The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-06-20
OF ARIsTOCRATIC DESCENT.
Seventcen-Year LOcusts Can Trace
Their GenehIOgy Far Back in the

1hctr GenenlOgy Far Back in the
Ages.
From the Pittsburg Commercial Gazette
According to information which purports
TO come from the Washington headquar-
ters. the seventeen-year locusts, due this
year. are the descendants of an old and
well known family, the first recorded ap-
pearance Of which was in 1895 Since then
they have returned at regular intervals,
never a year late nor a year ahead OF
time.
The brood. which will begin to come out
about the last of next week, or as soon
as warm weather comes to stay, occupies
a territory in this state limited 10 Fayette
and Washington counties, with sprink-
ling in adjoining districts.
In Ohio 1t includes the counties of Bel
mont Coshocton. Crawford. Erie Fair
field. Geauga Guernsey Huron. Jackson,
Lake. Licking, Muskingum, Perry, Pick
away and Washington.
In West Virginia the counties of Bar
bour Calhoun. Kanawha, Grant. Hardy,
Harrison. Lewis, Marion. Monongalla,
Ohio, Preston, Roane and Tucker.
The records of the agricultural depart
ment contain interesting accounts of at
tempts made by many farmers to avert
the locust plague. Various chemicals have
been spread upon the suspected ground
and trees, but without avail As soon as
the forewarning mud towers were observ-
ed by one farmer he turned his hogs into
the orchard, beneath whose trees they
we're forming. The hogs proceeded to de-
YOUR the grubs as fast as they came out
Of the ground. This experiment proved
successful, although the farmer lost one
hog, which had overglutted himself
Whether 1t Is a distinction to be proud
Of or not, the fact remains that the CT
cada is strictly an American pest. IL
was known to the Indians long before
Columbus discovered this continent The
most serious depredations performed by 1t
are the hacking and gnawlng of dead
trees, which Is always done by the female,
for the purpose of depositing her eggs
therein. The insects OF both sexes gnaw
the roots Of trees while they are in the
underground stage. Twigs hacked by the
female usually die within a week. Large
forest trees and old orchards can gener-
orally endure this depreciation. which to
them seldom amounts to more than gen
eral trimming, but young fruit trees Oft
en- die after being thus hacked up by the
swarms of vandas.
The curious habit of the cicada, living
for so many years in the bowels of the
earth, and apparently for no other pur-
pose than to make preparation to spend
about six weeks in the outer world and
then die, is its most notable characters.
tic.
The female buses herseh while on earth
with planting little specks OF eggs in the
tender bark Of trees and shrubs. This
she does to music made by the male,
which for monotony and exasperating
harshness beats a Chinese band. Hav-
ing been for six weeks nourished by the
sap of the branch or twig In which II Is
deposited, each egg matches out and soon
the branch in question Is covered with
infinitesimal insects, which run around In
great activity. Occasionally a sudden
breeze will blow number Of these baby
.icada into the air. through which they
aoat to the ground, as gently as though
supported by tiny parachutes.
Having reached the earth they pro-
coed at once to barrow deep into 1t, until
they meet with the sappy roots Of the same
family tree Here they remain for thir-
teen or seventeen years, according to their
brood, living upon the sap Of the roots Ia
question, without so much as a glimpse
OF daylight or a sniff OF the upper atmos-
phere. During this underground grub
stage their bodies are Of a dusky brown
and are without wings.