Worcester Democrat and the ledger-enterprise. (Pocomoke City, Md.) 1921-1953, 1941-07-18
''Chirps'' ~
from the
Democrats Pen


one day last week, and he hadn't got
fairly seated, before he asks:
whats that you got out in your
lot alongside of your Officer"
"That's what is called a butterfly
bush. There's not many blooms on
it now; but when it is doing its best
you can see hundreds of butterflies,
more or less, apparently gathering
sweetness from the flower. Just now
there's not the usual attraction for the
fluttering little insects. The bush is
also very prolific and rapidly grow
ing plant. If it is cut down to the
ground this year, it will spring up to
the size you see it now. 1t will"
I don't know how much more
would have said on the subject, but
he stopped me with
"I'm not asking about no bush," he
said, "I'm making inquiry about that
metal contraption about eighteen inch
es or two feet long, tubular in shape,
painted yellow, perforated on the sides
and hung up on an iron rod; what's
that jigger?"
Blest If I knew what he was talk
ing about, at first. I didn't think
there was anything out there difficult
to be recognized by any denizen of
these parts. So I said:
OC0,ooa show ,oao xvo,, ,,,oo,,
We stepped to the side window, and,
pointing, he said:
"That's the thing Pm talking a.
bout"
And, believe it or not, he was point
ing at Japanese beetle trap.
That's a beetle trap" I informed
him.
what do you mean, beetle trap?"
"Look here, man, quit your kid
din me-"
~ amt kiddin' you, I never saw
one of those things before" @
where you from?" I asked.
From Accomack County," he in
formed me.
"Ohl I thought maybe you were
from Greenland's Icy Mountains or
from the Alaska's frozen waters, or
had just come from one of the Es-
quimaux hotels, where the menu of
blubber, icicles, and snow flakes didn't
agree with mastication and digestion
of these little pests. But you tell
me you are just about eight or ten
miles below me and never heard of
a Japanese beetle?"
"That's the size of it."
"Well, did you ever hear about the
war that's going on in Europe?"
what war;" he asked, who's
fightin'?"
That settled it. was ready to be-
ieve anything then. If he had told
me next he'd never heard of a spud,
either of the Irish or Sweet variety,
would have been ready to believe
him. If he had told me he was travel
ling north and expected to reach Cape
Charles in about two hours, I'd have
known he was honest and sincere in
his statement.
$50, you don't have any Japanese
beetles down with you?"
"No, Sir" he said, "And I'd like to
know if those beetle catchers really
catch 'em; I'd like to tell the folks at
home about EN-"
"Oh!" I said, ct catches about one
in a million"
what do they COST"
"Now, you asked something" I said,
"it's hard to say, but when the tax
payer forks out hard earned cash for
the manufacture, transportation, for
the enthusiastic young man who sticks
'em down in your yard-when every
thing is counted up, it costs about
two-bits a beetle"
"Well, what do the beetles do, to
make all this fuss about?"
"They do a plenty, old boy, come
with me for a minute"
took him over to my house and
showed him some fancy work they
had done on my grapevines, rose BUSH
es, and crepe myrtles. The lace pat
terms they'd cut on the leaves showed
as masterpieces of the beetles art.
One or two flew up and began work
on his face, in mistaken effort to
hunt new diet.
where do they come from?''
"There you've got me-" I said.
"They are much like the wind. We
are taught it bloweth where it listeth,
and we can not tell whence it cometh
nor whether it goeth. Some say they
are second cousins to the bear. When
they begin to get cold behind their
ears they dig a hole in the ground
and sleep until the grape vines, etc.,
proclaim the resurrection day."
"Well." he said. "I'm roinr home