The Bemidji daily pioneer. [volume] (Bemidji, Minn.) 1904-1971, 1919-05-22
17-YEAR LOCUST
IS SLOWLY GOING
Causes Leading TO Disappear
= ance Outlined by Department
Of Agriculture.
TO Be EXTINCT N 1IMl
Circular Gives suceinet History 81 In
sect and tho Protective Means
That Can 1s Taken
Against u. .

washiugton.-Have! you an ideal II
the absolute in hopelessness?
Well, let it be said that the house IL
which you live Is comparatively new
built within the last II years. The
ground ON which It stands was orig
snally woodland. In the summer Of
1902 all the trees thersabouts were full
Of 17-year locusts. Eggs were depos-
TIED In the branches, the larvae came
out, dropped lightly to the ground, and
dug in. The long period Of subter-
ranean existence Is almost ended. In
May the insects win start toward tho
light and air-and win come in con.
tact with the concrete floor Of your
eSlari There may be another situa.
ton - hopeless, but certainly mona
more 80. Il
That cleaning up Of woodland for
the building OF houses and for cultiva.
ton 10 the principai agency that is mat
Ing the 17-year locust, whose real
name is the periodical cacsda, 4 van.
fishing species. DR.. Gideon n. Smith.
one Of the earlier scientific observers,
allowed rather a melancholy note 70
creep into his invaluable manuscript
when he wrote that future Senerationss'
II they read his writings at Ill, would
shake their heads and think Of himNaF
4 romancer. |S .
Being Slowly Externinatsj.
In the same note. also, G. l.. Mariatt,
one Of the latest systematic obser~.
ers, writes In his bulletin, ITO the
lover Of nature there is something re-
Irettable In this slow determination Of
an Insect which presents, as docs the
periodical cicada so much that is in
teresting and anomalous"
Thus, the present-day experts Of the
United States department Of agricul-
ture agree with the early observer that
the time will come when there will be
no periodical cicadas left.
That time. however, is a long way
of. There will be multiplied millions
Of them this year and in other years
to come. For many persons the cicada
will be as new sight rs it was to the
first observers when they came from
Europe to the American forests. Mod
ern writing on the subject is done, Of
course, in the light Of all the observa
tons that have been made through
more than 200 years. They lack the
freshness Of the writings of men who
saw the cicada before a literature Of
the insect had been built up. Those
early writings, therefore, possess an
unusual interest.
Accompanied by Fever.
In 1869 Nathaniel Moreton. who
lived at Cambridge, Mass, wrote "Se-s
England's Memorial" In 1t he told OF
"a kind Of a pesti,ent fever" that had
prevailed in 1888 and carried on
many of the whites and Indians in and
near Plymouth"
ut Is to be observed" he says. that
the spring before there was nun~r-
Gus company Of nles, which were like
for bigness unto wasps or bumble-beeS.
they came out Of little holes In the
ground, and did eat up the green
things, and made such constant yell
Ing noise as made all the woods ring
Of them and ready 10 deaf he hear.
ers."
The old gentleman IL to oe excused
for believing that the cicadas lid eat
up the green things" The appearance
Of the dead and withered branches
doubtless was such as to Justify such a
conclusion. One ~. H." supposed to
be Thomas Matthews, son Of Samuel
Matthews, governor Of Virginia, who
observed the cicadas in 1875. fell into
the same error. i
For nearly 300 years, then, The writ
ten record Of the cicada has been
piling up. undergoing corrections now
and then, receiving new discoveries
from time to time. As nearly as can
be judged it is complete row. The
latest addition Is circular, THE Sew.
enteen.Year Locust in 1919" by Dixon
Merritt Of the Office Of Information,
United States department Of axritali'
ture. 1t does not pretend to present
new facts. but 1t gives a succinct his
tory Of the cicada and the protective
means that can be taken against It
The circular will be available to inter
ested persons in the q states where
the periodical cicada will appear this
year.