The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-07-03

and Western states and permanently
thrive in all Of them. The Rocky noun
tain locust does not permanently
thrive anywhere east of Its native hatch
ing places in the dry and hot valleys and
on the table lands among those noun
tains. And when these have been in mi
grafton they have never extended their
flights east of the center of Iowa and the
western counties of Missouri. This. their
limit In the past. will most likely be also
their limit on any future occasion OF their
migration. Illinois. therefore. would APP
pear to be safe against any visitation OF
the locust plague of the worst kind.
Since the close of the civil war there
have been five periods of extensive locust
ravages, and each of them was. for the
time Il occupied. far more destructive
than war. The first was In 1855. In which
the damage was sufficiently great ana
widespread as to attract national atten-
ton. The insects swarmed over the North
west but did their greatest damage IN
Kansas. Nebraska. the western counties
of Missouri and Northeastern Texas. They
were often so thick that trains were Sc
riousfy delayed on account of the I'M
mense numbers crushed on the railroad
tracks. The progeny of those that leu
upon the country in that year did consid-
cradle damage the next year. but IL was
evident from their debilitated state ana
their quickly perishing that they were
not 10 DE ltdTtu az an tNNh
scourge. But later In the season fresh
swarms came from the Rocky mountains
and reinforced the falling hosts In the
western portions of the Mississippi valley.
As late as 1863 some remnants OF these
swarms were noticed In Nebraska ana
Kansas, and In each OF three years after
that. in spots In Western Kansas. IN
Western Iowa and in larger districts In
Colorado and Utah much damage was
done. but whether by the progeny OF the
migrators Of 1866 or by new arrivals was
not definitely ascertained. The damage
from the original and the after sporadic
visitation amounted to many millions OF
dollars, and besides there was much sur
fering I'm consequence OF a shortage Oh
food supplies.
The country invaded by the locusts In
1874 extended from the north end OF
Lake Winnipeg to Austin. Tex. and from
the Rocky mountains to near st. Paul,
Mimi. TO Des Moines. Iowa, and to the
western counties of Missouri. The inva-
sion was less destructive I'm 1898. which
seemed to prepare the way for the more
terrible one of 1874. The insects poured In
upon the districts named I'm the summer
and laid their eggs I'm all the more eastern
portions reached. In the fall the eggs
Matched out. and so soon as the insects
had taken wings fresh invaders IN vast
swarms Joined them and began all togeth-
err their ravages. IL was a fall to be re-
4 90 -
Minnesota and Western Iowa. more es-
peciaIly by the latter. as in that fall they
had the double visitation of the locusts
and one of the most disastrous OF lorna
does.
The locust visitation of 1874 exceeded
ANYTHING of the kind that has been
known before. The general direction from
which they came was the northwest. They
came as clouds come, and fairly hid tht
sun. and seemed when hating Tor th'
purpose of alighting to be about 100 yards
above the ground. The country visited bS
them embraced the entries states of Col
orado. Nebraska and Kansas ana por'
ton of Wyoming. Dakota. Minnesota
Iowa, Missoula, New Mexico, Indian Ter
ritory (now Oklahoma) and Texas. lh'
voracity OF the locusts would be unimag'
Unable but for the recorded facts OF theil
doings. They moved in solid phalanx
falling upon a cornfield and converting II
a few hours the green and promising
acres into a desolate stretch OF pare
spindifng stalks and stubs. They woul'
cover each Hill by hundreds scramoI
from row to row 'like a lot of young lam
ished pigs let out to their trough In
significant individually. but mighty cot
lectively, they swept clean n field quicke
than would a whole herd OF might!
steers. DR.. Riley. the entomologist o
Missouri at the time, In one OF MS writ
ings bids his reader imagine hundreds o
square miles covered with such "A raven
Gus horde and so get some realization o
the picture presented I'm many parts o
the country west OF the Mississippi dur
ing the locust invasion of 1874. The dam
age In Mississippi alone was S15,OOo.OoO.
Owing TO the studies of the Situation
during and after these visitations an
the following one Of 1876 entomologist
became satisfied that much could be don
toward preventing a repetition of the ev
by a systematic killing of the eggs OF IN
locusts. But to hunt these eggs and col
lect them IN great quantities was a din
cult work. and. therefore. the suggestio
was made that encouraging legislation b
had on the subject. The governors OF a
the states and territories that had bee
afflicted assembled in Omaha and, bs
sides recommending a day of fasting an
PRAYER to be generally observed, the
agreed to advise their respective legisls
lures to pass liberal bounty laws. Tn
= the legislatures did. but how many locus
: eggs were I'm consequence smashed. no
. much preventive good was done, II woul
, be impossible here to say. But thel
has been no general visitation of this for
of plague since then. And there Is prot
ably no danger that there will be a Wis
tation this summer. Notwithstanding n
reported alarm in Southern Illinois. \
/. any rate. Il Is absolutely certain TIA
a there are no Rocky mountain locus
anywhere IN this state.-Chicago Journa