The Progress., 1894-08-11
THOSE bOTHERlNG LOCUSTS.

How They Sh-4.d Ee Met, Dosed and
Persuaded to Die.
With the intention of observing
the home life of the cicada, a e
porter for the New York Sun we>it to
Staten Island one day and walked
along the terrace for mile to an ac-
compartment of crunching insects.
Staten island is one mass of the in
sccts. They are overhead and under
foot and the trees are obscurcd by
them. \ mathematician in Blooming
dale has calculated that if a mans
vocal abilities were as great in pro-
portion to his size as q cicada's he
could make himself heard three times
around the world and have enough
voice left over to tic in double bow
knot at the ends,
What is bothering the Staten
islanders now is to find some use tor
their visitors This is particularly
Interesting, as it may be that a Sec
ond instalment will arrive later II
the year. The reporter interviewed
q number of Staten Island men on
the vital question: what are you
going to 90 with them?n and here
are some Of the answers:
set the place on fire and burn
'cm out"
.'Poison 'cm with paris green and
use the bodies for fertilizer.
"Irain 'cm up to hunt mosquitoes.
Hire 'em out in gangs to Western
land Improvement syndicates to clear
away undcrbrush.
"Emigrate to Europe AMI let them
COLOMBO the island.
"Damtno"
Most of those interviewed con-
Cured in the opinion last given.
But the oldest inhabitant-theV have
q separate Oldest inhabitant for
every important occurrence in Staten
islanG-gives q still more hopeless
reply
"'Tain't the question:, )" said he,
what we're goin' to do with them
vermin. The question is what's
them vermin goin' to do with u.s."
This particular Oldest inhabitant
is an ex-sailor, with a little home
near the waterside. He says he
knows all about cicadas, as he's
seen swarms of them in all parts of
the world.
..There's trouble CONN., said he;
"sure 'nough trouble. Somethin'
terrible always happins when them
animiles heaves in sight. When |
was travelin' acrost the country
oncet out on the plains there came q
swarm SO thick it stopped the train
and near threw it off the track. Tho
very next week | lost a wallet with
81. SO in it."
"Have you ever seen the insects
on Staten island before?" asked the
reporter.
Yes, | seen 'em more'n fifteen
year ago, an that very year lly
J brother William fell down and bust
ed his leg plumb off short. l knowed
these werA comm and | got all
ready for 'em an closed my house all
up. My little sloop lies out there in
the bay, an | slowed away all her
sail under lock an key. What fer?
; Why, young man, the las time we
, had them animiles here a swarm OF
'eln flew out to schooner belongin'
to me an my brother an ate every
stitch of canvass off'n her. They
didn't even leave the ropes an stays.
| amt runnin' any risks like that
ag'in.
They're cute devils. See that
ellum tree out in my yard? Well,
> that's slippery ellum an on Sum
, day mornin', when the animiles first
came up from the ground, they
spotted that tree. They went to
work an eat all the bark off in q line
+ up an down, an then they went slid
in down the slippery place jes' like
!. toboggan slide, an they was sc
many of 'em that it was just one
+ long line, roun' an roun' until | got
so dizzy had to get out my garden
, hose an wash 'em of. That's the
, reason you don't see many of EN-,
for when they sees l meant business
they left.
.Speakin' of focuses, I'll tell you
, how they saved my life once when
was climbing a South American
! mountain by gittin' in between me
= an avalanche an stoppin' the ava
lanchc. Talk about big swarms
, Why, that was the biggest Whats
= that:o Your train. Welcome dowf
again any time you want to know
> anything about them animiles."