Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1902-06-28
LOCUSTS DYING RAPIDLY
Their Kissing, Rolling Noise APP
preciabIy Diminished.
MORE LIKELY TO FOLLOW
pNew Species Somewhat Smaller and Blacker
Damage Done Regarded as %lnsignif-
cant by Or. Uhler, Of the Peabody
Institute, Baltimore.

"~Nfef
The Kissing, rushing. rafting
Young song ofsthe merry young To-
Gust. or as he is proDerly merry
Young locust, which for more than a
month has been almost constantly
ringing IN the ears of.the farmers of
the State, has n~oticeably decreased IN
volume during the past few DAYS. and
within a very short time the millions
OF insects which have encountered I g
earth in this section will have disap-
peared. For II wears all the average
Berkeley countian will have Of them
is the memory, though gentlemen OF
a scientific turn of mind. may discover
them by roofing under ground, where
they VIII five times burst their skins
and grow before appearing IN the
surface again
The. visit ofsthe.l7-vear brood of To-
Gusts in 1902 will Ions. be remembered
IN this State as being uninue in sew.
eral respects. In the first place the
mind of the OLDEST inhahitaut cannot
recall the time when they were any
thing like as numerous as they wes e
this year. Countless millions came
out of the earth and ensconsed them
selves In trees. bushes. hedges and
vines. Millions upon millions were
killed bv the cold and rain without
IN the least showing anv depreciation
in their numbers. Dogs. cats and
chickens all over the State grew fat
eating them.
The paths, roads, and lawns were
and are still smeared with the dead
and diving. from which a most I'M
pleasant odor arose They have been
pressed and rolled into the lawns,
ground under the feet of horses and
pedestrians, used as an article OF diet
in some places and generally created
a stir by their visit. Altogether.
done. their disappearance will be
hailed with relief by the entire pop
ulation
The present brood is now fast di-
minishIng and by the first Of July
willhave disappeared almost altoeeth.
er Then will follow the second
brood, somewhat smaller, somewhat
blacker and without such powerful
rattlers. They, scientific authorities
say. will last not longer than two
weeks, but are bound to come. as in
this part of the country there Is al
wavs a second brood. BY July Is, it
is calculated. the State Will be entire
ly free from the locusts. In the years
to comes small broods will develop
from time 10 time, but their numbers
Will be so insignificant that the gem
eral public will no notice them aid
only those who are on the look out
know that the species has arrived.
The present visit of locusts has been
remarkable for the noise they made
more than for anything else. In the
country until the residents had be-
c7me used to it. the shrill. melodious
sound reused them from their SUM
Der at unheard of early hours and
was a continual ANNOYANCE
In the song of the locusts this year
two distinct notes have been noticed,
and DR. Philip K. Ubler,a p. ov1st OF
the Peabody Ii %stitute, describes them
as the hlssing and the rolling long.
He saws they are entirely distinct and
are caused bv some of the cicada hay
ing more ribs in their drums than
others although of the same species.
As to whether the %locusls, or cica-
das. have done any real damage. DIR.
Uhler entertains positive views. de
maintains that they have not. He
asserts that thew could no kill a tree.
although the female. by levi z its
eggs in a twig. may ca ~ leave
on that twig to shrlveI ID, and die.
Next wear. however. the tree would
come out again and no other part ex-
cent the twig where the eggs had been
laid would be affected any way They
do not destroy grass or vegetation, az
thew have no jaws and can eat nnth-
ing, he says, while above grout
DIR. Uheler cannot conceive any rra
son why the locust should have oeeh
created, but as they we're create'i o.
Is certain that the variety W mas
here are simply a nuisance 4 D
convenience and not a posi- ~ nlu-
~ 20 anyone.
The fact that dogs and Lave
freely eaten and waxed A. on 'le To-
Gusts this year is also a uuig' tea
ture Of the visit. Seventeen years ago
there were isolated eases Of a dog or
clt selecting the cicada as a d~eiicacy,
bnt not nearly to the extent they have
this summer. Almost everv family
IN the suburbs which has a dog is tell
ing friends of the m~orvaiOua manner