Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1901-06-21

The locusts were regarded as having been
summoned by celestial wrath 10 compictc
the destruction of mankind which earth
quake. famine and pestilence had begun.
In 1912 swarms of lOcusts migrated from
the interior of Asia. and travelled across
Europe as far north as the Elbe and as
far south as Spain. The Turks wers thea
invading Hungary. and by a national CO.
Incidence brought the plague with them.
! Induced migration of insects offers some
curious points In political natural history.
At the beginning of the last century the
possibility of introducing the cochineal in
sect was much discussed in India. Red
dye was expensive and scarce; but. red
was color highly priced and for which
there was great demand. Clearly II
the cochineal could be introduced there
could be sale to a vast local popula-
ton. The cultivation of the cactus on
which it is fed. and of the insects them
selves. which are planted out in little
communities on each young cactus plant.
seemed exactly suited for the laborIols
IIindoos. To add to the wealth of the
many nations and languages of the PENN
sula by the induced migration of one
hardy plant and little red blight seemed
almost a natural miracle. yet a possib e
one Yet for some reason. though the
economic arguments were all sound, the
cochineal insect refused to migrate with
from it's native Mexico to the Canary
Islands. that Western foster mother Of
other tropical products. and to some de-
gree in Java and Algiers. Bat the parts
of India to which it was taken did not
suit it.
on the other hand. an equally insignia
cant insect has crossed the Atlantic, and
not only the Atlantic but the New World
itself, and been stopped on the Pacific
coast by the aid and desire of the Cal
fornia frutgrowers. The story OF its
journey and establishment is like an
echo of some anecdote by HerOdotus OF
Greek rites rationalized by reference renee. to
had an immemorial custom of hanging up
branches of wild fig. which they called
the goat fig. just as we speak of the
tain seasons. in the belief that the wild
fig fortified the other. In this they were
perfectly right. but it was not done in
the way in which they thought. Though
the wild fig has male and female flowers,
the former do not directly fertiiZe those
of the edible fig. That is done by an in:
sect Matched in the female blossom OF
the wild tree. These blossoms turn into
gals. the gals in turn liberaIe fly. the
| fly visits and is covered with the pollen
| of the wild fig, and then flies into the fe
| male flower OF the other and fertilizes 1t.
| In order that the edible figs Introduce
| into California from Asia Minor might be
properly fortified these insects were IN
| troduced, il having been found that with
out them the trees did not give proper
yield
| A curious instance of insect mi graf on
| in which the creature seems to nave trav-
elled In order to better itself. or be-
| cause it is naturally Of an adventurous
turn, was given some years ago by a
Russian diplomatist, who in the intervals
of political work applied himself to the
| task of unrayeling the ancient and wide
spread belief that bees are born from the
bodies of dead oxen. Ii is belief of re-
| mote antiquity, which appears in many
| languages. The author identified ii as a
| fly called crystals tenax, which, in add
| ton to being very like a bee. has the
power OF feeding on and breeding in
very great number of substances, nice and
| nasty. In proof of this the author quoted
| evidence as to the curious migrations of
| the nv. which has in recent years accom-
panied ships into most quarters of the
| globe and become a colonist, like the
| brown rat or the cockroach. The large
| oriental cockroach is now firmly estab-
| lished in this country. In return for this
| doubtful blessing we have sent to New
| Zealand the bumble-bee TO fertiiZe The
| Antipodean clover. and are. it is said.
| about to export ladybirds to eat the
| blight on the vines of Australia.