The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-04-16
FIaHTING LOCUST FoEs.
How the Chinese Go ct Them With
Armies of Men and Ducks
From the St. Louis Globe Democrat.

~@OFF SAO CL4AAGSo GO Eb AuSh " III
Armies ofMen and Ducks.
From the St Louis Globe Democrat.
The great province of Kiaug-Soo is
being devastated by locusts. Consul
Jones at Chin-KianR sends the state
department an account of tie Gu
rious efforts made by the afflicted
sections to dispel the scourge. Some of the
methods resorted to are as striking as the
suggestions offered to the Kansas people
wheo they were suffering from a similar
visitation some years ago. When the locusts
make their appearance in one of these
Chinese districts there Is CONSERVATION
among the unfortunate peasa ltry, who as
semble in the fields with wild elamor and
din OF gonRs, armed with long bamboos
with streamers attached, and vanly en-
deavor TO drive off the terrible invaders
who are setting down in myrisds and de-
vourlng their crops before their eyes. Every
leaf and twig is covered thick, giving the
appearance OF some hideous yellow fruit or
plant. A faint sour smell, like that of fer
menting vegetable matter, is always per
ceptible in the neighborhood. 1t comes
no doubt, from the droppings Of the insect,
There Is curious and widespread belief
among the Chinese in the existence of q
king" locust-"wang," he is called-of CO.
lossal size aud quasi supernatural character,
who hovers invincibly in the upper regions
OF the air, directing and controlling the
migrations of the different swarms. At
some places the leading officials have pub
licly sacrificed aud made offerings to the
king of the i Gusts in order that he might
be influenced to spare their localities.
Il know of few sights writes the con-
sui. more extraordinary than a swarm en-
gagged in pairiog. The air is filled with
clouds of locusts drifting, circling, crossing
and recrossing, with a faint, whirring
noise, and settling on the ground IN thou
sands OF couples. The ground is carpeted
shicIlY with them; you cannot make step
without crunching heaps of them under
your feet, while thousands start up in pat
tering volleys against your legs, hands and
face"
The eggs are deposited in holes drilled by
the female an inch or more deep in the
ground. The time required for hatching
depends entirely on the temperature. In
very hot weather the new brood begins to
make its appearance at the end of week.
At this stage they are very small, black,
and as active as fieas making extraordinary
bounds by means Of their muscular hind
legs. At a little distance they suggest the
idea of a swarm of black ants seized with
sudden insanity In shape they are exact
copies of their parents, save for the want of
wings. They are greedy feeders, and grow
rapidly. By the eighth or ninth day wings
have budded and the color begins to change,
yellow spots appearing; and in about a
month they are full grown.
The destruction, by suitable measures, OF
this formidable pest, involving, as 1t docs,
the prevention OF famines, fever epldemics,
and riots, is matter of grave public con-
Germ. One constantly hears of mendarins
losing their buttons and being disgraced as
tue penalty OF remissness or failure to de-
stroy the enemy.
Consul Jones says the Chinese consider
that the visitation of the locusts is a
"calamity from heaven, and that there is
no help for it.n Chinese records chronicle
many Instances of the appearance and the
calalnites inflicted by locusts In former
times, but they have no peculiarly effective
methods of destroying them. The govern
ment usually issues proclamations ordering
out the soldiers and encouraging the farm
ers to destroy them. The latter are given
a bounty for their destruction.
The soldiers, with their officers ct their
head, ore used against the locus a. against
an adverse army in the field. Instead Of
gun or q lance, however, each soldier is
armed with coarse bempen bag attached
to q bamboo pole, which. with wide-open
mouth, is waved back and forth among the
swarms until filed, when they are killed
and the action renewed.
I'm this section Of the province" writes
Mr.. Jones, ''the army has taken the field
and the district magistrate has taken up
his quarters in the country where the To-
Gusts are thickest to overlook the work OF
destruction and to pay tho farmers the
bounty.
THE farmers use large brooms made of
bamboo twigs and other bushes, and each
armed with this weapon goes forth to
slaughter. When killed and collected they
are paid for by weight which is at the rate
OF 40 cash, or oeuts per pound. The
locusts eggs are dug up and paid for on q
similar scale.
During a walk on the hills one day
came upon spot more than usually Gov
cred with locusts At distance | saw two
or three men and as many boys directing
the march OF a small army OF ducks, which
they do by the use OF long bamboo poles and
the voice 1t is astonishing to see the abso-
lutte control they exert over the move
ments OF the ducks, and the apparent
of the latter. From the
opposite direction a small boy, about 12
years Of age, stark naked and burned by
the sun to q dark bronze, 1.-THE and beauti-
full as young gladiator, bounded upon the
scene He saw the locusts, aud with a
shrill yell called TO the men directing the
ducks. In q few moments the ducks came
up They fell upon the locusts, and in less
than a minute every locust-and there
were millions of them-had been gobbled
up. The army Of ducks seemed more eff
cacious in their destruction than the army
of Chinese
IN one district near by it is prohibited
TO kill the ducks at such times, notwith-
standing their value IN the markets, and
they are kept to use against the locusts.
This distrfct has one flock Of 3 800 ducksn