Evening star., 1935-11-10
An Odd Book of Nature
First Volume of Natural History for Children
in America Is Heirloom Owned by
Federal Scientist.

most perfect shape. When caught IL
quickly besmears the fingers with q
substance like molasses. In the course
Of the Autumn the female, with the
little spades at the end Of her body,
forms small holes in the ground, In
which she deposits her eggs. These
she cements together with that red,
glutinous matter which she emits from
her mouth, and leaves them for the
warmth of Spring to hatch them.
These insects are sometimes so
numerous in New England that they
almost produce a famine for the
fl0cks and herds, and do much injury
to grain and garden sauce In some
Springs. when the young brood has
come forth in multitudes innumerable,
cold and abundant rain succeeds, OF
some days continuance, and destroys
most of them. This is accounted to
be merciful providence"
He told Of another grasshopper he
had studied, of an iron-gray color,
which was peculiar for sporting
along before person, when walking
in the street. 1t seems as If their
Maker intended by these, their little
arts, to call the notice of man to the
skill displayed in their formation"
AS for reptiles, the good clergyman
apparently accepted without question
the snake stories of his neighbore.
Thus. he relates, the leaves of the
white ash are deadly to rattlesnakes
and that these serpents retire to their
dens in the Fall about the time these
begin to cover the ground, in order
to save their lives.
And, he continues. rum is a fatal
poison to them. The soldiers on our
frontiers toward Canada, in our
Revolutionary War, would sometimes
meet with them and set the breech
OF their guns upon their necks, when
the snake would raise its head with
open mouth, into which from the
canteen they woulG turn a few drops
OF rum, and the snake would soon
expire in agony. Oh, that rum drinkers
among men would consider that when
they swallow this liquor they are
taking that which is likely to be a
deadly poison to their souls, as well
as the ruin of the health of their
boo les"
The harmless black snake Is COM
mon in New England Fisher described
it as fearsome monster-but admit
ted he received his accounts of its
atrocities second hand.
He insisted, also on the testimony
Of friends. that the chimney swallow
hibernated. They have been found in
the early Spring, he says. clustered
by hundreds, even by thousands, in
thL trunks Of hollow trees in which
they pass the Winter like bees in a
hive. In a town in the western part
OF New Hampshire" he relates, "a
respectable person with whom I had
some acquaintance about the year
1871, related that early in Spring he
met with a large hollow tree in the
forest which he struck with his ak
and vast multitude of these swallows
issued from the stump of a hollow
limb in continual stream for some
length Of time. How wonderful is the
providence which furnishes the habi-
tation for every kind of creature"
Ravens were serious nuisance for
New England farmers in Jonathan
Fishers day. 1t was the custom, he
relates, to build booth, or bough-
house, with bushes by the side, or
in the midst of, a field. with the image
of person presenting fowling piece
in it, visible through the crevices.
They are very shy birds, so that with
firearms it is difficult to get within
gunshot of them"
Some of his own best observations
were on the habits of spiders. He
recognized several species in New
England. the largest of which he
called the "hazel-but" spider. He also
describes one which was Jet black
ornamented on the back with bright
yellow" 1t was one of these insects
that he observed within the space
of about an hour demolish his old
net and construct new one"