The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1919-05-17
PLOWS UNCOVER
MILLIONS OF
YOUNG LOCUSTS
Chickens and Hogs Thriving
as Farmers Turn up Bush
els of Insects.
BY WILLIAM r. sANsoRN.

year IL ID a uItl0 early TOT the QOSLS
to settle among rs but an announce
ment committee of two happily wed
ded couples are with US In this ONCE
as we write. For the moment they
are not at all talkatiye, simply saying:
Here We are and what are you going
to do to entertain us?"
Well. we have set them to hous-
keeping In box and are going to be
responsible for all their grocery and
dry good bills. should they want to
go shopping. We have an idea, how
ever. that they win presently provide
Natures own inim1table and useful
way.
Not the Biblical Locust.
; The 17-year locust IL not destructive
except in q small way as to the growth
i'm trees, In which the mother depos-
Its her eggs. The real locust Of de-
vastating memory 70 . grasshopper, OF
which there are several families.
0rasshoppers may appear in any sum-
lmer in swarms, and we all know how
destructive have been their visitations.
The plague Of locusts so wildly de-
Scribed in Exodus have nothing in
common with those from which a Wis
dtation Is now due over large part of
this country.
Here is one Of the most brilliant bits
of condensed reporting to be found
between the covers Of any book:
And the locusts went up over all
the land of Egypt and rested in all the
coasts of Egypt. Very grievous were
they, for they covered the face of the
whole earth, SO that the land was
darkened. And they did eat of every
herb of the land, and all the fruit of
the trees which the hail had left; and
there remained not any green thing in
the trees or in the herbs of the field
through all the land Of Egypt"
The visitors whom we may now con-
fdently expect are as a summer
zephyr to a tornado, in comparison to
the damage to be anticipated. And
harmless as they may be they are
likely to continue to appear in lesser
numbers from period to period. They
are doomed, it may be, to ultimate ex-
tinction. for the birds destroy them in
large numbers before the eggs are de-
posted and the 17-year cicada Is
among the few insects that the Eng
lish sparrow considers luxury.
Farmers Flowing Thorn Up.
The samples of the hosts now on
their way up out of the soil were
brought to this Office by j. S. Kuth,
who lives four miles east of Rich
rlond. He has been blowing them up
for two days, and some of them still
lie at six, eight and as deep as ten
inches. The hogs are following the
pillow enthusiastically, and so too are
the chickens. If a band of Indians
lived over in that neighborhood they,
toe, would be doing a little collecting
&, of sayory food, for the Indians used
to fatten up once in II years, when the
cicada appeared, so it is related by
the pioneers.
The 17-year locust, so called, is
the longest lived of all insects, for it
IS known to live more than 16 years in
the soil before emerging into the sun
light for a merry life of few brief
weeks. It's progress over the country
Is very slow Although it is a matter
of record that they date back as far as
1858 and possibly centuries earlier, il
was not until 1903 that Rhode Island
had a visitation, at which time they
made their appearance the first weel
in June. and in but small area.
This widely heralded insect is ex
pected to appear in 81 states within {
few days, so after all the years VIZ
have known it the cicada has not ye
encompassed the entire country. Blu
let US grieve about that. The locus
moves but once in II years and trav
els slowly; lets give him time. als'
give the birds time, they may get hin
while on his way.
Does but Little Damage.
One of the traits of this periodical
visitor commends it to the thoughtful
1nind-he does so little damage tina
one might almost welcome him on aC
count of the cheerful tune he plays
for the male makes the music. If W
give a concert by those in captivit
in the Palladium office, it will be fire
to all visitors.
AS previously indicated the femal
lays its eggs in the tender new WOO
of various trees and after time thes
discover they are really alive, dro
to the ground and begin digging fo
water, or more likely sap. So dow
they go, often as far as five feet. ava
below the frost line, and there the
rest and contemplate the problems {
insect life for more than Is year.
feeding on the sap of the roots whic
they follow down. Then they, to,
face upward 10 the ngnt ana dig OF
to repeat continuous life stor.
which, like all life stories, is a miracl
which the wisest among us have eve
failed to understand or explain.
1t is worth while noting that OF
guests of the summer are purel
American. That they are Loyalty S
is evident, for they make no effort I
go to Germany, or elsewhere, bein
content to dwell among U.S. The
have come to celebrate the year of vi
tory and to greet our boys who wi
return to the farms through IL
East and Central West. In view {
these facts we may as well make the
welcome. They have their own view
of life and we'll settled habits whio
we may not change, so let them enjo
life in their own manner and go {