The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-12-05
.L0CUSTPLACUE
WORKING SOUTH
IN ARCENTINES
Insects Threaten to Reduce
Crops by One Half in
Some Sections.

Buenos Aires, Dec. 5-The plague
of locusts that has assaulted the crops
Of the northern provinces Of the re-
public is slowly working it's way south
ward. These insects, together with
an unprecedented drought, threaten to
reduce the crops by half, and in some
sections by an even greater percen-
tage.
The locust comes from some part of
the unexplored region, Of southern
Brazil and pours over the country in
great streams so thick and long as
to often darken the sun. From Pena
to-day there comes a despatch saying
that stream extending over 80 kilo-
meters has settled upon the fields and
left no green thing in that part. The
young, Matched from the millions of
eggs deposited, have in places covered
the railway SO thickly as to impede
traffic and trains have been stalled
until the insects have been shove1ed
from the tracks and burned in bitches.
The government is waging a vigo-
rOuS fight but seems to be making lit
tie Roadway. The Department for
Agricultural Defense has 10000, 900
meters Of metallic barriers for the
purpose of penning swarms which are
then burned, trampled by farm ami
mails or buried. This is accomplished
because the young locust is without
wings. 1t much resembles a young
grasshopper except it's coloring is
much brighter, red and yellow black
and green, predominating.
From the eggs of the flying locusts,
which are always deposited on the
hor Of ichf
hued, hopping insects come to assault
the fields on either side. Besides the
wire barriers the government is also
Using an apparatus which resembles
gasoline blow pipe. The farmers rae
being instructed to dig trenches about
their fields, drive the hopping loeusts
into them and with the aid of the
gazoline blowpipe burn the mass. Mil
lions have already been thus destroy
ed but telegraphic reports from all
over the northern half of the repub-
lie report other millions arriving.
So serious has become the situation
that the government has threatened to
fine all farmers who fail to maintain
corps of men for the purpose Of fight
ing the pest, and the railways have
been asked to transport free Of charge
all locust fighting apparatus.
Devastated fields threaten to occa-
sion the starvation Of many head Of
cattle and the railways, at the request
of the government, have made a 25
per cent reduction in the rates for the
transportation of live stock, to remain
effective until February % Of next
year. By this means stock can be
hauled from the devastated regions to
provinces of the south. The lives of
thousands and thousands of animals
will thus be saved.
The progress Of the swarms of flying
locusts is daily. being te1egraphed
ahead, direction and speed of flight
being given so that the farms about
to be attacked can prepart. These
Geographic notices are published in
the press and have grown to occupy
columns.
The inseed crop has already gone.
At times million tons Of this has
been exported annually to the United
States. The promised shortage Of the
wheat crop has caused a considerable
advance in the price of bread and the
Agrarian League has petitioned the
government for the imposition Of an
embargo on the shipment of wheat
in order ''to obviate further exploita-
ton of the public This is the first
time any such a request has been made
in Argentine, one of the wheat and
meat storehouses of the world.