Iron County record. [volume] (Cedar City, Utah) 1893-1982, 1904-08-13
Twelve Bugs.

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be done by little insect scarcely
bigger than pinhead. In the
Philippines there is white ant q
minute creature, which will eat up a
bridge or warehouse or fertilization,
il he il given half chance. Ware
houses have been actually devoured by
these insects and packing cases stored
in them crumbled TO dust when left
unprotected. Even iron and steel
beams are not safe from these vorac
ious pests and az to books and man
uscripts, they afford only light
lunch for them between meals 1t
is safe to say that the insect life of
the world is mans worst enemy, the
one that causes him most loss and
discomfort and the agency most pro-
ductive of disease and famine. The
United States has its full share of
these torments, but out of all the
millions that annoy man, twelve
are selected for their primacy in
the working of mischief. Promi
nent among them all is the chinchbug,
which has earned an Immortality of
infamy by its develish Obstructive
ness 1t is onl third of an inch long,
but in proportion TO size causes more
actual loss TO farmers than any other
living creature. Originally it fed
upon wild grassees, but when civil
lied man planted wheat the serial suit
ed its taste and il soon become the
foe of bread producing crops. 1t
gets into the funnel shaped part
OF the leaf where it joins the stock
and sucks the sap until the plant
dies. These bugs, multiplying at a
rate that is almost uncomfortable,
attack wheat field in armies which
carpet the ground, and when the
wheat has been harvested, thy fly to
the corn. IL is estimated that this
one bug costs the farmers of this
country not less than 500, 600, 900 |
every year.
Second in the list for its bad pre-
eminence is the grasshopper, which
has the faculty of behaving in some
places and cutting up scandalous"
in others. In the east quite harm
less, it becomes ''holy terror in
the west and worse than army of
toughs who "shut up the town."
IL is a serious menace to agriculture
in the Missouri river states and in
bad years" has been know to
destroy erops and other vegetation to
tAextset of scores of millions of
l.s....,, Scientists say this long
y "a, tobacco splitting pest Is the
veritable locust of the Bible story
which was used with effect on the
stiffnecked old Pharoah Plaques
of lice, frogs and other nuisances
we're tried in vain but when hoppers
we're turned loose upon him, the
Egyptian tyrant was glad enough to
''let my people GO" Out west it
has often made thousands of far
mers "go"-hungry or into bank
ruptcy--and is foe much dreaded
over extensive areas. Droughts they
may combat by irrigation from tor
nadoes thoy may take refuge inn eel
lars but before the march of swarms
of grasshoppers they are helpless.
After the jumping plague arrives,
the crops, as if by magic, are swept
from the face of the earth.
The Hessian fly, which ranks third
among our destructive insects, is
thought to have first landed on these
shores with the hirelings imported
from Hesse by old King George.
to fight Americans during the Revolu-
tion. At any rate it got here and as
an enemy OF wheat has no superiors
aud few equals. 1t appears as tiny
maggot at the base of the young
plant and kills by sucking the
juices. Eventually the plant is
weakened and finally destroyed, the
maggot being transformed into "a
dark colored gnat, closely resembl-
ing a small mosquito. Collectively
these miniature mischief makers are
good for destruction amounting TO
an annual $50, 600, 600
The army worm is another pest
whose mention is apt TO make "A farmer
have creeping feeling. 1t is
striped caterpillar which in early
summer destroys wheat, oats and
other grains and grasses. Ii climbs