The morning news., 1894-09-03
Those Blessed erasshoppers.

Talkin Of grassbOppers, ," said the man on
the cracker tox, according to the Detroit
Free Press, reminds me Of the scourge Of
1852 whel the country ou: here was overrun
with them pesky critters. Nobody knew
Whar they came from ana nobody knew whar
they went to for they come without war; a
an they left IN the same fashun- / he'd kept
my weather eye peeled Tor week. but nary
hopper did see when heerd as how they
was at Blair an comm lickity split to Deca-
tur."
Them we're lively times said Long jim
the stage Cr,vCr -'LOr'. how scared the vim
men we're with the Iumpin' critters
1t were afOre 1 married the widder." con
ln-ed the man on the cracker lOX, 'Whel
were nyln' with my sister after she come out
hete an had a right smart Of cabbage IN
the neld by the house, an 1 Warn't golR' to
let no pack OF measly grasshoppers eat EN-
mp, not If knowed il. heard after sun
pwn as they had struck Blair an les set 10
work and covered every one OF them cabbdgeS
up Nth blankets and comfortat les"
An III et you didn save one, not a one,
suggested Long jim.
It's ri1n. you are didn't. When I got
up IN the mOrnin the field was as care as ef
II mad been struck by cycloner, not thing
ltfJ OF them Cabbages but the stalks IN the
ground. The hoppers had jes' eaten the COW
erin an the caOUal es like o much provender
an gone of to another country, nearly cried
over them cabbageS.'
.'Ien US about them in the cars. said Long
jim This gentleman from the east ain I
never seen the like.
They stopped the cars more times than
yoI could count on your hngers by Citing on
the track and maxim them slippery. actin
like SO Il, CHI grease. And one - ,entlemen,
you may not believe II, but it's gospel truth
they pulled the bell and the engineer stonped
the car stock still. IL were this way for l
were tnery, ald see it myself, The ,onluctor
came into the car when 1t st0l pea, an he
says, Say S he;
Who pulled that bell rope !" Everybody
was S AIRED cept me an spoke up ana says
" The hOpperS did it,
Don't ak fooiishness, SAYS the conduc-
tor. i don't low no galooJ to teGd to my u
ties. When this tram is stop ped l 90 it my
self. Don none of you ever tech that tell
rope agin
ia like to see emmy one tetch it now
says l, an pinted it out to him weighted
down with hoppers as thick as constructor
snake after it had swallowed a calf an the
car bell ariGGlng like mad.
% Holy Moses he says. an looked slairt,
but it We're fact just the same. Them hop
pers followed us into the stage and we sat
there knee deep in EN-. Skairt: No, not
much to speak Of You see them wasn't the
l4-year- old locustS with pig letter w on
their backs. These here critters we're little
how they did eat things. We folks had
Skeeter nets IN our winders, and in two min
uteS after them hopperS struck US il hung in
strips and shreds an they were swarmin'
round the house like flies"
II they come agin," said Long Jim, I'D
Jest I'LL up every CROWN thing with piZen. an
then, when the hoppers were AL dead I'd
burn EN- and use for fe rtilizers"
Yer mought said the man on the cracker
box, with IL thoughtful look, If they sent
card sayin they was comm. But when
the, steal on yer like a thief in the mig ht
you earn most always Calkerlate just what
you wo DO. I'm layn fer 'C1n this year.
but they amt sent on no ad vance agent with
plan o, campaign yet
Ana he envel0p 4 himself in a blue haze of
smoke that forbade further discussion.