staying with a gentle
man well known throughout the north
west whose house on the Jumna road
is much admired for the beauty of the
gardens. In it there are magnificent
tamarind trees, noble avenue of null
berry trees, mango, and other lovely
trees belonging TO India.
The locusts attacked the place about
5en a. M, and after they had satisfied
themselves you would have imagined
hat great fort had opened fire on the
devoted place Enormous branches had
been broken down by the winged pests,
md in several instances only the parent c
TEN OF the trees was standing. An out
louise, which was covered with a
gorgeous creeper, was literally crushed y y
n on account of the numbers that set Q
led thereon. Agra was bare. Not a
arden was left, not a blade of grass,
nd the expenditure of gunpowder was
earful. The iocusts are said to be :
dible, but never yet found person a
THO had initiated John the Baptist r