The Washington times., 1894-07-15
LocUSTS AND DRAGON FLIES.
Short Stories from Natural History About
the Habits OF These Insects.

Short Stories from Natural History About
the Habits of These Insects.
Have you ever seen or read or heard any,
thing about the locusts? II is an odd insect,
distantly related to the grasshopper, and
alike in shape. but the locust has claws some
thing like u Holsters. and il it should catch
on the finger it clings and makes painful
wound. 1t has above its mouth little
clincher, with which it does a great deal of
mischief, and it has very beautiful wings.
Its home is in America, Africa, and certain
parts of Europe. The locusts go about in
swarns, and settle down in the fields, where
they do great mischief. In few days they
will sweep the grain and wheat fields clean
and destroy the whole years harvest.
In hot climates the devastation caused by
them is not felt so greatly. as in a short time
new crop NAV be raised. But in moder-
ate climate, when crop can be raised only
once year. their ravages are greatly felt,
and often result in famine. They frequently
swarm in trees first before they descend on
the fields. That is what they are doing in
New Jersey just now, and the Jersey farmers
are afraid their crops for the year will be
ruined by them.
Locusts are very juicy and tender. and in
all creatures eat them, even to the dogs.
When the latter become hungry branches of
the trees on which the locusts swarm are
brought down and the locusts shaken of like
our nuts in the fall for the dogs TO eat. 1t
was on such locusts with honey that ST.
John the Baptist is spoken of in the Bible as
having lived. A traveller in the East tells US
that as he was once going through great
desert he saw swarm of them about five
miles away flying close TO the earth, which
they darkened like cloud. As they came
nearer he saw that they were white, and he
describes them as looking beautiful on their
wing. They were crossing the desert to reach
the trees and grain fields on the other side.
The locust, although it is not eaten here, is
practically the same all the world over: %, if
you wish to examine one, you must make a
trip to Jersey before they devastate its fields
and fly away for new and untouched past
ures.
Then there Is the dragon fy-you have seen
him in tho ield perhaps decked out in his
handsome z. uzes and looking more beautiful
even than his copies in the jewelry stores. and
thought him fine fellow indeed. He is GER
tainly the finest fellow in the insect creation
when you Judge him from his coat but hand
some is as handsome does and there isn't
iercer more voracious or more cruel fellow
in the insect creation than this very fine
dragon fly of ours. He is as wicked as he is
little fly that comes in his way. He fights with
the spider and devours him. He tackles
insects far bigger than himself and masters
and eats them all up. Even the big,
gauzy-winged butterfly is no match
for the dragon fly when he is hungry. and he
seems to be hungry all the time. His fine
coat is really a coat of mail that even the
sting of a wasp will not puncture. Nature
has made him very strong. Then, too, he
has a very strong mouth for his work, and he
is very vicious. Indeed, he might be called
the pirate among insects, for he regards them
all as prey and recognizes no law of honesty
even with his own kind. Indeed, when the
dragon fly has been cut in two so that he has
no stomach he will still eat ANYTHING placed
in his grasp and on one occasion after being
cut in two was fed with twenty flies and four
spiders by man who knows all about in
sects. and who declared that no doubt he
would have kept on eating indefinitely had
he (the NAM not grown tired OF catching the
flies. So, you see, it is very hard to kill
dragon fly.
The larva or young of the dragon fly, which
is hatched in water, is in its babyhood so
voracious that it will jump to the surface to
catch n fly or snap at anything that comes
within its vision, and as the dragon fly is
well supplied with eyes, having several in its
head, both behind and in front, it sees good
deal Indeed, the only good thing know
about the dragon fly is that it takes up good
deal of foul air in its lifetime, and so makes
the air purer and healthier for us to breathe.
So. when we look at fine fellows in the world
it Is Just as well to know if all their beauty is
in their armor. or if there is something better
beyond that will make them good companions
for US through life.