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GEOLOGICAL AND NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY.

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ON THE

ROCKY MOUNTAIN LOCUST,

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By ALLEN WHITMAN, State Entomologist.

ST. PAUL:
PIONEER PRESS COMPANY.
1877.

GEOLOGICAL AND NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY.

Me tee NT

ON THE

ROCKY MOUNTAIN LOCUST.

PP OTs 1 SO

92057

By ALLEN WHITMAN, State Entomologist.

SAINT PAUL:
THE PIONEER, PRESS COMPANY.
1877.

{This work was done at the expense of the State Geological Survey fund,
by order of the Board of Regents of the State University. ]

2829

et mh Soa) gt a

Sarnt Pav, Mrxnzsora, __ G
December 23d, 1876.

Prof. N. H. Winchell, State Geologist :

Str:—I have the honor to present the following report upon the
Rocky Mountain Locust,* as it has appeared in and near Minneso-
ta during the year 1876. At the time of my appointment (in
May) to make this report, through the State Geological Survey,
there was a hope, and apparently a reasonable one, that the com-
ing summer would close our present opportunities for observing
the destructive species of locust, at least as far as our state was’
concerned. ‘The insects were found to be hatching in a region
covering the whole or parts of five or six of our southwestern
counties, in a strip of country reaching from Madelia westward
across the state, and into two of the eastern counties of Dakota.
A few were also found in the northern part of the state in Clay
county, and in a few scattered spots in Dakota along the Red
river. No other hatching-ground nearer than Colorado was known,
and there was reason to believe that the amount of damage result-
ing from their presence here would be comparatively small, and a
fair probability that their swarms would be so scattered and so di-

* The name ‘‘ Rocky Mountain Locust” is expressed or implied through-
out this report. I suppose that every one knows that it is the Caloptenus
Spretus, or the ‘‘ grasshopper,” that is referred to. Although the name
‘‘hopper” holds its place in popular usage, by force of its brevity and eu-
phony, the use of the word locust can occasion no ambiguity, at least in
Minnesota. In regard to the latter name, an old etymology is still often
repeated, which has done duty long enough. The word locust (Latin, locius-
ta,) is not derived from the Latin locus-ustus, a burnt place, and that for
halfa dozen reasons. The root of the word (loc) is probably found in the
Greek root lak (in lasko, e-lak-on,) and in the Latin loqgu-or, réferring in
this case to the chirping or shrilling sound of some insect called locusta.
Its form is confirmed by such Latin words as robustus, venustus, &c. See
Fick, Comparative Dictionary of the Indo- Germanic Language. Part IV, Root
{3.)

4

minished during the summer, that the injury would, for the pres-
ent, end with the flying season. Under these circumstances, it
seemed best to make such additions and corrections to the Report
of the Grasshopper Commission of 1875, as the experience of the
present year should furnish. But as the season has advanced, and
events have multiplied themselves, the subject has assumed, both
in extent and urgency, anew and continued importance. Follow-
ing close upon the attack of 1874, we have a new locust invasion,
surpassing all former ones in the amount of territory visited, in
the magnitude of the invading swarms, in their repeated comings,
and in the length of their combined stay. In addition to the losses
inflicted upon the crops during the last four summers, amounting
to at least eight millions of dollars, we find the evil still confront-
ing us as in 1873, and while we haye gained something by our four
years’ experience, we have also lost something by the dishearten-
ment which four successive years of damage necessarily bring. To
meet in any such report as this the demands of a subject so exten-
sive and important, or the expectations of the large number of
people who are so deeply interested in it would be simply an im-
possibility, but I should be glad if anything contained in it could
add to the knowledge necessary for intelligent action, or to the
hopefulness which we may reasonably entertain in regard to the
locust problem in the long run. Such as it is, the report is the
result of several visits to the southwestern counties during the
spring and summer, of replies to circulars sent to nearly every in-
fested town in the state, and of a large amount of correspondence
addressed freely to various points in Minnesota, Dakota, and else-
where. To compile such information as could be collected from
all these, and from hundreds of items published in our state papers
during the summer, has been a work of a good deal of time and
trouble. “The practical value of the results of work of this kind
seldom corresponds to the amount of trouble incurred, but this is
simply the fault of the subject.

GENERAL VIEWS ON LOCUST INVASIONS.

Taking into consideration the whole cultivated region from
Manitoba to Texas and from the Rocky Mountains to the Missis-
sippi, there have been in the series of thirteen years from 1864 to
1876, but four, (or at most five) years when some portion of this
area was not attacked by locusts, coming in from somewhere out-
side of the cultivated area. In other words there have been no
less than nine locust invasions, (differimg much in extent and

o ,

degree, but still occurring,) in the Mississippi and Red River

te

valleys during the last thirteen years. And these nine attacks
stand against some seven or eight recorded appearances of destruc-
tive locusts in the same territory during the 46 years preceding,
from 1818 to 1864. Again we have on the one hand the sudden
appearance of the immense swarms which are said to have over-
run a vast extent on both sides of the Rocky Mountains in 1855,
the gradual disappearance of their progeny in the course of the
next three years, apparently without furnishing material for
future invasions, and their continued absence for the next six
years. On the other hand we have, since 1864, a series of attacks
occurring at intervals of one, two, or at most three years, and
apparently of late an annual vibration between the country lying
along the mountains and the lower cultivated regions, each in its
turn becoming a breeding-ground. The causes of the increase
and continuance of the evil of late years lie outside the range of
common observation. That they do not result entirely from an
increase of acreage under cultivation, is to be inferred from the
locust history of other countries, and from the facts that while
Central America has suffered from the same evil at least as far
back as 1514 (Bancroft’s Native Races of the Pacific Coast, vol.
v., page 601,) and Mexico and California at least as lately as 1855,
the exemption of these countries since the latter date has been as
noticeable as the repeated devastation of our own vicinity. As
for any analogy to be derived from the locust history of European
countries the books are not at hand in this state to furnish the
exact chronology of the evil; but from such a source as I have at
hand, the record of Germany for the last four centuries shows
intervals of exemption from injury for eight, twelve, sixteen,
forty (1763—1803,) or even fifty (1636—1686) years, and again no
less than fourteen years of injury between 1727 and 1755, and
among these series of three, four, or even five successive years of
damage, as in the five years from 1727 to 1731, and again from
1746 to 1750.*

* These dates are taken from a work entitled, Die Kleinen Feinde der
Landwirthschaft, by Prof. H. Nordlinger, Stuttgard, 1855, furnished by the
kindness of Gustav Kyllander, Esq., of Severance, Sibley county. Fora
systematic and connected view of the locust evil in general see a paper
contained in the Report (for 1876) of the Hon. Commissioner of Statistics
of Minnesota, Dr. J. B. Phillips. Notice is particularly called to a chrono-
logical table published therein. It will be seen that there is no state or
territory west of the Miss‘ssippi that is not in the ‘‘ grasshopper regions,’
and no year since 1863 that has not been a locust year. The year 1871 should
be included in the table, for reasons stated in this report.

6

The locust problem still presents a great deal upon which noth-
ing like complete information has been furnished. Even in re-
gard to the locust as it appears in our own State, not only does
the farmer ask many questions, to which the entomologist can as
yet give no decisive answer, but even in the practical economy of
the locust question opinions are still at variance, where experience
should, by this time, have brought some degree of unanimity.
When it comes to the exact origin of our invading swarms, their
manner of increase from year to year before leaving their native
regions, their growth, habits, and movements in those regions,
how far eastward those regions may or do extend, the causes of the
repeated appearance of migrating swarms, or their continued ab-
sence for years or even decades, no one can at present offer in an-
swer much more than a mere show of probabilities. It is evident
that the whole question is becoming too urgent to wait for private
investigation to solve it. The claims which an agricultural popu-
lation of at least thirteen States and Territories may justly urge
upon the National Government in this regard, have been fully set
forth during the past season ; but purely in the interest of science,
if for no other reason, we might fairly ask that some portion of
the sums annually devoted to national discovery might be expended
upon the further elucidation of a subject which touches us so
nearly and so powerfully. Having at hand the time, the place,
and the opportunity, we might at least attempt the solution of some
questions which the Old World has been obliged to leave unan-
swered for a thousand years. We might, perhaps, learn enough

of the causes of locust invasions to know in what years such in-:

vasions would become probable, and enough of their origin to say
whether prevention is possible or impossible.

THE EVIL AS IT APPEARS IN MINNESOTA.

The growth and habits of the young locust as it appears'in the
cultivated regions, have been so fully described of late years,
(particularly in the seventh and eighth annual reports of the State
Entomologist of Missouri, Prof. Ch. V. Riley,) that it seems im-
possible to add much that can contribute to that practical end
which the farmer has in view, the protection of his crops from
the locusts which hatch in his immediate vicinity. If anything
practical is still to be expected in this direction it ought to come
from those who are brought face to face with the young locust,
and are obliged to act upon knowledge gained upon the spot.
Knough has been learned already to make it certain that almost

7

any community may, by enlisting all the forces at its disposal,
effect a measurable saving of its crops, and that the evil, if it
could be confined to the locusts that hatch here, might be prac-
tically eradicated in a few years at most, But there is a growing
apprehension in the minds of the people of Minnesota, brought
about mostly by a consideration of events occurring in our own
state only, and that too only within the last four years, that we
are more liable to locust invasions than other states: that the
locust evil may become a permanent one here even without rein-
forcements from abroad, and that its area may gradually extend
until it covers regions still unkndwn to it. This apprehension is
increased by the fact that the invasion of the present year has
reached, (to the south of St. Paul,) about one degree of longitude
further east than it has ever been known to extend before. It is
possible that Minnesota may, from its geographical position,
suffer from locust invasions more frequently in the long run of
fifty ora hundred years than Kansas or Manitoba, though a
history of the last twenty years shows no special preponderance
in favor of either state; it is possible that its cold climate, and
the high and dry soil of its southwestern counties may furnish a
a more congenial and permanent home to the swarms that breed
here, though the events of the last four years, when fairly con-
sidered, show that even here there is a constant decrease in the
numbers of such swarms as remain; and finally the history of the
whole Mississippi Valley shows that the Rocky Mountain Locust
is confined on the east by a tolerably well defined limit which up
to the present time, neither invading swarms, nor their progeny
have essentially altered. Upon all these points the Entomologists
are repeatedly called upon to express their opinions, which have
been freely and in most cases cautiously given; and these opinions
are in turn repeatedly called into question by those who persist in
mistaking opinion for prophecy, or in applying a general rule to
a limited area, or to a particular year, But it is evident that there
is still room for the study of the physical character of the locust,
and of the geographical, geological, climatic or other causes by
which it is influenced.

HISTORY OF PAST INVASIONS.

Until within the last four years the migratory species of locusts
has been so infrequent and transient a visitor in Minnesota, that
the details of its former visits are almost forgotten. There is no
definite knowledge of any such visit down to the year 1855, unless

8

the ravages committed in the Red River Settlement in 1818 and
1819 may be said to concern this State. But the statement of
Capt. Jonathan Carver in 1766, in regard to the large swarms
which ‘infest these parts and the interior colonies’? shows the
occasional presence of the migratory locust, although it is hard to
say exactly what localities are referred to. But late in July 1856,
invading swarms came from the Northwest into the Upper Missis-
sippi Valley, and gradually spread along the river during the sea-
son, much the same as they have done in the past summer, and
reaching nearly the same limits. The injury was, of course, felt
most severely along the Mississippi and the cultivated region adja-
cent, but the locusts are said to have appeared along the Minne-
sota River, in the Yellow Medicine country, and at various points
in the north western counties of the State. It is probable that
the north western part of the State was swept over by migrating
swarms during the summer, much the same as in the present year.
But few traces of these were seen in the following year, except
along the Upper Mississippi, where the damage was even greater
than the year before. A general flight took place in July, and the
direction of the departure was to the south and south-west gen-
erally, and was, perhaps, the occasion of the injury done in Iowa
that year.

Again, in 1864, swarms appeared early in July, along the Upper
Minnesota river, and spread eastward gradually during the season,
and reached about as far east as in 1874, 7. ¢., to the third tier of
towns in Le Sueur county. Scattering swarms also visited Mani-
toba in the same year, and probably some portions of these reached
as far as Minnesota, for we hear of slight appearances of themin -
the Red River and the Sauk Valleys in 1864 and 1865. But the
greater portion of the injury was done in the Minnesota Valley,
and was followed by a general departure to the southwest in 1865.
The injury in Colorado also was very severe in the same years,
but there seems to have been no large movement to the eastward,
such as occurred later, in 1866 and 1867.

It seems very likely that the swarms which entered Minnesota
in 1864 were hatched at no great distance, and were the offspring
of swarms that had alighted in eastern Dakota in the preceding
year. This may perhaps be inferred from the following letter of
the Rey. S. R. Riggs, missionary at the Sisseton Indian Agency,
dated Sept. 9, 1875:

«In 1868, it will be remembered, that on Gen. Sibley’s expedition to the
Missouri we met with the ravages of the grasshoppers in various parts of
Dakota, particularly, as I remember, near Skunk Lake (in Minnehaha coun-

9

ty) where the large grass had been eaten to the bare stalks, and our animals
fared badly.

‘Jn 1865, I visited a camp of Dakota scouts, near the ‘* Hole in the
Mountain,” at the head of the Redwood. That was in the month of Au-
gust. The valley of the Minnesota clear out to the Coteau was so full of
grasshoppers as to make it unpleasant traveling. For the next four years,
J traveled every Summer on the Missouri River, coming over to and from
Minnesota. Every season I met with grasshoppers at some point on the
east side of the Missouri. In 1867, and also in 1868, we found them near
Fort Randall. In 1869, in August, we met them above Fort Sully, near
Grand River. In all these cases, they were only in small battalions, and
appeared to have come there from other parts.”

Again, in 1871, slight and scattering swarms of locusts appeared
in Stearns, Todd, Douglas, Pope, Otter Tail, Becker and Polk
counties, and perhaps in others. In all these counties they were
in sufficient numbers to make themselves noticeable, and in some
cases crops were injured, or a few eggs laid; but the occurrence
would have been mostly forgotten by this time if they had not
been brought to mind by more recent events.

The invasion of 1873 was something unusual in its character
from the earliness of its arrival, the direction from which it came,
and from the fact that it was the beginning of a visitation which
has been prolonged to the present time by what, judging from
former years, would appear to be unusual circumstances. Hach
summer since 1873, instead of being the scene of a general de-
parture of the hatching swarms as in former years, has seen
portions of those swarms alighting but a few miles from where
they were hatched, (generally in the next range of counties, and
sometimes in other parts of the same county,) and depositing eggs
for another brood. In addition to these, new swarms coming in
from the northwest in 1874 and again in 1876, have added greatly
to the area of devastation in both these years, and in the latter
year to the area of egg-deposit, so that the prospect of destruction
to the crops in 1877 is greater and surer than ever.

MINNESOTA AS A BREEDING GROUND OF THE LOCUST.

Without saying anything for the present about the new coming
swarms, the history of those that have bred inside the State since
1873 has been as follows: .They reached the southwestern corner
of the state about the first of June, 1873, brought by a wind that
had been blowing freshly from the southwest for several days.
During June and July, they spread themselves over the whole or

portions of fourteen different counties, lying adjacent to each
2

10

other, and throughout all this area locusts were found to be hatch-
ing in 1874. On acquiring wings, these flew northward early in
July, and portions of them alighted in the range of counties next
beyond those they had already occupied, leaving vacant the ground
they had covered on hatching. By the 15th of July they had en-
tered Blue Earth, Nicollet, McLeod and Renville counties. By
the latter date, new swarms had begun to pour in from the north-
west, and passed over the western counties to the southward. That
these additional swarms did not add much to the stock of eggs de-
posited by our own broods is probable, for two or three reasons;
first, because their progress, so far as it could be traced, was en-
tirely across the state, and across most of western Iowa, before:
laying eggs; and secondly, because the principal hatching-ground
of 1875 was precisely in those counties which had been already
occupied by our own stock in 1874 (before the arrival of new
comers) with some slight additions to the eastward. Eggs were
also laid, later in the season, in scattered spots in some of the
northern counties, and in six towns in Meeker county, by swarms.
coming in from the northwest about the first of August. But the
greater portion of the locusts hatched in 1875 were found along
the Minnesota River, and these on flying moved southward, and
alighted in the range of counties next beyond those they had just
occupied, where they remained and deposited eggs during July and
August. Of the swarms hatched from these last spring some flew
away to the southward early in July, while others flew northward,
some alighting along the Minnesota, and others moving still fur-
ther north. Other ‘swarms also came from the west, from the Red
River valley, into several of the northern counties, and were prob-
ably a portion of those that hatched along the Red River. By the
10th of July all these had made their appearance in thirteen coun-
ties besides those in which they were hatched, but generally in
small and scattered bodies, and in only two or three towns in a
county; they were most numerous in Renville. Douglas, and Otter
~ Tail counties.

The object of the preceding paragraph is to show that it is
probable that the locusts which hatched in Minnesota last Spring
were to a considerable extent the descendants of the swarms.
which entered the State in 1873. However unimportant it may
seem, it has a certain value if it enables us to judge of the effect
upon the Rocky Mountain locust resulting from a four years”
continuous breeding in our climate.

1]

DEGENERATION.

So much has been said of late years of the tendency of the
migratory locust to ‘‘degenerate’’ in the more easterly and south-
erly portion of the area visited by it, and this theory has been
considered by our people so complete a failure, that it is worth
while to state exactly what the theory is, and how truly it applies
to our state. It might have been submitted at the start that
opinions based upon a consideration of events still occurring, and

more or less liable to be modified by new circumstances, should
not be pressed too far nor too literally; and it was just that in
judging as to the correctness of these opinions, that they should
have been fairly stated. I give them in the briefest form in which
I find them: ‘There is nothing more certain than that the
insect is not autochthonous in West Missouri, Kansas, Ne-
braska, Iowa, or even Minnesota, and that when forced to migrate
from its native home, from the causes already mentioned, it no
longer thrives in this country.’’ (Riley’s seventh annual report,
p. 165.) It will be noticed that Dakota and Colorado are not
included in this list; that Minnesota is to some extent excepted,
and that, though not directly stated in the sentence quoted, the
application is to swarms breeding one year after another in the
regions mentioned, and not to such fierce hordes as have swept .
down upon us from the northwest in the summers of 1874 and
1876. The discouraging events of the last four years have served
to confuse the question, and it is no wonder that our farmers,
seeing the considerable numbers that have remained to breed here
from one year to another, with the intolerable numbers that have
been added in two out of four seasons, should come to believe
that Providence has given over one half of our state to be hence-
forth the perpetual home of the locust. We have a series of
occurrences so different from those of Missouri, Kansas and Ne-
braska, that it seems hard to account for them on any basis of
mere accident orof which way the wind happens to blow when
our swarms are ready to migrate.

The winds which sweep clean away the hatching swarms of the
more southern states carry our own but a few miles from their
birth place. It is evident that they are not detained here merely
by abundance of food, for the swarms of Kansas and Missouri
leave behind them fields as rich as ours; nor by force of winds, for
the same winds that bring down upon us invaders born hundreds
of miles away, and carry them across our state and into more
southerly regions, might also carry with them the broods of our

12

own hatching. I believe it is not as yet fully known what con-
nection there may be between the migrations of the locust and its
season of egg-laying, but it seems that some cause for the fact
that portions of our swarms remain here to breed can be found
in an early stage of egg-laying. Here again we have a difference
between our own breods, and not only the new swarms that come in
upon us from the mountain regions, butalso those which leave the
more southerly regions and fly to the northwest on acquiring
wings. As for the latter, in the flight from the Missouri Valley
northward in 1875, Prof. Riley was able to learn of no case of
their depositing eggs, nor were the hatching grounds, (outside of
Minnesota,) of last spring found to be anywhere in the vicinity
of those of 1875; as for the swarms that have descended upon us
during the summer, I have not been able to learn of any deposit
of eggs whatever in any of their stopping places on their way
toward this state, and even on arriving here it was evident. in
most cases that they had not yet reached the season of egg-laying.
Between the 17th and the 31st of July there was a gradual move-
ment, apparently of new-comers, across the state towards Iowa,
and the egg-laying did not become general until about the latter
date. Between the first and sixth of August other swarms came
in, and these again in most cases did not begin to lay until a
week or more after their arrival. Still others came in later, and
the laying was kept up until late in September and was seen to
occur in October, or as long as the locust remained alive. On
the other hand our own stock were seen in 1875 to be laying
within eight days after their flight commenced and in the places
where they first alighted, and during the past season the laying
had already begun on the third of July and by the tenth had
become general in the western part of Nicollet county, within a
few miles from their hatching-ground, and within two weeks
from the time when the flying began. This early period of lay-
ing may be of itself a sufficient cause for portions of our swarms
remaining here, while the less mature pass on.

NATURAL DECREASE FROM ONE YEAR TO ANOTHER.

But though portions remain, there is no increase in their num-
bers from one year to another. So far from holding its own, the
locust has seen its breeding grounds decrease from nearly fourteen
counties in 1873, to some seven and a half counties in 1874, and
about five and a half counties in 1875; and in this latter area
though able to inflict serious damage in many places (owing chiefly

13

to the small acreage planted) they were in other places noticeably
fewer than in former years.
This continuous decrease in numbers has resulted from several
causes, and the first of these is the early stage of laying just al-
luded to, by means of which large numbers of locusts have hatched
out during the last two autumns, and have died without repro-
ducing themselves. In this connection, the state of Minnesota
has an advantage over more southerly regions, in the fact that we
are situated nearer to the breeding-grounds of invading swarms.
Of these the earlier comers are more likely to pass over us before
reaching the full period of their development, while the later
comers are cut off by our earlier frosts; and of the eggs which are
left with us, being deposited earlier in the season, more are likely
to hatch in the fall and become harmless. On the other hand, the
invaders are more likely to mass their forces in more southerly
states, reach them in full maturity, and remain later in the sea-
son, while the eggs, being deposited later than ours, remain mostly
unhatched until spring. These considerations enable us to under-
stand why certain counties in Missouri, where the locust hatched
in 1875, presented in May such a picture of devastation and deso-
lation as Minnesota has never seen in all its locust experience.
But while becoming prematurely developed, (if this is a correct
expression of the facts as stated,) the locust had also become
shorter lived. One year ago, there was hardly such a thing as a
Rocky Mountain locust to be found in Minnesota by the first of
September. The swarms that had hatched along the Minnesota
river in the spring, and had alighted but a few miles further to the
south in July, had almost totally perished in August, without
extending the territory of their occupation more than the width of
one county beyond the area which they covered on alighting. And
in this connection we owe more to the Tachina maggot than many
are willing to allow. But of the invading swarms of the present
year, though large numbers of the bodies of the dead could be
found in the fields early in September, (something unusual, from
the fact that heretofore they have hardly ever been found at all,)
large numbers remained alive until they were killed by frost, and
even then died with eggs unlaid.
Still another effect of naturalization during the last four years
is an apparent change in character, slight in itself, but showing
what the tendency would be if the locust were to continue to breed
here. While it has lost some portion of its inclination or its ability
to migrate, it has also lost somewhat of its gregarious character.
This was shown by the young locusts last spring, moving over the

14

fields in scattered bodies, or in no bodies at all, a peculiarity so
noticeable as to attract the attention of the farmers ; by the moye-
ments of the swarms on leaving their hatching-grounds, in small
squads and in various directions ; and by the fact that where they
alighted first they left their eggs promiscuously here and there in
the grain fields, instead of in bodies and in selected spots as here-
tofore. There was no general flying from their hatching-ground
in large bodies, mostly in one direction, as was the case in 1874
and 1875. By the last week in June they began to leave some
places so imperceptibly that their departure could hardly be seen,
though their numbers were noticeably diminished. For the first
ten days of July, small squads went careering up and down, south
of the Minnesota river, and wherever there was anything like a
movement of large bodies they seem to have left the state to the
northwest, west, and southwest. In the meantime, others had
spread themselves northward towards the North Pacific Railroad,
and had alighted here and there in numbers sufficient to do con.
siderable damage. But, judging from the occurrences up to the
10th of July, had it not been for new-comers, next year ‘would
have seen the insects so few and so scattered as to be incapable of
great damage, and they might become, in a year or two, as flitting
and as unnoticeable as the red-legged locust that breeds with us
every year.

Probably this is all that can be made of the “ degeneration’’ of
the locust so far as observed in Minnesota. It had not become so
impaired in strength nor so diminished in numbers as not to prove
a serious evil wherever it alighted or laid eggs. It was however
decreasing in numbers, and gradually becoming less capable of
reproducing itself. . Something might perhaps be added in regard
to changes in color and appearance; while the locusts which hatched
in Minnesota last spring had when fully developed something of
the darkness and dullness of old age, the brightness and fierce-
ness of the fresh invaders was apparent to every one.

The facts stated show the general tendency, but there is a more
vital question than the tendency of the locust to degenerate here.
How long the state will continue to be one of the breeding-
grounds of the locust, is simply how long new hordes will continue
to sweep over us and leave here fresh seeds of future devastation.
Nothing is more certain than that we might, by general and
continued effort, practically eradicate the offspring of almost any
one year’s invasion; nothing is more probable than that in almost
any season, the whole body of our hatching swarms might be
utterly swept away from our midst by favorable winds; and finally,

15

®
if we may judge from the last four years, our breeding-swarms
would decrease gradually from one year to another, and if not
reinforced from abroad would finally become so few and so scat-
tered as to be harmless.

ANNUAL DEPARTURE OF LOCUSTS.

Besides the causes already mentioned, still another has been
found in the impulse which moves the locust to leave its birth-
place on acquiring wings. The considerable numbers that have
remained behind each year, have created the impression that none
were gone, and that the locust had become a permanent appendage
of the state. But a collection of various items for the last three
years, together with letters received from the eastern tier of
counties in Dakota, shows that considerable numbers have left the
state, generally to the northwest in 1874, and in various directions
during the past summer. But, with Dogberry, we have been
content to “take no note of him, but let him go, and thank God
we were rid of a knave.’’ It is only within the last year or two
that it has become fully apparent that the final destination of
these departing swarms is an important consideration, and one
which serves to complicate the locust question more deeply than
ever,
Whether or not it is a general rule that the locusts on acquiring
wings seek the direction from which their parents had come in the
preceding year, (a rule which the experience of Minnesota fails to
substantiate,) it is at least certain that in 1875 ‘‘the main direc-
' tion taken by the insects that rose from the lower Missouri valley
country was northwesterly.’’ (Riley’s 8th Ann. Report, p. 105.)
These swarms were traced by Prof. Riley, moving northerly from
the end of May, through June and into July, and passing various
points in Dakota, Wyoming and Montana.*

They passed northward over Bismarck at various times between
June 6th and July 15th. (Same report, p, 86.) But a still more
definite statement as to the final destination of these northward
moving swarms is found in an editorial of the Winnipeg Stand-

* He adds (page 108) ‘‘ nor can I learn of any instance where these swarms
that left our territory deposited eggs.” The different case of our own breed
of locusts, layiuog eggs within two weeks after the flying commences, is re-
markable. But I am informed by Captain J.S Poland, commanding at
Standing Rock, that a swarm from the south alighted near that post, July
4th, 1875, and deposited considerable quantities of eggs between the 4thand
the 18th of July.

16

ard, of August 19, 1876, entitled ‘‘ Locust Flights:’’ It is there
stated that

‘The locusts which hatched in Missouri, Kansas and Nebraska, in anarea
of 250 miles from east to west, and 800 miles from north to south, took flight:
in June, and invariably went northwest, and fell in innumerable swarms
upon the regions of British America, adjoining Forts Pelly, Carlton and El-
lis, covering an area as large as that they vacated on the Missouri River.
They were reinforced by the retiring column from Manitoba, and it seemed
to be hoping against hope that the new swarms of 1876 would not again de-
scend upon the settlements in the Red River valley. Intelligence was re-
ceived here that the insects took flight from the vicinity of Fort Pelly on
the 10th of July, and then followed a fortnight of intense suspense.”

There is of course in all this a failure to connect by any direct
chain of continued observations the swarms that left the Mississippi
valley in 1875 and those which finally disappeared in the region
of the monntains and in British America; still less is it shown
that those swarms were the parents of those which are known to
haye hatched in the same regions in 1876, or even that those
which are known to have hatched there were those which descended
upon the lower country in July and August. But there is at
least a strong series of probabilities.

A great deal has been said within the past two years about the

practical help which the general government may perhaps find
itself able to extend to the people of the Mississippi valley by

attacking the locust in its native breeding-places, and it has been
considered possible that some means might eventually be discovered
of preventing or at least mitigating such inroads as that. which
has justended. But if the events of 1875 and 1876 have any such
connection as is claimed for them in the preceding paragraph, if
the more northern and western breeding-grounds of the locust
are recruited from the lower cultivated regions in alternate years,
the problem of: how to give practical help to the farmer will be
greatly simplified. It would be hard to imagine a method of ex-
tirpating the swarms or the eges of a hurrying insect from an
extended area, or perhaps several such areas, of mountains and des-
erts, the resort of wild beasts and savages, where only armed bands
can maintain a foothold; and on the other hand it would be hard
for the government to find a time better fitted to begin the exter-
mination of the locust than when the mountain region must be
measurably depleted of its stock, nor a place better situated to the
warfare than a region where, with any fair assurance of conquer-
ing a peace, every inhabitant stands ready to do battle.

17

STARTING POINTS OF INVADING SWARMS IN 1877.

Besides the region in the article above quoted from the Winnipeg
Standard, various parts of Montana are known to have been con-
siderable hatching-grounds during the past spring. In the Bis-
marck Tribune of June 14th is found the following, which is
quoted because it gives an idea not only of the place but of the
nature of a breeding-ground :

‘‘IN THE FIELD, NEAR ROSEBUD Buttes, May 29, 1876.

‘“*As we move westward the grazing improves, and here in the Little
Missouri Valley the season is at least a month in advance of the season on
the Missouri. This would be a splendid grazing region, were the water
good. The grass is heavy and nutritious, but the water is strongly im-
pregnated with alkali. Millions of locusts are just now making their
appearance in this region. Too young to fly or do much harm, in a few
days, should the winds favor them, they will sweep down upon the defence-
less agriculturalists on the border, doing untold damage.”

Officers who passed over the country between the Little Missouri
and the Yellowstone rivers during the spring, state that at various
points in that region young locusts were found in immense num-
bers. Shortly before the 23d of July, migrating swarms of locusts
appeared in the vicinity of Gen. Crooks’ camp; ‘myriads of
grasshoppers filled the air, appearing like an immense drifting
snow-storm, trending toward the southeast, and apparently taking
advantage of a northwest wind to favor their flight to the same
fields that they have effectually devastated for two consecutive
seasons.’’ (Hxtract from a letter of July 23d, quoted in the
Pioneer-Press and Tribune.)

MOVEMENTS OF SWARMS OUTSIDE OF MINNESOTA.

It is difficult to show any eastward movement across Dakota of
these swarms that hatched in Montana. At Standing Rock, the
movement was from the north. On the 19th of July, quite a large
number were observed coming from the north, and by the 26th
had about all disappeared from the vicinity of that station. Capt.
Poland states that the main body appeared to pass to the west of
that station, moving south. No eggs were laid at Standing Rock,
or in the immediate region. At Fort Sully, as shown by the
records of the Signal Observer, the locusts appeared at various
dates from the 14th to the 30th of July, and again from the 10th
of August till September 2d ; but whenever the direction of their

3

18

flight is given, it is to the northwest. No eggs were known to be
deposited there. At Lower Brule Agency, on the 29th of July, an
immense swarm alighted from a westerly direction, and flew again
to the northwest, after remaining five days. At different times
during the month of August, small swarms, coming from a westerly
direction, alighted and died there. No eggs deposited. At Yank-
ton, the course was generally south, through the flying-season.

It is probable that both in 1874 and 1876 the swarms that came
into this state, at least in the earlier part of the season, were
hatched in or near British America. This is to be inferred from
the direction of their coming, the fact that we know of extensive
hatching-grounds in British America in both these years, and that
we know of no nearer hatching-ground. There is here also a
_ failure to connect Minnesota with any known breeding-place by
any continuous observations. But it is known at least that at
Bismarck swarms passed south at various times during July. At
Jamestown, (on the N. P. Ry., east of Bismarck,) a large swarm
coming from the northwest on the 12th of July, dropped and
remained until the 24th when they left, going south. On the 14th
of August a very large swarm passed over southward without alight-
ing. At Worthington, D. T., (still farther east, on the Northern
Pacific Railroad,) the first flight appeared from the south on
the 25th of June, stayed about 24 hours and on a change of wind
went south. For the next six weeks locusts passed over that
station in various directions.

At Fort Totten, ‘‘in the summer of 1875, grasshoppers hatched in the
vicinity of the post, took wing in June, and left in the beginning of July.
In 1876, there was ro hatching, but they came and departed without doing
material damage. They always go and come with the wind. They came
about the middle of July, and left in about four days; came again two weeks
afterwards and left without depositing any eggs. Swarms generally came
from the northwest. They often pass over in large numbers without doing

damage.”
L. C. Hunt,

Lieut. Col. 20th Inf.

ENTRANCE OF INVADING SWARMS.

The rate at which swarms have been pouring into the state du-
ring the summer, may be judged from notes taken at points along
the western line of the state of Minnesota, and from the eastern
~ tier of counties in Dakota. I give them in regular succession,
from Pembina southward:

19

Pembina, D. T., Aug. 31, 1876.—‘*No locusts hatched near here, and no
eggs now deposited.”—W. R. Goodfellow.

July 8.—‘‘ Grasshoppers first observed to-day. They could scarcely be
seen with the naked eye, but by using colored eye-glasses they were made
plainly visible. They were in great numbers, flying very high, far above
cumulus clouds, and in a northeasterly direction.”

July, 9.—‘* Grasshoppers flying northeast.”

July 11.—‘‘ Grasshoppers, flying high, and moving southeast, were ob-
served in great numbers.”

July 12.—‘* Grasshoppers still appear moving south-southeast, flying very
high; can scarcely be seen with the naked eye.”

July 13.—* Grasshoppers still continue to be seen moving south by east.”

July 17.—‘* Grasshoppers noted to-day, moving southeast, in greater
numbers than heretofore, and flying considerably lower. None have as yet
alighted.”

July 20.—‘* Grasshoppers continue to fly over this place, moving from the
northwest.”—Records of the Signal Observer, J. Kabernagle.

Grand Forks, Grand Forks county, D. T. (nearly opposite Crookston)
Aug. 28, 1876.—‘* A few locusts were hatched here and flew to the southeast
early in July.

‘A few lit on the 9th of July. They came from the north before alight-
ing, but on the 8th the same grasshoppers flew north and returned next day,
afew alighting, and all left on the 10th, without doing any injury—direction
southeast.

‘¢From the 10th, all through the month of July, when the weather was fine
and clear, and the wind from the north or northwest, more or less of them
flew over, moving in a southerly or southeasterly direction. But in no in-
stance have I seen very heavy clouds of them until the 4th and 5th of
August, when I was out on the head waters of the Turtle and Big Sault,
from thirty-five to forty miles west and northwest of this place, I saw them
moving in a southeasterly direction, in thicker and heavier clouds than I
ever before saw grasshoppers flying. On the evening of the 5th it rained,
and a considerable portion of them fell, and rose next day, moving in the
same direction as before. And, strange to say, they rose without much
‘Sunshine, as the day was cloudy, and the sun showed itself only at inter-
vals, and that for a few minutes at atime. I never saw them move before
except upon a clear, sunshiny day, with a wind favorable to the direction in
which they wanted to move. None lit near the Red river at this time.

“Ido not think that any eggs have been laid here by those alighting in July,
nor by those alighting on the 5ih of August, west of here thirty-five or forty
‘miles.”—Hector Bruce.

Crookston, Polk Co., Minn., Sept. 2, 1876.—‘‘On July 10th and 11th, swarms
of ’hoppers came from the southwest, and lit at Crookston and vicinity,
remaining two and a half days, and without doing any damage worth notic-
ing; they were pairing. They got up on the third day, and went northeast.
Three days later, a large swarm passed over us, going east of southeast,
coming from the north. July 31st, a few lit here from the west, but doing
no damage. August 10th, a few straggling ones came from the north, until
August loth, when they disappeared, going south.”—Ross and Walsh.

Sd

20

Caledonia, Traill Co., D. T., (a few miles south of Crookston,) Aug. 30th,
1876.—*‘ No locusts hatched here in the spring, nor were any eggs deposited.
They began to fly over about July 5th, generally going south or southwest,
‘and for ten days there was hardly a day but what we could see some flying,
most always going south.”—Ara Sargeant.

Fargo, Cass county, D. T., Aug. 31, 1876.—“* A few locusts were hatched
here, and flew northeast on acquiring wings. A large swarm alighted on
the 18th, and remained two days, without doing much damage. During the
last half of July, and until August 5th, extensive swarms were passing over
this county. Their destination was determined by the direction of the wind,
either northwest or southeast.

‘‘ITcannot learn that any eggs have been laid here this season.”—A. J
Harwood.

Breckenridge, Minn., Sept. 27, 1876.—‘* Grasshoppers hatched here from
May 28d onward.

June 27.—‘‘ First seen flying to-day, few in numbers, going with the wind,
from northwest to southeast, between 11 a. mM. and 2 Pp. mM.

July 4.—‘* Flying in great numbers this forenoon from 9 to 11:30, going
from the north with the wind.

July 11.—‘* Hoppers coming down in swarms this forenoon, and flying
from the north.

July 12.—‘* Hoppers left to-day, going south, as there was a strong wind
blowing from the north all day. ;

July 19.—‘* Hoppers flying from the northwest to-day, in millions. Seen
first about9 a, M., and Kept going until sundown; largest swarm seen yet,
and looked like a great drift of snow.

July 22.—‘* A few hoppers seen to-day, flying between 10a. m. and 3 Pp.
M., from the north, slowly.

July 23.—‘* Hoppers flying from9 a. M. to 5 p. Mm, from the north and
northeast, but not in great numbers as on other days, none of them coming
down. F .

July 24.— ‘ Hoppers returning to-day, coming from the southeast, flying
with the wiud; began moving about 10 a.m. and till4 p.m. None came
down.

Aug. 1.—‘‘ Hoppers have appeared again in millions, coming from the
north; are destroying the crop in Minnesota and Dakota. But few of them
are rising to-day, as the weather is cloudy.

Aug. 3,—‘* Hoppers still remain, and are destroying everything, crop,
vegetables and grass. A few seen flying during the entire day, from the
southeast.

Aug. 6.—‘ Hoppers began to leave about 10 a. M., going southwest; wind
very light, and from the west. First seen depositing eggs to-day.

Aug. 7, 9, 10, and 12.—‘* Hoppers seen flying in small numbers from the
southeast; still remain here, depositing eggs.”—From the Records of the
Signal Observer, M. L. Hearne, M. D. .

Wahpeton, Richland Co., D. T., (opposite Breckenridge,) Aug. 30, 1876.—
‘* A few locusts hatched here; so few that the dates of their hatching or

remem

21

departure was unnoticed. Eggs were laid only in scattering spots, after
August Ist. They left before the egg-laying was finished.”—D. Wilmot
Smith.

Sisseton Agency, D. T., (opposite Big Stone Co., Minn.,) Aug. 12, 1876.—-
‘In the upper portions of the Reservation, twenty-five miles north of the
Agency, a small quantity of grasshoppers were hatched, in the latter part of
May, and destroyed several grain fields and gardens. At different times in
the month of July, we saw them flying over, sometimes in large numbers.
Only a few straggling ones came down. The direction has generally been
from a point south of southwest.

‘“©On Sabbath, the 30th of July, we had a visitation all over the Reserve.
They came down like snowflakes in winter, and covered the earth. Garden
vegetables, especially beans and onions, were eaten up to the roots. Corn
was pretty much destroyed, and potatoes and oats were very much damaged.
The wheat was generally ripe, and but little eaten. They commenced leay-
ing about twenty-four hours after they came, but it was the last of the week
before we were free from them. They left on the same line on which they
came, going towards the northeast or east of northeast. They were prob-
ably the same that have lately visited Herman and Morris, on the St Paul &
Pacific Railroad. I understand they were quite as thick to the west of us,
twenty miles, as here.”—Rev. S. R. Riggs.

[These swarms appear to have reached Ortonville, Big Stone
county, about the first, Herman on the third, and Morris on the
fifth of August. They came eastward from the James river. The
settlers along the James river state that no locusts were hatched
there, and that all that appeared there during the season came
from the northwest. |

Gary, Dene Co., D. T., (Opposite Yellow Medicine Co., Minn.) Dec. 8th,
1876. ‘* No locusts were hatched in this county last spring. The first flying
swarm appeared in the latter part of June, flying northwest and did not
alight. July 20 avery large swarm came from the southwest and went
northeast; a few stopped and remained about 24 hours.

“* August 15, they flew very thick, the largest swarm lever saw. They
came from the northwest and flew southeast. This swarm, as near as I can
learn, Was about 20 miles wide. [This probably furnished a portion of the
swarms which reached Le Sueur, Mankato, and other points to the east
and southeast on the 18th of August.] August 19th a swarm flew from
north to south. August 24th a small swarm passed from northwest to
southeast ; and again in the same direction on the the 30th of August. On
September 4th, 5th, 7th, and 9th small and scattering squads flew over to
the southeast.”—H. H. Herrick.

Medary, Brookings Co., D. T., (opposite Lincoln Co., Minn.,) August 30,
1876.—‘‘The hoppers hatched last spring in this county and the northern
half of Moody county. These became fully developed from the 25th of

22

June to July Ist, and on the days between those dates they left in great
clouds. The favorable winds for them seemed to be from north, northwest
or northeast. They seemed inclined to go southwest.

From July Ist until now the hoppers have been seen flying overhead nearly
every day, moving with the wind, most numerous always with northerly
wind. These alighted only once or twice in July, but only in small numbers,
and remained only a short time.

On Saturday, July 22d, very dense clouds passed over, (some so low as
almost to darken the atmosphere,) with a northeast wind. They were
going west. I have since learned that they rose from Minnesota, from the
State line eastward.

On Saturday, August 5th, very great swarms passed from west to east.
At that time many alighted on the prairies, but not many in the’sett!ement.
The next morning, Sunday, I drove from Medary to Oakwood, about 18
miles north, and when about half way, I could see, for a distance of thirty
miles up and down the valley of the river, dense clouds of hoppers rising.
I have since learned that they extended more than 40 miles south of here,
and I know more than 20 miles north, making a belt more than sixty miles
wide.

‘These I note as remarkable displays of hoppers. They could be seen
every day, in what any reasonable man would call sufficient numbers. No
eggs were laid in this county so far as heard from.”—Rev. G. 8. Codington.

Flandrau, Moody county, D. T. (opposite Pipestone county, Minn.) Sept.
12, 1876.—‘** A few hoppers hatched here, but did little damage, and flew to
the south and southwest with the army which came over in July.

*‘The first flying over came about the 2Ist of July, from a northeast
course, and that was the time they visited our crops and made a general
raid. Since that time to the first of September, they have been flying more
or less, but have done no great harm.

August 6.—‘* They passed over in large swarms to the southeast. These
did us little harm. They have laid eggs to a limited extent in our coun-
. ty."—M. D. L. Pettigrew.

It will be seen from this that swarms from some source or other
began to cross the state line to the eastward on July 8th, at Pem-
bina, and that, as a general rule, the date of arrival of large
swarms becomes later in the season the farther southward the
point of arrival moves. And all these are only the incomings of
swarms noticed at prominent points on the border; how many
more have crossed or recrossed at other places where there was no
one to report their comings, can only be guessed at from the im-
mense clouds that have rolled over the state, passing and repassing
each other to the south and east, from the 20th of July to the first
week of September. At least one large swarm, in addition to
those already recorded, must have entered somewhere to the north-
west of Douglas county, shortly before the 18th of August. But
whatever form or continuity these bodies may have had before

23

reaching the state, it was soon lost after their arrival. It is not
easy to trace them, even from one county to another, as they
passed over ground already occupied by earlier comers. All we can
say is, that there were extensive movements in certain directions,
on certain days.

MOVEMENT OF SWARMS WITHIN THE STATE.

The movement of the various swarms of our own hatching
early in the season has been already given. By the 10th of July
the counties to the south of the Minnesota river were generally
free from locust, and had begun to congratulate themselves on
their delivery. Between the 10th and the 20th the locusts had
begun to increase largely in numbers in the northern countigs, but
the fact that additions had already begun from abroad was not
generally known. The greater portion of these had begun to
move southward by the latter date and passed various points
between Lac qui Parle and Madelia on or soon after July 20th.
They passed gradually along over the counties that had been
injured during the spring by our own stock of locusts, and by the
first of August had reached the southern line of the state and
many had passed on into Iowa. As they moved along, portions
remained behind here and there, but there was no extensive de-
posit of eggs until they reached the southern half of the lower
range ef counties in the state. It seems probable that these
bodies also brought with them to the southward, parts of our own
hatching swarms that had flown northward early in the month.
But by the twentieth of the month the locusts had mostly dis-
appeared from along the lines of the Saint Paul and Pacific, and
the Saint Paul and Sioux City Railroads, and there were congrat-
ulations once more that ‘‘the hoppers were gone.’’ A line
showing the eastern limit of their raids at this date would pass,
generally speaking, along the eastern boundary of Todd county,
through Stearns, Meeker, the eastern part of McLeod, through
Sibley, Nicollet, and the northwest corner of Blue Earth, and in
Martin county as far east as Faribault.

Between the end of July and the sixth of August, new swarms.
had been collecting in Otter Tail, Grant, Stevens, and Big Stone
counties, and in some of the eastern counties of Dakota; and on
the latter date, a wind from the northwest gave these an oppor-
tunity they had apparently been waiting for, and there was a
general flying to the east and southeast, over a large portion of
the western half of the state. In the southwestern counties,

24

where the new-comers could be traced directly back to Dakota,
there was very little alighting, and the swarms mostly passed over
into northwestern Lowa. By this raid of the sixth of August, the
area of visitation was extended eastward to St. Cloud, into Wright
and Le Sueur counties, and across Blue Earth and Martin counties.
After the sixth of August, clear weather and favorable winds, at
various dates, carried the line still further eastward, as on the
eleventh, the fourteenth, and especially on the eighteenth of
August, when large swarms flew over Elk River, Monticello,
Glencoe, Shakopee, Blakeley, Belle Plaine, Le Sueur, Mankato,
and Blue Earth City, and one flight was seen as far east as Hast-
ings. During the week ending August 26th, they were seen flying
over or alighting at various times in Rice, Waseca, Steele, Fari-
bault and Freeborn counties, and are said to have appeared over
Rochester. By the first of September they had added Waseca,
Freeborn, Carver, and portions of Hennepin, Sherburne, and Ben-
ton counties to the “grasshopper regions,’’ and some slight addi-
tions to the eastward have been made since the latter date.

The comparatively slow rate of progress to the eastward through
the season is surprising, considering the long distances which the
locust is supposed to travel, and the impression which one receives
from seeing a swarm passing in one direction through an
entire day. It is easy to imagine that such flights must have
come immediately from British America or Montana, and that
they will shortly reach Wisconsin and Illinois. But the locust,
as it appears in our state, moves (with perhaps rare exceptions,)
by day only and often for only a few hours in the day, and a halt
for the night is easily prolonged by head winds or cloudy weather
into a halt for several days ; nor do the swarms move continua!ly
eastward, although the line of encroachment is continually mov-
ing in that direction. In one case at least, a body that had moved
easterly over a county on the 24th of August, returned directly
west one week later. (Freeborn County Standard, editorial, Aug.
31, 1876.) There is no knowledge that any swarm has (in Minne-
sota) reached the Mississippi river south of Hastings.

But the general direction of movement since the twentieth of
July has been to the southward and eastward. The experience of
the summer has shown that the Big Woods offer no impassible
barrier. Hitherto, the incoming swarms have reached about as
far east (but not in great numbers) as Lake Washington, in Le
Sueur county, longitude 16° 15' (nearly) west. They have reached
this point toward the end of August, when impaired in strength
and activity. But the invasion of the past summer has been

25

characterized by the incoming of fresh and still active swarms
late in August, and these have been carried by winds blowing
freshly from the west, as far east as Mower county, longitude 16°
west. It may be proved in future that the eastern limit of in-
yasion is determined solely by the extent to which winds prevail
from the west, together with the length of the season during
which the locust retains its full activity and strength. The con-
nection between the movements of the locust and the prevailing
direction of the winds, seems likely to receive more attention than
has hitherto been paid to it. While the timbered country of the
northeastern part of the State has been but little infested, to any
great distance east of the Mississippi, it may be said that that
portion of the state does not lie in the direct line of invasions.
There is nothing to show that swarms purposely turn aside from
the heavily timbered regions and go elsewhere, although in par-
tially timbered sections they alight mostly in the open farms.
But, having once entered the timber, their progress is soon ended,
and no more fortunate destination could be selected for our depart-
ing swarms than Northeastern Minnesota. Locusts have been
quite numerous about Brainerd throughout the summer, since
early in July, and their numbers were perceptibly increased on the
sixth of August, apparently brought in by a strong wind from the
southwest ; but these evidently found their progress impeded by
the timber, for they did not extend to any distance east of Brainerd,
along the Northern Pacific Railroad, nor did they lay eggs to any
extent about Brainerd.

The connection between flying movements and the direction of
the winds may be shown by the following diary kept by Lieut. R.
B. Plotts, of Elk township, Nobles county:

July 5.—‘‘ Light wind; first flight came from the northeast, and com-
menced to settle down about 10 a. M.; attacked gardens first of all. They
remained here till Sunday, the 9th, when ina brisk breeze from north-north-
west, a light rain the night before, they flew from early in the morning till
after sundown, and lit heavily south of me.

July 10.—‘* Wind southeast; flew heavily to the west, the highest appear-
ing to sheer off southwest. Got a heavy light from those east of me.

July 13.—‘* Late in the afternoon wind suddenly veered to northeast, and
they started immediately. Nearly all left me.

July 15.—‘* Wind north, veering to the east. Nota very heavy flight to
the west.

July 16.—‘* Wind south-southeast. Still going west.

July 17.—“ Wind east, trending north, showery. Before the showers
commenced, could be seen going west. That ended the first raid. No more
Aying ig till

26

July 20.—‘* Second raid came in ona west-northwest wind, and lit at
night.

July 22.—** Wind north-northeast, heavy flight, and coming down all day.

July 23.—**Wind northeast, haling east, Heavy flight; came down heavily,
and covered everything nearly.

July 24.—‘*Wind varying from north-northeast to east. Coming and going
all day; some commenced laying eggs, which was kept up till this raid al!
left us.

July 27.—‘* Wind from north and east. Heavy flight, and most of them
left here.

July 29.—*An east wind took all this raid away, the upper current being.
to the southwest. No more flights until

Aug. 6,—‘‘Light wind from northwest. Another heavy raid came in..
These remained till

Aug. 10.—‘‘when wind again came from the northwest, and it rained. As
soon as the shower was over and before the sun shone out, the hoppers.
started in heavy flight.

Aug. 12.—“The red mites were first noticed doing much damage to the
eggs.

Aug. 13.—‘‘Another showery day, and immediately after the rain they
started south.

Aug. 14.—“Wind from north and north-northeast. They started early and
before the sun came out, although it was quite cool; about all of this raid
left. .

Aug. 16.—‘*Very cloudy, with variable winds. Suddenly, while it was quite
dark with clouds, the hoppers jumped up and flew off southwest; the very
first puff of wind from the northeast, and they all left here.

Aug. 18.—‘‘Wind again from the north. A very heavy flight passed over,
high up in the air. None alighted. Red mites disappearing.

Aug. 23.—**Wind hauling to westward, and some few stragglers flew as
near south as they could.

Aug. 24.—‘“Wind northwest. Grasshoppers very high and heavy flight to
the southwest.

Aug. 25.—‘‘Wind northwest. Heavy flight to the southwest, very high.

Aug. 31.—‘‘Showery for several days before; wind suddenly north-north-
west, and by 10 A. M. many grasshoppers were flying. By noon, in the up-
per air and almost indistinguishable, was a heavy body going southwest.
None lit here 3

‘On the dates intermediate between those given the wind! was very light,
and there were no filghts, except perhaps short ones, from one part of a field
to another.

‘‘When the directions of flight are not expressly stated, they correspomd
almost exectly with the direction of the wind.”

27
AREA OF THE PRESENT DEPOSIT OF EGGS.

A line showing the eastern limit of the area where eggs are now
deposited in Minnesota would include (very nearly) the western
tier of towns in Mower county, the western part of Steele, Rice,
and Scott counties, the whole of Carver, the western part of Hen-
nepin, along the river (in Sherburne and Benton counties, and in
many places thickly in the timber farms,) the southern part of
Todd county, then westerly including Otter Tail, the southwestern
part of Becker, and portions of Clay counties. To the south and
west of this line the locusts have had possession of more or less
of the state from the fourth of July to the first of October, and it
would be difficult to specify with any exactness especially in the
eastern part of this area, where eggs are most or least thickly
laid. But the counties along the Red river from Glyndon to Lac
qui Parle are comparatively free from eggs, unless in the eastern
portions, and again many towns from Madelia westward in Wa-
tonwan, Cottonwood, Murray, Redwood, and the whole of Lyon
and Lincoln counties are almost entirely free from eggs.

The accompanying map will show the area of eggs deposits
for the last four summers, but the lines must not be construed too
exactly. They are intended to cover generally the outside limits
As for the limits of the deposit during the present year, it is im-
possible to draw it exactly, and no doubt a few locusts will be
found hatching in many spots next spring which lie to the east
of this line. Late in the season, considerable numbers passed over
Owatonna to the eastward, some over Mantorville, and possibly a
few over Rochester, and these, perhaps, will be found to have
alighted and laid eggs somewhere in the southeastern counties.
On our borders eggs are laid in the southwestern counties of
Dakota as far north as Rock Co., Minnesota, and in Towa as far
east as Mower county. e,.

PLACES WHERE EGGS ARE DEPOSITED.

These eggs have been deposited, as a general rule, in the vicinity
of cultivated fields, and in each township the extent of the deposit
is measured, in some degree, by the amount of land under cultiva-
tion. It is not presumable, at least, that wild prairies or lands
lying far distant from tilled fields, are extensively filled with eggs.
The locust is attracted and held by the growing crops, and it seems
to be something more than a mere coincidence that the area de-
vastated by the young in the spring does not become a laying-

28

ground in the summer ; this is especially true of the present year,
and the same strip of country where the locusts hatched in the
spring, and where the little that was planted, was mostly consumed
by them, is at present exactly that portion of the infested area
‘that is now most nearly free of eggs, although the deposit is abun-
dant enough in the counties to the north and south of it. , Nor do
the prairies, when covered with grass, present many favorable
situations for the deposit of eggs. The experience of the summer
would seem to show that almost any bare, sunny spot, where the
earth is hard enough or moist enough to retain the shape of a hole,
is selected by the locust when she is ready to lay. To what extent
the prairies in general are filled with eggs, cannot be told, of
course, until the time of hatching arrives, but in the vicinity of
cultivated fields the wild prairie has received its share of eggs.
Throughout the whole area already given, with the exceptions
named, there is hardly a town where the deposit was not so exten-
sive by the first of October as to form one of the most serious of
all considerations for next year’s crop. These eggs are laid some-
times in ground so hard as to resist the point of a knife-blade,
sometimes in sand-heaps so soft that the next shower washes off
the sand and leaves the egg-cones standing like pegs in the ground ;
on knolls high and clear of all moisture, on sand-bars in the rivers,
and in flats so low as to be overflowed by the next rain. But the
most favorable spot of all, everywhere, is new breaking. Grain
fields have generally suffered most damage on the sides nearest to
new breaking, and, conversely, in new breaking more eggs are laid
on the sides nearest to grain fields. In some counties, a large
amount of new breaking has been done by non-residents, and will
furnish a fruitful source of eyil next spring. Of circulars sent to
nearly all the infested towns to ascertain the extent to which eggs
were deposited during the season, the following, from Blue Harth
county, is a sample of all, as to the extent of the deposits, and the
spots where they are situated :

Beauford.—‘ All over the town; not much in the stubble, but on all bare
spots, such as sheep-pastures, between the rows of corn and potatoes, gar-
dens, all places that were clean of weeds, river bottoms, where fed close,
timothy stubble and road sides.”—J. S. Larkin.

Butternut Valley.—‘‘ It would be difficult to run down a spade and turn
the dirt anywhere in stubble, corn, potato fields, meadow, or road, with-
out finding eggs. It seems as twenty to one before, and they destroyed
everything.”—Samuel D. Shaw.

Ceresco.—‘‘ Over the whole township, very thick in most places.”—J. M.
Mead.

29

Jamestown.—‘‘ They have deposited their eggs on nearly every farm in
this township.”—A. P. Davis.
Judson.—“‘ They have laid eggs very extensively, especially on new breaking

and roads, some in the stubble, grass, prairie and corn lands.”—Humphrey
H. Jones.

Leray.—‘‘ Eggs are laid on every clear, dry]place in the town; mostly in
corn fields, potato flelds, gardens, and in the highway.”—Ira B. Reynolds.

Lime.—‘‘ In the flats along the Minnesota river they are thicker than in
the timber, but along the roads, and in old pastures, they are so thick that
nobody can have an idea, unless he has seen it himself.”—Jacob Born.

Mapleton.—‘‘ There is not a farmer but claims that every favorable spot
on his farm is thoroughly peppered.”—J. E. Brown.

Medo —‘‘All timothy pastures, all new breaking, in the roads, and in some
stubble to a limited extent—from 6 to 10 acres in each quarter.”—B. F.
Steadman.

Rapidan.—‘* Every favorable place is well filled ; roadsides, tame pastures,
and new breaking thickest, corn fields next, and stubble flelds and unbroken
prairie least.”—James B. Swan.

Shelby.—‘‘All along the highways and especially on all new breaking and
old pastures, corn fields and prairie lands that are eaten our by pasturage,
and in fact there is no such thing as exception from them.”—Thomas J.
Cross,

South Bend.—‘ Eggs are deposited in every rood of dry ground in the
township.”—D. P. Davis.

Sterling.—‘‘ In some places the eggs are stuck in very thick, but in the
flelds generally the eggs cannot be very thick. Still, in the aggregate there
are very many, being everywhere, even in the timber.”—N. A. Hunt.

Vernon Center.—‘* Eggs are deposited all over the township, and in some
places very thick, seemingly no room for more, and in other places (wheat
stubble,) not so many.”—E. W. Washburn.

The laying this year seems to surpass that of former years not
only in the area filled, but in the numbers deposited everywhere.
This could hardly fail to be the case when the laying commenced
early in July and was prolonged into September, and when some
towns received deposits from two, three, or even four different
bodies. Where new breaking was harrowed in the fall the eggs
often appeared strewn on the surface as thickly as grain is sown;
e.g. ‘I have just dragged a new piece of breaking, and the eggs
were as thick as wheat sown at the rate of one and a half bushels
per acre; but I think they are thicker on breaking than anywhere
else. (S. S. Clevenger, town clerk of Bismarck, Sibley Co.)

TIME OF DEPOSITING EGGS.

The time when eggs have been deposited this year has been
stated already. The time when, or rather the age at which the

30

Rocky Mountain Locust deposits its eggs, is a different question,
The same species has laid eggs in Kansas, this year, as late as the
13th of November, and may continue to lay in Texas as late as
the first of December. (Riley’s 7th Ann. Report, p.192.) If the
mission of the locust is to lay eggs once and die, what could be
the time or place of birth of those insects which have apparently
first reached maturity by the first of December? Although it has
been considered possible that these are a second brood whose pa-
rents were hatched in the preceding April or May in Texas or Col.
orado, there is no knowledge of the time or place of any such see-
ond hatching. If these late laying swarms are such as those which
come down from the Snowy Range in Colorado, in the latter part
of August (vide N. C. Meeker, quoted in Riley’s 8th Ann. Report,
p. 84) it must be admitted that the mountain-born broods are a
longer-lived and more vigorous race than any bred in Minnesota.
Besides this, among the swarms which have come in upon us this
year, many were found dying as late as October, containing eggs.
That the Rocky Mountain Locust lays eggs twice or three times in
a lifetime, has been the result of some guess-work among our far-
mers, who considered it necessary in order to account for facts as
they saw them. I give the result of a single experiment.

On the 25th of June, I shut up in wire gauze cages nine pup
of the Rocky Mountain Locust. The bottoms of the cages were
filled with earth packed hard, and the insects appeared to thrive in
confinement. By the second of July they had all become perfect
insects. By the 8th of July they commenced coupling, and were
seen repeating the act for several days. On the 15th and 16th two
of the females went through the form of depositing eggs, and [
marked the place of deposit on the edge of the cage. The coupling
was repeated again as before, until the third of August. At that
date the coupling ended, and the locusts became almost inactive,
and were seen to eat very rarely afterward.*

On the 14th of August one of the males died; the female died on
the 9th of September, and was found to contain fourteen full
sized eggs, but I found on examining the cage that there was also

* The early part of this coupling season was one of the greatest activity
on the part of these insects; they dashed themselves against the wire of
their cages as though all space would be too small to contain them; there
would be a flash of the wings, extended and closed again in an instant, or
that movement of the hind legs known as ‘‘ fiddling,” which seemed to be a
well known signal between the male and female. In cages, where several
pairs were confined together, the male, while in the act of coupling, would
repeat this movement, if brushed against by another.

31

-a full sized egg-cone where she had already appeared to deposit
.on the fifteenth of July. Of the rest of the Rocky Mountain
Locusts the males were caged with some female Red-Legged
Locusts caught im my garden, and although the two species did not
-gseem inclined to have much commerce with each other, I saw one
pair coupling. These observations are very slight and imperfect,
but are given for whatever they might be worth. That the male
dies first may be inferred not only by the above experiment, but
from the fact that in September it was common to find many
pairs coupled, of which the female was alive, but the male had
died without releasing himself.

PARASITES AND ENEMIES.

The various insect enemies of the Rocky Mountain Locust have
been described sufliciently for common information by Prof.
Riley on pp. 44-46 of the ‘‘ Report of the Proceedings of a
Conference of the Governors of several Western States and Ter-
ritories, at Omaha, Nebraska, in October, to consider the Locust
Problem.’’ As the descriptions are further illustrated by plates,
and as the pamphlet is intended for public distribution it may
serve to prevent some of the confused knowledge about these
parasites and enemies which has heretofore prevailed to a con .
siderable extent. The amount of help which may be expected, or
has already been received, from these enemies of the locust is, in
limited areas, even greater than Prof. Riley would assign to them.
These are farms where in loose, mellow soil it is now almost
impossible to find eggs, yet but a short distance away eggs may
be found in abundance in hard ground. There was also great
difference in the different flying swarms in regard to the presence
of the internal grub. While in some places hardly a locust (one
out of five,) could be found that was not affected by some
internal parasite, in others they were almost entirely free from
them. Mr. W. ©. Ralls, of Le Sueur, examined 624 locusts
between the 7th and 10th of September, and in 9 of these the
grub was found, and in 10 the hair-worm. It would be wellif we
could add to this help which is given without expectation of
bounty or relief, the help which might have been ‘added by
thousands of prairie-chickens killed during the fall. When a
whole community stands in need of every form of assistance that
man and nature can render, it is worse than useless to throw away
the help, however slight, that any willing imstrument is ready to
contribute.

32
DAMAGE TO CROPS.

The form and substance which this report might have been ex-
pected to assume early in the season, haye changed considerably
under changing circumstances. The various means of contending
with the locust have been set forth generally and in detail during
the past four months; and the amount of damage which has been
inflicted upon the crops, while it might have been ascertained with
some precision in five or six counties, has become a different mat-
ter when combined with severe losses by drouth, and extending
over thirty-five or more counties. The exact amount of loss in so
many different counties, varying as it does from almost total loss
of the grain crops to slight injury to gardens and late corn, can
not be arrived at with any less efficient machinery than that of
the Commissioner of Statistics, to whom the whole of this portion
of the subject properly belongs.

Of grain, the oats and barley have, as usual, suffered the most;
in Raymond, Stearns county, where the locusts were most numer-
ous from the 23d of July to the 20th of August, ‘‘the Lost Nation
wheat was only slightly damaged, while the Fife wheat was ru-
ined.’’ (So stated by L. B. Raymond, Esq.) The same fact was
noted by P. Hoffman, Esq., of Westport, Pope county; but it is
not known how generally the rule will apply.

Corn and potatoes have escaped with less damage everywhere,
though corn attacked in the silk has been ruined. Peas are never
specially mentioned except to note their escape from injury. (‘‘On
the’ whole, we consider peas and potatoes the best crop to raise. ’’—
S. S. Gilliam, Big Bend, Cottonwood county.) Sorghum is almost
locust proof so far, both against the young and old. Flax, tobacco
and beans are generally mentioned to note their almost total destrue-
tion. Farms lying on the east side of lakes have generally suffer-
ed less than others, both in this state and Dakota. In some cases
farms situated in the timber have been passed over altogether; in
others they have yielded 5 to 10 bushels to the acre, while crops
on the prairies in the same town have been failures; on the other
hand, rarely the timbered portions of a town have suffered more
severely than the prairie farms.

PRACTICAL METHODS OF CONTENDING WITH THE YOUNG LOCUST.
The different means of contending with the locust both in the

egg and the unfledged state, have been set forth so fully and so
often within the last two years, that they ought by this time to

33

have reached, in some form or other, the hands of every reading
man in Minnesota. The report of the commission appointed by
Governor ©. K. Davis in 1875, (of which some 5,000 copies were
printed,) the proclamation of Governor J. S. Pillsbury, issued
August 30th, 1876, containing the gist of all the known methods
of locust warfare, and the many and oftentimes excellent amplifi-
cations and details of these methods, as they have appeared in the
state newspapers during the summer, cover the whole ground so
far as it is known. Finally the Report of the Proceedings of the
Omaha Convention repeat, in twelve excellent pages, the whole
subject once more, and a reprint of these in the newspapers of
those counties where the evil is new and comparatively unknown,
ought to leave no further lack of information.

It ought also to be understood that these sources contain all
that has so far been made public on the subject, and that the
farmer must for the present defend his crops by these means or
not at all. We are so accustomed to the comprehensive methods
of farming by machinery that it is hard for us to come down to
the petty exercise of individual exertion which the European
peasant would consider only a regular portion of his daily exist-
ence. But whatever may be the success of various machines and
applications which are now in preparation, but not to be disclosed
at present, there is as yet no labor-saving contrivance, capable of
being applied over large areas, which can accomplish anything
like a universal destruction of the young locust, and the general
law of labor holds good, that a man’s success is measured by the
earnestness of his own endeavor. Even the difficulty which
results from sparseness of population may be overcome in some
little measure; where a few farmers in a township where eggs are
_ laid have determined to sow a small acreage and to defend it to the
best of their abilities, something may be gained by combining and
sowing in partnership, or side by side, the fields that would other-
wise be distributed over a township. Of course there are objec-
tions and difficulties to any such method of proceeding, but they
are at least no greater than those already presented in the mere.
fact that the locust is present. On the other hand the advantages
would be great ; half a dozen families acting in concert and in
the defense of one large field would accomplish ‘ar more than by
any disjointed efforts ; it would be far easier to defend the four
sides of one large bata than the twenty-four sides of half a dozen
smaller ones ; and lastly the single field would have a smaller
number of locusts in the aggregate to contend against, and insects
hatched at a distance from it might never reach it before flying;

~

9)

34

at least it is certain that fields lying within three miles of the
hatching grounds of last spring, remained untouched until the
flying season.

WHAT MAY BE DONE BY ENERGY AND PERSEVERENCE,

Although it is impossible for me to add at present anything to
the many and various methods of locust-warfare that have been
repeated so often, it may be of some value to show what has been
or may be done with those already known. It was not as a mere
form of speech that the conference at Omaha concluded with these
words:

“That our consultation with each other and with those who
have tested the matter, has resulted in the firm conviction that
by proper efforts, concerted action, and a vigorous and determined
warfare against them, the young grasshoppers which may be
hatched out next year; or any subsequent year, can be successfully
fought and our crops saved; that we are not without remedy, but
we may protect our crops against them if we will but make use of
the means within our reach. ’’

The conditions of success here noted, ** proper efforts, concetted
action, and vigorous and determined warfare,’’ have never yet
been applied in Minnesota. The truth of the above quotation, is
shown. by the fact that where even individuals, contending alone
not only against the locusts hatched about them, but against those
which the concerted action of their neighbors should have ren-
dered harmless, have defended their crops with perseverance and
determination through a whole season, they have in the end re-
ceived a return which justified both their usual and their extra
labor. Even the most petty means of defence, if kept up per-
sistently through a whole spring, will often effect a saving of a
considerable portion of the crop. The town of Lime, in Blue
Earth county, one-half of a government town, in 1875 turned out
its whole population to battle with the young locusts with brooms,
switches, and every weapon they could lay hands on, and returned
an average crop of 12 2-3 bushels of wheat, 36 bushels of oats,
and 36 bushels of corn to the acre. The town reported no dam-
age from locusts, and the return was about the average crop for
the whole county, and a fair yield.

Charles Pelzel, of Milford, Brown county, by spreading tar over
strips of building paper, and placing these along the sides of his
fields, saved most of his crop, while those of his neighbors were
bably damaged. The paper was re-spread with tar as often as it

35

became covered with young locusts. On 25 acres of wheat he saved
923 bushels, and on eight acres of oats 400 bushels. All this was
at a cost of $3 for tar.

Mr. N. V. McDowell, of Bigelow, Nobles county, who has
fought the locusts persistently ever since they came in 1873, by 10
days’ extra labor in hauling and burning straw, saved a fair crop
on 55 out of 70 acres cultivated, but his exertions were rendered
useless by the raids of July and August. Even after these he was
able to harvest five bushels of wheat to the acre on early sowing.

The only crop.of small grain harvested in the town of Holly,
Marray county, this year, was by Mr. J. M. King. He writes:

‘¢T putin about 50 days’ labor for one man. I caught 100 bushels in my
net, and destroyed as mauy more by scattering straw over their hatching
grounds and burning them. I also put to flight swarms and droves of them
after they began to fly by use of bags nailed on to from 25 to 50 feet of pole
or board, with which I trailed back and forth across my fields, at times
driving them like sheep, and at other times not making much impression.
I saved 450 bushels of wheat from 52 acres, but firmly believe that if we had
had a favorable season, the hoppers would have hurt it but little; but the
dry weather, coming as it did, seemed to kill it.”

The following experience is also worthy of being recordet

‘“Mr.S. W. Danforth, of Madelia, Watonwan county, after having 9 ce re-
solved (in 1874) that he would put in no crop whatever should the locusts
deposit eggs on his farm a second time, resolved once more in 1876 that he
would determine whether he or the locusts should be master of his farm.
On the north side of his wheat field was a prairie ridge where the locusts
hatched in the springs These, while very young, began to come into the
field on the north, and had reached it before being discoverd. He began by
burning them with straw on the edge of the field and on the adjoining prai-
rie, constructing a ditch along the side of the field at the same time.
Smaller ditches were also made inside the field to stop those which had al-
ready entered: When young, they were also delayed by simply harrowing
over the soil and presenting a rough surface for them to crawl over. Seven
or eight days were spent in this way, and after the ditch was finished, ic
turned away the locusts so completely that the work was considered done,
and the crop saved. On the western edge of his field was a strip of prairie
grass, 40 rods wide, and beyond this some stubble and old corn grounds, be-
longing to a neighbor. Here the locusts hatehed out abundantly. About a
week after work was done on the north side of the field, these had crossed
the strip of prairie and entered the field from the west before being noticed.
As soon as they were discovered, he got all the help he could and made a
ditch as fast as possible. This stopped them for nearly a week, and then
they began to cross it. He hitched a horse to a plank and walked him up

36

and down in the ditch, and this turned them aside for a while. There was
a cloudy day on which the locusts rested, but when the sun came out they
were ravenous, and there was no stopping them. They crossed the ditch,
and filled the straw-fire so full as to extinguish it. He called in his neigh-
bors to see what would happen to them if the locusts were allowed to keep
on in their course, and five or six turned out with teams, hauling straw-
With this they burned over a strip three or four rods wide and a hundred
rods long, along the edge of the field. But in spite of all his efforts, the lo-
custs had made their way into his wheat, and by this time he had finished a
catcbing-net. The next day, in five hours, he caught from 15 to 20 bushels.
This was continued daily, until 75 or 80 bushels had been caught, and it was
“not necessary to use it, except as occasion demanded on certain days, or in
certain spots where the locusts were thickest. This work was so effectual
that there should have been (except for drouth) a fair crop of wheat, or at
least half a crop all over the farm, except where the burning was done.
This demonstrates the possibility of one farmer’s fighting two farmers’ lo-
custs, and still saving half a crop.”

CATCHING-MACHINES.

Many other isolated cases of persistent and partially successful
efforts in saving crops from the young locusts have occurred this
year; | mention these because they have been reported more fully
than others. It also shows what can be done with-machines in
the later part of the season, and what might have been done by
attacking the locusts in their hatching-grounds instead of waiting
for them to approach the grain. The coming spring seems likely
to test what can be done with catching-machines. Not only are
several elaborate ones patented or prepared for use when the time
comes, but many farmers are already preparing such machines after
their own fashions. To those who are deterred by cost or by lack
of a model, it should be said that an efficient machine can be made
at a cost of a few poles or strips of board, a pair of wheels, a few
yards of stout canvas, and just sufficient ingenuity to construct a
long, open-mouthed bag to run over the fields with its lower edge
near the ground, and running back in the rear to a sack to contain
the locusts that are caught. Mr. King’s net was such, and cap-
tured from two to eighteen bushels per day, depending on the size
and age of the locusts.

Mr. Danforth’s machine consisted of two wheels, connected by
an axle 20 feet long and six inches in diameter; this was made of
a stout pole obtained from the woods, and it was necessary that it
should be so large and strong, for the loads of young locusts cap-
tured were sometimes so heavy as to bend even this badly. Across
the top of this axle two poles, of about the same diameter as the

\

%

37

axle, were fastened, running back nearly to a V some eight or ten
feet behind the middle of the axle, and extending forward and
opening out in front of it. The front ends of this V was steadied
by a cross-piece. This was the frame-work. The net was made
of about 40 yards of cotton cloth, cone-shaped, in front about 18
feet wide, from one side to another along the axle, and six or eight
feet high from the ground to the top of the net. This net nar-
rowed back about seven feet until it was some five or six feet in
diameter, and terminated in a stout canvas bag three or four feet
long, closed with a string at the rear end. The heavy loads of lo-
custs caught (sometimes 500 ponnds) made it necessary to have a
support for the net and bag, and for this purpose a triangular floor
work of boards was made, the front end supported from the axle,
and the hind end from the hind end of the V poles, and running
as near the ground as possible. The lower edge of the net in front
was kept close to the ground by a piece of light scantling fastened
to the edge of the cloth, and rising and falling over uneven sur-
faces. The horses were hitched to the ends of the axles, outside of
* the wheels, their breasts extending forward nearly to the front ends
of the V poles, where they were fastened by the head. The net
sloped backward atthe top in front, and when the machine was in
motion a man stationed on the axle with a broom gave the locusts
as they entered the net a start toward the rear end. Just where
the cone terminated in the oblong bag, a large piece of canvas had
been cut out and wire gauze inserted, and the locusts moved to-
wards this on getting into the net, attracted by the light. The
only outlay in constructing this machine was for the 40 yards of
cotton cloth. This net captured from eight to twelve bushels of
pupe per day when first used, and the amount diminished daily
till the 24th of June, when about two bushels were taken.

Mr. Andrew Webster, of Norseland, Nicollet county, had, in
1875, about 230 acres of wheat sown. The locusts began to hatch
about May 17th, and he commenced at once to destroy them by
burning with straw. As it was impossible to protect the whole of
his crop with the help at hand, he selected a field of fifty acres to
defend, and burned all the locusts that hatched near it. This
continued until June 11th, when the straw was exhausted, and the
locusts had begun to come in from the adjoiming fields. Two
catching-nets were then rigged up, (of the usual form,) attached to
axles fourteen and sixteen feet long, each drawn by one horse
moving at a fast trot. The amounts caught were: From June
11th to 17th, (part of the time with one net,) 121 bushels ; with
both nets, June 17th, 87 bushels; June 19th, 20 bushels ; June

38

21st, 77 bushels; June 22d, 63 bushels; June 23d, 45 bushels ;
June 24th, 71 bushels; June 26th to 28th, 128 bushels; June
29th, 59 bushels; June 30th, 28 bushels; July 1st, 18 bushels, ~
when the work was discontinued, as the locusts had begun to fly,
and had become too scattered to be caught easily. The catching
was done along the edge of the field, and between the hours of five
and ten Pp. mM. It required the labor of four men and four horses
during these hours. The whole number of bushels caught was
667, and, on threshing} 658 bushels of wheat were harvested from
the fifty acres.

DITCHING.

The experience of Minnesota in regard to ditching, in 1875, was
so successful, and so strongly and fully confirmed by the testimony
of reliable men, that the experiment should have seemed worthy
of a more extended trial than it has received this year. But few
ditches have been dug, but these, even when left to take care of
themselves, have generally served as a barrier during the earlier
half of the season. A ditch, to be effectual, needs care and watch.
ing ; when its sides have been washed down by repeated rains, and
it becomes a mere curved surface, it is a very slight barrier indeed.
The time and trouble of constructing such ditches as these, would
be spent better otherwise.

CONTENDING WITH WINGED LOCUSTS.

Here and there during the past season have been cases of one
farmer or a few farmers in a township who were able to save some
portion of their crops from the flying swarms. The number of.
cases where this has happened is in some twenty-five or thirty out
of the whole number of towns in the state that have been invaded.
When there has been any success at all it has generally been early
in the season, and over small patches of garden or cornfields.
There are towns where farmers have smudged, roped, discharged
fire-arms, and rattled tin pans, until straw stacks and patience
were exhausted; and all to no avail. Others have worked hard

smoking and roping their fields, supposing all the while that they
were accomplishing something, only to find in the end that they
were worse off than neighbors who had done nothing. Others,
who have had plenty of straw at hand, have, by firing it at just
the right moment, managed to save a field. But the uselessness

39

of all such attempts has generally been too apparent to encourage
any hope of even a chance of success.

BURNING PRAIRIES.

The amount of help which may be received from burning the
grass on the prairie at the time of hatching, seems likely to be
well tested next year, as the efforts to preserve the grass have so
far been generally suscessful. The exact amount of help that can
be derived from a general burning must very much, with differmg
circumstances, from one year to another, and the opinions as to
its value differ greatly. To those who believe that the whole
region of uncultivated prairiein the western part of the state is
extensively dotted with eggs, nothing could seem more important
than a general preservation of the grass, difficult or impossible as
this may be. There is no question whatever as to the value ot
preserving it in all cultivated neighborhoods, or in all regions
that are interspersed with farms. And yet even in these it is
difficult to select a time for burning which will not allow the
escape of some portions of those already hatched or of those still
‘unhatched. But even if the help falls a great deal short of general
destruction it is still a help; even if no insects are hatched on
the prairie they often hop away in large numbers while going off
the bare fields into the prairie grass, and may be destroyed in
large quantities. In addition to this, where the grass is burned
late in the spring it gives place to a growth of young and tender
grass which often serves to entice the locusts away from the crops.
In Watonwan county last year only about one half of the grass
was saved through to May or June, in Cottonwood county less
than one half, in Redwood, Murray and Lyon counties, hardly
any. Wherever it was fairly tried in Cottonwood county, those
who had charge of attending to the preservation and firing of it
are strongly convinced that efficient service was rendered by it.

PLOUGHING AND HARROWING.

The prevention of the eggs from hatching by deep plowing or
by surface harrowing has been urged in the Report of the Omaha
Conference, and none too strongly. While there is much differ-
ence of opinion in regard to deep plowing, there is strong testi-
mony to show that where the eggs are turned u-der to the depth
of ten inches they either never hatch at all, or come forth so late
as to be incapable of harm, appearing sometimes after the corn

40

has reached the height of three or four feet, sometimes as late as
the end of August. But if there is any point in the whole subject
where opinions seem to be unanimous, it is in regard to the value
of harrowing up the eggs in the fall, and exposing them to the
influence of weather, birds and other enemies. In this connection
the general harrowing of new breaking and plowing of roadsides
that has been done by many farmers, or by townships, cannot fail
to be of benefit. That this work should commence in our climate
as soon in the fall as there is any assurance that the egg-deposit is
ended, is evident from the consideration that the longer the egg is
exposed to the above mentioned influences the more sure its de-
struction is likely to become, and from the fact that in many
places the ground became frozen before the work of harrowing
was nearly finished.

THE NEED BOTH OF STATE AND OF INDIVIDUAL EXERTION,

It will be fortunate if science and national discovery shall finally
be able to dispel for us some of the uncertainties which beset
the locust problem in general. It is the doubt in regard to the
future and the fear that each year may prove more disastrous than
its predecessor, that give the evil more than its real magnitude and
paralyze hands that are not otherwise accustomed to refuse labor.
To simplify the conditions of the problem as far as possible, to
determine how far the goings and comings of a fitful insect hurry-
ing destructively over thousands of miles of grain fields, and
sowing everywhere the seeds of future devastation, may be fore-
seen or prevented, is an object worthy of the highest science and
the most liberal enterprise. But the help that can come from
any such source must necessarily be long in action and slow in
results. With all our uncertainties, we have one certainty before
us in the immediate future; it is that of a great and wide spread
injury which only prompt, efficient, concerted and continued
effort can remedy. We cannot offer to do less than to render at
once by ourselves and to ourselves a portion of that help which
we ask a broader knowledge and enlarged means to render unnec-
essary in the future. The state of Minnesota has already taken
the lead in the proposal of a conference upon the locust subject,
which, if the results compared in any fair measure to the objects
proposed, will end in more definite knowledge and more efficient
action throughout all the region that has been overrun for so many
years. The state may fitly supplement the action of the confer-
ence by determining once for all just what can be done with the

4]

e

evil when it has taken root here. It is no longer a question that
that is astate matter which concerns more or less intimately forty-
four out of seventy-one counties.

But the matter does not end with the state. After all that can
be done by legislation, success depends purely upon how much
each man is willing to do with his own hands. Without united
effort to meet the evil wherever it occurs, and with every means
or instrument that lie at our disposal, without a determination to
plow and sow and defend, each andevery man on his own domain,
nothing will be done that is worth legislating about. No effort is
worth securing that does not recognize the need of the broadest
possible exertion, or offer the largest possible assurance of ultimate
success.

BOUNTY.

The conference at Omaha, while recognizing the necessity for
united action, both of the state and of every individual through-
out the present infested regions, resolved ‘*That it will be wise
and politic for the legislatures of each of the states and territories
most deeply interested in the locust question, to enact a state
bounty law,’’ etc. As there is in the minds of many a grave
doubt as to the expediency of offering any bounty at all which
shall take the form of a specified amount to be paid per bushel for
locusts, and as it will be difficult to enact any law which shall,
‘be equally adapted to the thickly settled counties and the thinly
settled frontier, I have included in circulars to the different towns
the question, ‘‘If a bounty were offered in your township, next
spring, for the destruction of locusts, could it be made to any
extent successful in saving crops?’’ and ‘‘ How small a price per
bushel would accomplish the purpose?’’ The farmers ought to
know at least as well as any one the capabilities of their own
communities, and it is some proof of the sincerity with which they
have made their replies, that in counties where the locust is com-
paratively unknown, it is answered that they are unable to give an
opinion ; in the sparsely settled counties, the doubt is often
strongly expressed that such a bounty would be useless for the
purpose stated ; while in those counties where the locusts have
hatched ‘of late years or where the bounty system has already been
applied, it is considered that a bounty per bushel would undoubt-
edly agcomplish the object named. The amount is generally placed
at one dollar per bushel, seldom more, and often one-third or one-
fourth of that amount ; and while one dollar per bushel might be

42
o
none too great a price per bushel for locusts immediately after
hatching, it is certain that in a very’ few days a much smaller
amount would more than equal it.

By referring to the experience of Mr. Andrew Webster, already
given, it will be seen that from the 11th of June to the first of
July, even ten cents per bushel would have been a paying bounty,
when added to the crop that was saved by the exertions made in
catching. Withthe improved machines and contrivances for cap-
turing that are being brought forward at this date (Jan. 30, 1877)
it is certain that the state need not offer a larger bounty, at the
utmost, than ten cents per bushel after the tenth of June. If the
locusts exist in sufficient numbers to do great injury after that
date, a few cents per bushel added by counties, or by towys, to the
amount given above, will make a bounty that will amply repay la-
bor, to say nothing of the saving in crops. It would be also an
improvement, both in convenience and exactness, if a bounty were
offered per pound, instead of per bushel. It is no pleasant matter
to measure a few bushels of locusts that have been standing for a
day or two under a hot June sun, and the hurry of an unpleasant
task may be a cause of inaccuracy in measurement; but the meas:
ure in pounds of almost any quantity of dead locusts can be ob-
tained at once, with ease and accuracy.

CONCLUSION,

In conclusion it remains to thank the many persons, both known
and unknown to me, who have so kindly replied to my circulars
and letters: of inquiry during the season. The writers are so
many that it is impossible to name them, but they have helped
greatly to give this report whatever value it may have. This
value must necessarily appear different to different readers ; many

will miss what they expected to find, or find what may appear of

comparative little value. But I have endeavored to compile from
all available sources what might be of benefit to our citizens and
at the same time worthy of appearance in a report upon the Nat-
ural History of the State; I have tried to show not only the
requirements of the present year in meeting the locust evil as we
find it upon us now, but also the connection between one year
and another. But whatever the value of the report mdy be, the
State should provide fitting means for the continuance of similar
(or better) efforts during the year 1877. Not only is an enferprise
of this sort, if properly conducted, always a worthy one in any

State which labors under an evil of such magnitude, but the help —

\

43 i

which a national commission may derive from assistants acting
under its direction in every one of the States now infested may be
of great value, and will serve to bring completeness to a tusk
which any commission will find too widely extended to reach with
personal observation. There is no need to regret the trifling
sums which have so far been expended upon ‘‘grasshopper inves-
tigations,’’ nor to begrudge the few hundred dollars that will
enable us to do what little we can in aid of that scientific inquiry
for which we now ask of the National Government competent
maintenance and the best learning that America can supply.
Respectfully submitted.
ALLEN WHITMAN.

be.

>
<
a

EXTRACTS

FROM REPORTS OF J. B. PHILLIPS, COMMISSIONER OF
STATISTICS, MINNESOTA.

en eee EE OE ee ee SE kee ee

THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN LOCUST.

CALOPTENUS SPRETUS.

For no part of the duties pertaining to this office have I felt
less favorably inclined than that of collecting and recording the
statistics of the damages inflicted by this insect. To make record
of dead losses such as these, out of which no possible compensat-
ing good can arise, is necessarily an ungrateful task. Were it not
that danger still impends, there would be no need of any discus-
sion here, further than by giving a bare record of the facts. But

it is now patent to all, except to the willfully blind, that we have —

an enemy confronting us whose magnitude is not to be despised;
one who is likely to dispute our right to the undisturbed possession
of the country between our western borders and the Rocky
Mountains, with more or less persistence for some years to come.
This is the fourth year since their irruption upon us in 1873, and
every year since then the damage has been serious; but the greatest

danger to be apprehended is the moral effect of discouragement

upon the people.

The immense losses inflicted upon so many States, the damage
to the national property by the impairment of the value of the
public lands, retarding their occupation and settlement, are mat-
ters of immediate and pressing importance, and call for the most
serious consideration. It is the part of wisdom, without further
delay, to look the matter squarely in the face, and by the most

searching scrutiny, endeavor to find out and bring together all the
facks bearing upon it, in order that a remedy may be intelligently
sought for and effectively applied.

So far as my knowledge extends, neither in this country or in

any other part of the world has any such thorough and systematic.

course of investigation been instituted. This assertion I am con-
fident will be by none more heartily assented to than by those who
have recently contributed most to our present stock of knowledge
on the subject. After long and tedious searchings of what has

a ae

AGRICULTURE. 8&9

been recorded of these plagues, it is astonishing how little really
reliable knowledge can be acquired.

Whether it be that becanse in most civilized countries the evil
has generally been transient, with sufficient interspaces of time
between the inflictions to allay anxiety, or whether their over-
whelming magnitude paralyzed for a time the energies of their
victims, cannot now be known: but certain it is that concentra-
tion and alertness of intelligence, the rigorous methods by which
science in later time has penetrated the secrets of nature, has until
recently been almost wholly wanting. '

As a consequence, the history of the locust in times past ap-
pears to have been addressed to the imagination rather than to the
understandings of men; abounding inmarvelous narrative designed
rather to inspire wonder than to convey valuable information.

We read how their invading armies have overshadowed the land
and darkened the sun at noonday; how famine and pestilence fol-
lowed in their rear, and much of like terror. It is scarcely nec-
essary for a Minnesotian to consult the prophet Joel, or Exodus, or
the high wrought imagery of the oriental writers, to acquire a
realizing sense of what a locust invasion is. A visit to the west-
ern part of this State, during the past summer, would have been
the better plan.

Not, then, with any purpose of regaling the reader with men-
tally-debauching marvels, but to get at the when, where and how
he has visited and afflicted other countries, I propose to make a

short and necessarily imperfect study of his past doings in the

astern Hemisphere of the world, as perchance his haunt and
habits there may throw some light on questions now up for solu-
tion by us. '

The wide area over which locusts have been diffused at various
periods and in all quarters of the globe, is a very remarkable fact,
and one, perhaps, not generally known. In the United States, it
might be said that their existence, as a serious evil, was practically
unknown until we began our explorations and settlements on the
Pacific coast. But, by closer examination, we find that at one
time or another, they have overspread all the western portion of
North America, from the British Possessions to the Isthmus of
Panama. A catalogue of the places they have ravaged would in-
clude the names of every state and territory west of the Mississippi
river, the western half of Mexico, and all the states of Central
America. In the continent of South America, the situation has
been substantially the same.

Africa, from time immemorial, seems to have been a peculiar and

12

90 STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA,

favorite home of the locusts. Within its compass, and in its
tropical heat, are found the exact conditions in which it best
thrives.

From year to year, and from age to age, her mountain ranges
and bordering deserts have been the perpetually procreant hatch-
ing-beds of hungry hosts, that have not only ravaged her own
borders, but some of the fairest portions of southern Europe and
the neighboring islands of the sea. For here, if many writers are
to be credited, were engendered the parent stock that colonized
Portugal, Estermadura, Andalusia, Mureia, Valencia and Catalonia
in Spain, Provence and Languedoc in France, the kingdom of the
Two Sicilies, and the valleys of the Po in Italy.

[f we are to believe the reports of seamen, they have been seen
300 or 400 miles out at sea off Cape Blanco, and one imstance is
recorded of their having been seen 300 leagues to the windward of
Barbadoes, which would be more than 2,000 miles from Africa,
and 900 miles from the West India Islands.

T must confess to serious doubts as to the authenticity of this
last statement, which doubt is not allayed by another story,
told by the same” narrator (Sir Hans Sloane), which I give as a
curiosity :

“Tn 1649," he says, ‘‘the locust destroyed all the products of
the island of Teneriffe. They came from the coast of Barbary,
the wind being a Levant thence. They flew as far as they could,
then one alighted in the sea and another on it, so that one after
another made a heap as big as the greatest ship above water, and
were esteemed almost as many under as those above the water. Next
day, after the sun’s refreshing them, they took flight again and came
in clouds to the island, whence the inhabitants had perceived them
in the air."’ He says they gather together 7,000 or 8,000 soldiers
to fight them; ‘‘ then the ecclesiastics took them in hand by pen-
ances, etc. But all would not do; the locusts stayed their four
months. The cattle eat them and died; so did several men, and
others stuck out in blotches. The other Canary islands were so
troubled, also, that they were forced to bury their provisions.
They were troubled forty years before with the like calamity.”

[ find a more credible account in an extract from a letter of the
mate of the brig Levant, of Boston, who writes: ‘‘ That, after
having encountered a severe gale on the 13th of September, 1839,
in lat. 18° north, and the nearest land being 450 miles, they were
surrounded for two days by large swarms of locusts of a large size,
and in the afternoon of the second day the sky was completely
black with them. They covered every part of the brig imme-

AGRICULTURE. OT

diately, sails, rigging, cabin, &c. It is a little singular how they
could have supported themselves in the air so long, as there was
no land to the northwest for several thousand miles. *’

But notwithstanding these and numerous other seemingly au-
thentic reports: so uncertain is almost every point connected with
this subject that even yet it is a matter of doubt with some whether
they are capable of any such extended flights, either by sea or
land.

According to some accounts, these African locusts were de-
sirous of being on sociable terms with all surrounding countries.
During four successive years, from 1744 to 1747, they ravaged the

southern portion of Spain and Portugal.

Pliny say that: ** Many a time have the locusts been known to
take their flight out of Africa’ and with whole armies to infest
Italy. Many a time have the people of Rome, fearing a great fam-
ine and scarcity, been forced to have recourse to the Sibyl’s books
for remedies, to avert the ire of the gods. In the Cyrenaie region
it is ordained by law to wage war against them every three years,
to conquer them.”’

This Cyrenaic region is the present Barea and lies directly
south of and opposite to Greece, and may possibly have been the
breeding place of the Grecian locusts, as the more western Bar-
bary region was of the Spanish, French and Italian ; it being a
matter of serious doubt whether they are really indigenous in any
part of Europe. And it may be as well to state just here, that it

is not a perfectly sure thing where the locusts came from that have
appeared at different times in Europe. Hasselquist, for example,
says that ‘they migrate, in a direct meridian line, from south to
north, passing from Arabia, which is the great cralle of them, to
Palestine, Syria, Carmania, Natolia, Bythnia, Constantinople,
Poland, &. This is evidently a fanciful and unreliable theory, as
to their north and south flight, but still it throws a shade of doubt
on the origin of the Danubian or neighboring Russian locusts,
which is more generally located in northwestern Asia.

Passing from the north to the south in Africa, Dr. Shaw states
that a space of 2,000 miles was covered with them at one time ;
and travelers like Drs. Barth and Livingstone speak of meeting
them in the interior. The islands of Madagascar, Mauritius and
Bourbon on its eastern coast, which lie beyond the Mozambique
Channel, are visited in the same manner as are the Canaries on the
west.

Herodotus speaks of a very numerous people, called Nasamones,
who were known as locust-eaters. Their abode was in Cyrenaic

92 STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA.

region (or Barca.) In the summer, he says, they would leave
their cattle on the Mediterranean sea-coast and go up to Augila,
some distance to the south, to procure locusts and dates. When
they caught a quantity of them they dried them in the sun, and
then having ground them to powder they would eat them with
milk. Augilah bears the same name at the present day. It is a
region of sand hills, with an oasis of the same name near by.
Their repairing to that place to procure them indicates that the
loeusts were at home there in the days of Herodotus, more than
400 years before Christ.

If we pass the Dead Sea into Asia we find Arabia only Africa
over again on a smaller scale, so far as the locust is concerned.
It has the credit of being the source of supply for all the neigh-
boring countries round about it, Africa not excepted.

Tristram says: The locusts of Egypt always came into that
country from the East, and into Syria from the Kast and South-
Kast, being in fact nurtured in the wilds of A rabia. * When it
was morning the Hast wind brought the locust.’* ‘*'The locusts
always come with the wind from the country of their origin, and
this, as all observers attest, is with a south and southwest wind
into Persia, and with an east wind into Egypt. Those that deso-
late Southeast Europe come with a north and northeast wind from
the Ukraine.’ From these extracts it might be inferred that the
locusts of Egypt, Palestine, Syria and Persia, all have their home
and origin in Central Arabia. Nor do, I remember anything
directly contradictory to this, except that the Arabians sometimes
say their own locust comes from beyond the Persian Gulf to the

east of them. Though the subject of origin is the one I am at
present investigating, I desire to call attention to the agency of
the winds noticed by this author. ‘The locusts aloays come with
the winds from the countr y of their origin.’ A very pregnant and
suggestive sentence in connection with the example given, I
doubt whether there is any part of the researches on the subject
likely to be more fruitful in results than those derived from the
thermometer and the weather-vane. Suppose we know that they
have had two hot, dry seasons along the motintains west and north-
west of us, and the prevailing winds the following July and August
should be from the west, what bearing would such a coincidence
have upon the locust question in Minnesota, Nebraska and Kansas?

In Asia they abound to a greater or less extent all along and
below the great east and west ranges of mountains from Asia |
Minor on the western side, to the island of Formosa in the Eastern
Pacific Ocean ; that is to say,.over one-fourth the entire circum-

AGRICULTURE. 93

ference of the globe. In the last-mentioned place we are told that
in the year 1645 their numbers caused such a famine that 8,000
persons perished of hunger. Returning toward the west and
crossing to the north of the Altai range, we come to a very im.
portant region, as it is surmised to be the source of the scourge
that has so often desolated Southern Russia, Poland, Hungary and
the lower Danubian Provinces.

Here we have arrived in countries bearing a much closer analogy
to our own, and not dissimilarly situated with respect to the sub-
ject of this review. In reading the account of their invasion and
progress through those countries in 1747 and 1748, as published in

‘the journals of that day, one is strikingly reminded of the dis-
patches that came up from the southwestern counties of our own
state in 1873, heralding their progress from station to station, from
he southwest to the Minnesota river.

As the years 1747 and 1748 were memorable ones in the history
of the locust in Hurope, I will give a few extracts from the jour-
nals of that time. The reader should bear in mind that the scenes
here described were uot in the deserts of Arabia, or Tartary, or
America, but in the central part of populous, civilized Europe.

First. ‘‘Huneary, June 9, 1748.—The misery is hourly increas-
ing. There is no longer. grass to feed the kine, and instead of it
the locusts are covering the fields knee deep.”

‘Junk 28tu.—‘* The loeust has appeared on the Danube and the
Theisse (Hungary) in such numbers that they are reduced to the
direst necessity. It is all over with the harvest.”’

June 30,—Kiavsenbure (in northeastern Hungary.)—‘* The
locusts have fixed particularly on the banks of Marasch (Maros, a
river running from the Carpathians 400 miles through Hungary
parallel to the Danube, but in the opposite direction, west, and
emptying into the Theisse); they consume the produce of the
whole land."

HarManstapz, July 10,—‘* Prayers are being offered up in all
places where the quail and the locust have not been sent. The
latter are coming from Carlsbad here. The vineyards are alone
untouched by these insects. Every other thing which they meet
with on their march, the herbage, the forest leaves , and even the
bread in the houses, are booty and food for them.’

As Carlsbad is 50 or 100 miles south of Klausenberg, and Har-
manstadt a like’ distance south of Carlsbad, it appears that they
were moving in a southern direction from that place.

Hermanstant, July 24.—‘ To-day they have poured in on us

94 STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA.

in myriads. Six thousand men sallied forth with flails and other
utensils, but all in vain. A hussar coming from the plague com.
mittee, though on horseback, was obliged to dismount and halt
for three hours, until the inhabitants drove them from the spot.”’

We have the sane story coming from Asod (Hungary) from
another source.

Warsaw, July 17th.—‘‘ From, Podolia, Volhynia and Ukraine,
(Southwestern Russia-Poland, by the Bug and the Dniester,)
come terrible accounts of the locusts, they cover the country for
miles, and are heaped up a foot high.”

Warsaw, Aue. 15.—(This is 400 or 500 miles north of where
we hear of them in Hungary.) ‘*The locusts are within four
miles of us. A few of the vanguard ushered in the rest, but none
have reached the city. * * The travelers who come hither are
obliged to walk knee deep among them and endure a dreadful
stench.”’ ,

Aue. 22xp.—‘* They are now in the neighborhood of Breslau,
the chief town of upper Silesia, on the Oder. On the 20th, an
incredible multitude arrived in Lampersdorff; these they formed in
column, and taking flight about noon, continued their passage
about four hours over the forest of Minchen. Having passed the
‘Oder, they settled in the country about Ohlan. On the 23d,
another swarm came to Patchkau, and fell upon two gardens; be-
ing a little straitened in their quarters, they lay one upon the other
in heaps to the height of one’s knee. * * A third prodigious
swarm passed Lorsdorff in the evening. On the 24th, they passed
by Schonbrun, Priebron and Siebenhuben, and at length took up
quarters in the village of Datzdorff, where they lay one upon the
other a full quarter of a yard high. * * * They made their
retreat by Arnsterberg, and then passed through the country of
Guatz into BonEemta.”’ ;

Brestav, Ave. 380TH.—‘* The dreadful plague of the locust
spreads more and more in this province. It is observed that the
several swarms which lighted on the divers districts are only de-
tachments from the grand body, to which, after foraging a while
on the right and left, they repair. You can’t conceive the noise
made by these insects, as well in their flight as when they rest on
the ground. On the 23d and 24th, great quantities fell.in the dis-
trict of * * *. On the 25th, they took their flight toward the
town of Brieg (further up the Oder, to the south), forming a cloud
several miles in length, and darkening the sun, so that at a small
distance travelers could not descry the town. They were at Neu-
-dorff on the 26th. Yesterday the main body of the invincible

AGRICULIURE. 92

army took their flight by Heidersdorff to Zothen. Beside the de-
struction they make everywhere, they leave a great stench behind
them.”

Much more of interest might be added, but this much may suf-
fice to give some idea of this remarkable event, which attracted
_ the attention of all Europe at the time. In these two years they
spread over a large part of southeastern Europe, coming in great
numbers as far west, at least, as Bohemia and the upper valley of
the Oder in Prussia. Scattering bands of the same grand army
were said to have passed over the Baltic into Norway and Sweden,
in 1749, and there are several curious mentions of others that went
so far as the British Islands. To add more of reality to this state-
ment, I quote from The Gentleman’s Magazine, of July 81st, 1748:
**A swarm of locusts lately fell near Bristol, much resembling
those that fell some time ago in Transylvania (Hungary), and now
again ravage that country. A sort of locust, also, has done great
damage in Shropshire and Staffordshire, by eating the blossoms of
apple and crab trees, and especially the leaves of oak trees, which
look as bare as Christmas. All three of these places named are on
the western coast of England. From the description, they (the
locusts) appear to belong to the species Gdipoda Migratoria, one
of the most dreaded kinds; the same that devastated Palestine in
¢ 1865.”° :

Aug. 5.—The same authority says: ‘‘ Numbers of locusts (dis-
covered the hot, sultry day before in the clouds by the help of
glasses) were found in St. James Park (London) and adjacent
places. ””

Aug. 28, 1748.—A gentleman from Rochester, the extreme south-
western shire of England, writes: ‘‘ The frequent accounts from
abroad (Poland, Hungary, &c.,) concerning the locust, together
with their appearang in some parts of England, particularly near
Rochester, (which, upon inquiry, I find to be the fact,) occasions
my troubling you with the following:

“The first discovery of them was made by the workmen in
mowing a field of oats, near Chatham. Some of them were brought
to me by the laborers. It is surprising with what quickness they
devour cabbage-leaf, lettuce or other herbage. They have six legs,
the two hindermost being largest, enables them to spring like our
common grasshopper, though with more strength and to a greater
distance.’’ There are accounts of their appearance in other places
in England in this season of 1748, and the people seemed to have
taken it for granted that they were the Black Sea locusts. They

96 STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA,

were not the ‘‘common grasshopper,’’ but something different.
Why should they happen to appear in England the same season
they had so extensively overspread the southeastern portion of
Europe? Is there, or may there not be, after all, certain occult
influences at work, be it climatic, atmospheric, or something else,
whereby the native species may suddenly become gregarious and
destructive, passing in a single season through phases of metamor-
phosis or trahstormation which in higher organizations can only
be effected gradually through a long space of time? Or rather,
may not the countless myriads which we see in locust years be but
the result of a fortuitous concurrence of accidents favorable -to
insect life and unfavorable to that of their natural enemies ?

It is quite possible that all years would be locust years like 1747
and 1748 in Europe and 1873-4-5-6 here, were the same meteoro-
logical conditions to continue, and the causes of their destruction
still be held in abeyance. |

The question of the origin of the locusts as they appear in dif-
ferent localities is more interesting and important than any other
connected with the subject ; for how are we going to contend with
un enemy when we know not from what quarter he may assail us,
or whither or not there be any limit to his power of levy. To
give the supposed origin of the Russian Black Sea locust, I quote
Sieur Beauplan’s History of Ukraine. He says; ‘‘T have seen
the plague for several years, one after another, particularly in 1645
and 1646, Gust 101 years earlier than the one above described.)
Those creatures do not come in legions, but in whole clouds, five
or six leagues in length, and two or three in breadth, and generally
come from toward Tartary, which happens in a dry spring: for
Tartary and the countries east of it, as Circassia, Bassa, and Min-
erelia, are seldom free from them.”

While desiring to avoid overloading these pages with long quo-
tations, yet the following from Mouffet is, in several respects, so

valuable and suggestive that T cannot refrairéfrom introducing it
here. It contains, in a short space, more information about locust
invasion in Kurope, in the beginning of the Christian era, partic-
warly in Italy,.than any [ have met with. This is the more inter-
esting to us as the countries mentioned bear a pretty close resem-
blance to our own, not only in climate and latitude, lying as it
does between the 88th and 47th parallel, but also in reference to
the supposed native homes of the locust. I call particular atten-
tion to the origin of the swarms as given by this author.

**In what manner God, by means of those insignificant insects,
punished the stubbornness and hardness of heart of King Parrho

Z-

AGRICULTURE. 97

or Pharaoh, is clearly shown by the tenth chapter of Exodus, and is
an old story in the churches, and even in the public streets. In
the year 170, before Christ, nearly all the pastures were covered
with, as it were, clouds of locusts, and 100 years after that a great
swarm of them covered the whole territory around Capua—Julius
Obsequens. In the year 181, after Christ, while a war had been
progressing for a long while throughout Ilyrieum, Gaul, and Italy,
and had been finally checked some how or other, in order that
nothing might seem to be lacking to the punishment of wicked
peoples, locusts, infinite in number and far greater than others,
consumed all the herbage everywhere. In the year of our Lord
591, while Agilulf was king of the Longobards, an immense swarm
of locusts grievously afflicted the country about Trent. These are
said to have been brought by force of the winds from Africa.
Nevertheless, the greater part of them were submerged in the sea
by storms. But they were no less injurious and deadly to the
Italians, (on that account,) for, rolled up by the waves on the
shores of Cyreae, they caused among the inhabitants such a disease
by their pestilential exhalation and odor, that Julius writes that
800,000 men and cattle perished by the pestilence. In Venice,
likewise, and in the territory around Brescia, not far from Milan,
so pitiful a famine ensued, from the loss of the crops, (for the lo-
custs had destroyed everything) that in the year 1478, (when this
happened) over 30,000 people died. Likewise in the years 593,
693 and 811, locusts flying from Africa, after a severe drouth, de-
voured the plants and herbage and bark of trees, whence followed
a great famine, such as the author of the Naumachia elegantly
describes in these verses.
* * * * * * * *

Nor has Gaul (France) been free from their teeth (!) and their
gluttony, but in the years 455, 874, 1337, 1353, 13874, was wretch-
edly depopulated, and lost very many, even at times a third part
of its citizens, cut off by lack of food and consumed by the ensu-
ing, pestilence. These generally had six wings, (!!!!) and
were wafted thither from the east. But at last driven into
the sea of Britainy by force of the winds, they were overwhelmed
by the waves, then driven back on to the beach by the tide they
infected the air, and produced a pestilence no less cruel than the
famine that they had just been passed through—Otho of Frisingen.
Moreover, in the year 1475 they devastated nearly all Poland. In
the year 1536 innumerable swarnis of locusts were borne by the force
of the winds from the Euxine sea into that part of Sarmatia which
the moderns eall Podolia ; these changing their camping grounds in

13

98 _ STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA.

military fashion, consumed the whole territory in which they
made their daily or nightly halts. These being of unusual magni-
tude, were destitute of wings at first, afterwards, as their wings
grew they flew about at will and stripped even the trees of—what
can I say—of leaves, blossoms, and even of bark. Afterwards
wandering through Germany, they made their way even to the
territory of Milan, and when that had been consumed, returned to
Poland and Silesia. Finally, in the month of November, (for they
lived as long as that,) stupified apparently by the cold, they pro-
duced a huge stench, and had they not served as food for hogs and
wild swine, they would have afflicted the Germans as well as the
Italians, with a most severe pestilence, no less than with famine.
In the year 1543, the locusts inflicted very great loss on the pro-
vinces of Misnia and: Marchia, at which date they were so thick
in the Lucanian territory that they crowded together to the depth
of more than a cubit—Jacobus Eckcelius. Every one knows how
much damage swarms of locusts inflicted in the fields of Arelate
(Arles.) Likewise while writing this, we learned that the people
of Spain were afflicted with a great number of locusts brought
from Africa. They flew through the air like military bands, and
made the atmosphere dense. But the people, at the sight of them,
ring bells, fire cannons, frighten with trumpets, make noises with
brass kettles, throw sand in the air, in short, try all means by
which they might be driven away. But the result did not corres-
pond to their wish ; and at last giving over their useless labor, they
perish everywhere from the famine and putrefaction—as we have
been informed by sailors and pilots who barely escaped that ca-
lamity. Eutropius in his fourth book makes mention of very big
locusts which had been seen not far from the territory of the
Romans, to the greatest wonder and stupefaction of beholders, and
so formidable to the inhabitants and so voracious, that they shud-
dered at the very sight of them. Hence we ought to infer that
these little animals occupy not the least place among the powers
and armies of God, and that they have been sent forth when He
would punish the sins of men, or avenge contempt for His law.’’

It will be noticed in this extract what is commonly observable
elsewhere, that the origin of the Spanish and Italian locust is uni-
formly ascribed to Africa; and the years of their grand movements
are generally those of greater or less oppressive drouth. We dis-
cover, also, that there is no part of this garden of the world, Italy,
but has at some time or other been afflicted with locusts, from
Lucania, a province in the extreme south, to the city of Trent, on
the Adige, up among the Alp-mountains, on the north.

AGRICULTURE. 99

I have given the above extracts at some risk of appearing

prolix, to an indifferent reader; but it is quite impossible
to interest those who have no mind to know. I wish to

impress it upon those who never saw a locust that such an animal
does exist; and upon those who have seen more than enough of
them, that their losses are not without precedent, but that for
hundreds and thousands of years locusts have ravaged the garden
spots of the world,—such as the fields of Capua, whose luxuriant
yields once ruined the armies of Hannibal, or Cyrenaic Barca, the
fabled seat of the Hesperian gardens.

IT have dwelt upon the European locust, not because they are
Worse’ or as bad as in many other places, but because we live in
the Europe of North America; and the worst that has ever hap-
‘pened in any part of this country is only a repetition of what has
repeatedly been witnessed there.

[ have striven to learn the exact localities where they have been,
and the countries from whence they came; for their origin and
what the conditions are that cause them at certain periods of time
to multiply so prodigiously are the great problems first to be
solved. :

If it be true that their natural breeding-place is among moun-
tains, highlands or plateaus, of course they must always be found
within striking distance of these places, and when they quit them,
whether it be by accident or from natural desire or instinct, they
do seem to affect the plains, the fertile valleys and broad level deltas
of rivers. Need I refer to the valley of the Nile? Take the locali.
ties in Spain, Italy, Hungary, Poland and Russia, already men-
tioned. ,

The country from the Appennines to the sea, for a long distance
about Capua, is a plain, almost as flat as the Pontine marshes
nearer Rome. Speak of Lombardy, and it is always ‘‘the plains
of Lombardy,’’ and it is a plain, as its name implies. Cross the
Cottian Alps to the west of this, and we are in another locust
region, and another extensive plain, Languedoc and Provence, at
the mouths of the Rhone, a country that might pass for a section
of Africa. Hungary may be described as almost wholly a plain,
sloping toward the Danube from the semicircular rim of moun-
tains on the north. Pass eastward through the ‘‘Iron Gates’’ of
the Danube and into Wallachia and Moldavia, Bessarabia and Bul-
garia, and we have another of the greatest river plains in Europe.
Podolia, in Russian Poland, that never made much of a figure in
any but a locust history, is for the most part a fertile level plain.

100 STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA.

The whole of Poland, except in the south, is‘an extended plain,
and Russia, west of the Ural mountains, is pretty much all an.
immense plain, the southern part being the finest part of Russia,
and a locust country par excellence. All that part of it extending
eastward from the Black Sea, lying above the sea of Azof and the
Caspian, on to the Ural mountains, is little better than a desert,
being level, dry and barren, and abounding in salt lakes. But
after all, what is there certain about this? What is the exact .
agency of deserts or of mountains? High mountains produce
deserts by straining the moisture from the atmosphere. They exist
side by side in some localities as a matter of necessity. The des-
erts must be passed over if the locust is to live at all. It is quite
possible that he is only more destructive in the populous and fer-
tile valley regions because a greater population are affected, and
there is more there to be destroyed. When the locust once acquires
wings, he moves; he does not seem to exercise much judgment
whether it be from plenty to want or the reverse. He will move
from a desert country, as east of the Rocky Mountains, to a fertile
one, and he tries to move or is moved by the wind right back again
into the same desert, the next year more often than otherwise, this
being his cycle of migration—unfortunately, for the last four years
unswung.

After having traversed the ground thus far, the question arises:
what inferences are to be drawn from the facts obtained ?

The subject is difficult to cope with, from the absence of any-
thing like scientific accuracy in the observation of facts as given

ein the earlier records. Nevertheless, a few general ideas are sug-
gested in the midst of this chaos, which assume a certain degree of
prominence and fixity, among which are—

First. That there are certain portions of the globe where the
locust exists en permanence; where he has flourished from age to
age in unending succession, and that the type of such a region in
the eastern hemisphere is found in Arabia and northern Africa. .

Second. That there are other portions where, practically speak-
ing, it does not exist at all, the type of which is found in the north
of Europe and the British islands.

Third. That there are regions intermediate between these
which are liable to be overrun by occasional migrations from the
natural parent hives. And the type of these countries in the same
hemisphere is the whole of Southern Europe from Gibralter in
Spain, to the Ural Mountains in Russia. The analogy of any
given country in geographical and climatological conditions to any

AGRICULTURE, 101

one of these will most likely determine the question as to which
class it belongs, and its comparative liability to locust incursions.

Applying this standard to the eastern portion of the United
States, it is at once apparent that the region belongs neither to
the first or third of the above classes. Our climate bearing no
resemblance to either Southern Asia or Northern Africa, we do
not breed locusts im any sense as they do ; and being so far removed
from their natural habitat, the country east of the Mississippi
river may be said, in general terms, to be not aftlicted with them
at all. In this, of course, I make no account of certain compara-
tively harmless species which certainly do exist, but which bear
scarcely more resemblance to the migratory locust in their de-
structive capacity than does the common house cat to the wolf,
the lion, or the tiger.

The next question is, have we any country in the United States
analogous to that which is included by, or borders upon the Altai,
the Caspian and Ural regions in Asiatic Russia—the supposed
starting point of the migration into Eastern Europe? The answer
to this is, that it seems to be the opinion of some who are the best
informed on the subject, that we have. Prof. Chas. V. Riley, the
distinguished Entomologist of the State of Missouri, has announced
the opinion that the locust has such a native home in the Rocky
Mountains. I prefer to give this opinion in his own words, as
it stands in his Seventh Annual Report. He says: ‘‘ There is some
difference of opinion as to the precise natural habitat and breeding
place of these insects, but the facts all indicate that it is by nature
a denizen of high altitudes, breeding in the valleys, parks and
plateaus of the Rocky Mountain region of Colorado, and especially
of Montana, Wyoming and British America. * * * My own
belief is that the insect is at home in the higher altitudes of Utah,
Idaho, Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Northwestern Dakota and
British America. It breeds in all this region, but particularly on
the vast hot and dry plains and plateaus of the last-named territo-
ries, and on the plains west of the mountains, its range being
bounded on the east, perhaps, by that of the buffalo grass.”’

Again in his eighth report published at the commencement of
the present year he reiterates the same opinion in this wise :

‘Having carefully weighed all that has been written on the
subject during the year, and eagerly sought all information that
would throw light upon it, [ am firmly convinced of the general
truth of the views enunciated under this head in my last report,
In that country (same as above) alone does it come to perfection
for a series of years, and in that country alone can it become so

102 STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA.

prodigiously multiplied, and be borne by the wind to such dis-
tances as to over run the country already indicated, where it is not
indigenous, and reach as far east as it did in 1874. To this end a
combination of favorable conditions, that only occasionally occur,
are necessary.”’

In another portion of the same report, however, he does not hesi-
tate to say that, ‘‘ this whole subject of the original source of the
swaims that at times lay our fertile valley country under such
severe contribution, is yet somewhat obscure, and should be invest-
igated by the government.’’ It would seem as though the most
‘firmly convinced’’ were not without their misgivings considering
the slender stock of facts in possession. And so, finally it appears
that while in Europe they have never yet found out to an absolute
certainty where their locust came from ; in this country, also, the
whole subject of their origin is veiled in a certain obscurity. We
have come to know at last how little we do know. The origin or
habitat of the locust in this, as in other parts of the world, is
still a matter of doubt.

The cause of their immense multiplication, at certain seasons,
we do not know, though heat and drouth seems to be favorable,
and cold and moisture unfavorable to it. The cause of their mi-
grations—is it instinct, is it desire for food, do they take a certain
direction in their flight from instinct or design, or are they only
borne about at the mercy of the winds? Does superfluous vitality
and hunger cause them instinctively to rise high in the air in
order to spy out new lands, and do they go on repeating this until
they either perish on the seas or arid deserts, or till their wings,
' with favoring wind, have borne them to fields of ravage? It has
been said that they are the creatures of the plains and arid, sandy
deserts. In Africa, Arabia, Russia and North America they are
obliged generally to pass over desert tracts to arrive at the lands
of fatness and fertility. Are these déserts most often their birth
place or their grave—which? ‘‘They come from the desert.’’
Were they born there or did they merely fly over? The great
distance they have been met with out at sea, has been shown.
What positive evidence is there that these deserts are not, to a
certain extent, barriers against them, rather than favoring breed-
ing grounds? It has been surmised that they have a cycle of
migration, and fly back again to their Rocky Mountain haunts
after visiting us. Have we a sufficiency of facts to establish this?
This season they flew north, south, east and west, over our state,
and are still with us, and unhappily not in the Rocky Mountains.

[f it be said that I have traveled a long way to arrive at such

AGRICULTURE. 103.

lame and impotent conclusions at last, my reply is: I am not
responsible for the situation, and it is better not to attempt to fill
our bellies with the east wind. It is no part of the duty of the
Commissioner of Statistics to make original discoveries in ento-
mology or any other science. It is not my fault that the thing is as
it is, but it will be the fault of the generation, and its reproach be-
sides, if it is allowed to remain as it is. Al] [have attempted is to
make a survey of the ground in order to get at the situation and
see how the thing stands.

The first thing to be done in any new enterprise is to find out
what has been done, and then build or improve upon that.

The following table, prepared by A. 8. Packard, Jr., will show
at a glance the states and territories of the United States, and also
of Manitoba, that have been visited by locusts since 1818.

The solidity of the columns of figures since 1872 will afford an
indication of the extent and duration of the evil, and may suggest
whether it be not time to take the matter in hand.

104 STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA.

|
|
|

| ee} | ie a tet
a) Ko} See = ee fe)
gels 18 ee FE Be
wo fs | a aoe eae eee aR Hol 3 So
e Ss as 3 ros | eee al ag bp SF
2 1. eh leo 184 een et Oe = a2
£ oO | Sa | Bo Bid Ha ean AS | So Te)
ree S boom to ed Ody A ite ed Be w
= | 8S | 8A 1s | 3 | jae baler se ao at
2 }eP/4 (F |B |) oO] ag | ab) oO] BS
ad es ae ft ppg Oe age Lites ew nee Tagline
1818 | 1818 | | 1827 or’28
1819 | 1819 | | | | | 1834 or ’35
1820 | 1820 or a1 | 1888
| | 1845 | | 1845 |
| | 18467 |
| 1852 | 1852 | 1849 1852
1855?, 1855 | 1855 | 18557}, 1855 | 1855 |1855| 1865
1856 1856 1856 | 1856 |
| |
1857 | 1857 | | 1857 } | |
1858 | |
| i } | |
1864 | 1864 | 1864 | | 1864 |
1865 | | | 1866 | |
|
| | 1866 | 1866
1867 | 1867 | 1867 | 1867 | 1867 | 1867 | |
1868 | ' 1868 | 1868 | 1868 | |
| | |
1869 | | | 1869 are
mel || ta hon
1873 | 1873 | 1873 | 1878 | 1878?| 1878 | 1878 |
: | } j {
1874 | 1874 | 1874 | 1874 | 1874 | 1874 | 1874 |south
| |
1875 | 1875 | 1875 | 1875 |. | 1875. | 1875 | 1875 | Cal. |
} i | }
[Pre gets | 17 | | 876+ ere |
|

1876
|

What is wanted in this matter is investigation—facts, rather
than dogmatism or theory. Facts can only be obtained by setting
about it in a systematic and sensible way. They will not reveal
themselves unsought. Six thousand years experience has settled
that. It is amazing that men have been content so long to grope
amid the darkness, with all the resources of science unapplied. A
single year of investigation devoted directly to this specialty might
change the whole aspect of the question.

AGRICULTURE. 105

t
A government like that of the first Napoleon would not have

waited a second, third and fourth time for the wide waste and devas-
tation that has occurred in California, Utah and the Northwestern
States, before putting forth its full power to arrest the progress of
the evil. We do not know; we have no sure foundation any-
where. Scarcely any proposition that has been promulgated when
brought within the focus of critical analysis, will stand the test.
Their native home in any part of the world, where is it? The
limits of their range, who can tell? I have ventured to give Ara-
bia and northern Africa as among its peculiar native haunts.

But there are writers, and those of eminence, too, who assert
that even in Africa the locust is not indigenous, but came thence
from the deserts of Arabia. Go to Arabia, and they say that they
came from beyond the Persian Gulf. And, finally, we are referred
to the deserts. of unexplored Tartary as their original and sole
source, and that they probably came across Behring’s Straits to
this country with aboriginal Indians; which is about tantamount
to an acknowledgment of total ignorance, as it is more than ques-
tionable if all the locusts in the world sprang from one Adam and
Eve pair in far-off Tartary.

Again, they say, the locust can never pass the Mississippi river,
because they have never been known todo so. A very good reason,
but not conclusive. They have passed nearer it this season than
they ever before, and a few hours of northwest wind would carry
them all over northern Illinois. Their progeny might not flourish
there the next season, but it is impossible to see why locusts
hatched in central Minnesota, lowa and Missouri might not pass
that river in a few hours’ time, the wind favoring.

But, they say in reply, that it does not follow because a man
can jump a stream ten feet wide, that therefore he can jump one
thirty feet wide. There could not be a better example of the dif-
ference between an illustration and ademonstration. The flaw in
this parallel is that our lively, saltatory locust, being a jumper
born, indulges largely in that kind of pastime. He is not obliged
to clear his thirty foot stream at one leap, but can take just as
many as he likes at his own convenient leisure. If he can fly from
Tartary all over Europe, from Montana to Missouri, from Africa
across the Mediterranean or half way across the Atlantic, why not
across the Mississippi river?

I admit, however, the full force of the reasoning that never
having passed a certain limit in the past is the best possible guar-
antee for the future. From the same line of reasoning I am also
disposed to take a hopeful view of the present situation. The evil

14

a lee al

i

106 STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA.

in localities such as ours always has been, and therefore, probably
always will be, but casual and transient.

_ Capua, Lombardy, Languedoc, Hungary and the Danubian Pro-
vinces already named in this article, still flourish and are among
the richest agricultural districts in Europe. Bad as the locust has
been at times in the last named provinces it has not prevented
the last named provinces from having the finest wheat fields in the
world, with Odessa for their capital city.

The potato bug, the chinch bug, the fly, the weevil, come and
go, but agriculture advances, and will so continue. I have abun-
dant faith that the science and energy of this people will be found
able to grapple with the evil, when once fully aroused.

It is but proper to state that the field of investigation covered
by this article is not what was originally intended, but selected
with the view of avoiding, as far as could be anticigated, any re-
traversing of the ground likely to be occupied by the governors
and scientific gentlemen who met at Omaha, November last.

The history of the locust in Minnesota since 1873 is contained
in the report of the commission appointed by Governor Davis last
year, and one of the members of that commission will most likely
complete the record up to the present date. Though I had de-
signed giving a synopsis of this, the report of the meeting of goy-
ernors at Omaha, and the two reports of our local commissioners,
precludes any such necessity.

Since writing the feregoing I have had tht pleasure of hearing a
portion of the forthcoming report of Professor Whitman on this
subject, embodying his observation and research during the pres-
ent season. Since hearing it I have all the more reason to be
satisfied with not having touched upon those parts of the subject
which he has presented with so much ability. I have great pleas-
ure in recommending it for careful perusal, both at home ‘and
abroad, as a document replete with careful observations and preg-
nant suggestions. Observers and scientists who are investigating
this question will find it to be an important addition to their
treasury of knowledge.

DAMAGE BY LOCUSTS IN 1875.

Returns of damages to crops have been received from nineteen
counties of the state for the year 1875. This is nine counties less
than reported in 1874. Of the 28 counties that reported that
year, the following ten counties failed to report for 1875 + Chippe-
wa, Clay, Faribault, Grant, Lac qui Parle, Lincoln, Polk, Rock,

AGRICULTURE. 107

Stevens and Swift, leaving eighteen ; the county of Le Sueur being
added, makes up the nineteen. As before stated, the feeling in
the spring was that the force of the plague was about spent, and
there was an indisposition to dwell upon it. In several of the coun-
ties that did not report, the damage was too slight to amount to
anything, so that the table will probably be a full exhibit of the

damage in the state.

The following table gives the total damage to each crop together

with the area:

TABLE SHOWING TOTAL DAMAGE BY LOGUSTS IN 1875.

PEIN EOE SEOTEDDE ITT RSET HE ONT TTIR

Acres. | Bushels.

Wheat..... vicuv ttt Se cat Goan acc TORR 167,872 | 2,024,972

OUa. Tae eso ek ee 6. oe 88,560 | 1,127,780

Comte a8 a eee ae hi de At a's sae 51,754 790,981

Barley ..issssssesee Shisg owes BUN oes nisi 1,565 41,059

RRS AS i OU) ae as odes SRO 2 ee 104 1,131

BUCK WHOS sis icc pices wedesees A eee er Fee 658 16,450

Potatoes..... Fi PERS SP Cases ooo pias oan 2,023 130,886

BANS sisies 90.0336 scouae so Meas pe hee eee 527 : 7,971

263,068 | _ 4,141,280

Acres Gallons.

Sorghum ..«.+......%. sb se se seh owe oes : 101 5,172
Acres Tons.

CHRUIVEGed AY os0n sete bashes cee eed ialt 1,192 1,802

Acres Pounds.

HOG rie ie ei 4 198 2,253

FR Gass de ee ee 2,582 22,635

2,780 24,888

Se ee i i
The next table gives the total damage to all the crops as returned
by counties, which show somewhat less than in 1874, and very

much less in every item than the estimate made by the Grasshop-
per Commission.

108 STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA.

Statement of Grasshopper Damages in the State of Minnesota in
the year 1875.

WHEAT. OATS. | CORN.
: iS :
ee Ro, os Re. Sc Ha
~ Lois) Ne 3 Oo © 3°
oO mh oD & Koil <a) oH wh ©
Sp B- } Se 20 Sho pig ye
SH
COUNTIES. 2% ES a8 ERS 2% ERS
eR B yl -SR u aQ B
QA ic a ic) 2 reo]

Acres. | Bushels.| Acres. | Bushels.} Acres. |Bushels.

Beckerss tiet vs cays 8864 16,092; 175 5,896 85 | 1,141

Blue Earth.....-++.| 28,615 | 286,458) 6,860 | 153,744) 5,189 |113,678

Brown «eesessseeees| 34,933 888,985) 7,606 | 212,682; 8,728 | 66,097

Cottonwood ...... --| 9,759 ; 150,610, .2,358 | 88,241| 8,087 | 62,288
JACKSON «000000 sees] 6,143§] 76,405) 1,855°| 61,944 1,510 | 31,087
Le Sueur...........| 952 | 16,248] 208 88 174 | 7,116
Tye avsee -+++/ 2,8102) 81,790, 6894] 30,766, 8404) 18 128
MeWih snsasicenses ; 915 said 1,589 | 26,100; 634 |. 11,925
Moh60d avers WS 1,630 Pibie 872 | 18,868; 782 | 22,074
Barray .- ese. 5 cee ety | 3,346 ea 762 | 28,699; 825 | 23,474
Nicoligés. sivasusnaes- | 29,940 482,344! 6,549 2ai,150 6,939 |222,342
Neher esses iiss | 4,708 | 44,911] 1,496 42,092, 1,411 | 24,938
Otter Pail. .<..¢....| 1,028 | 5,628} 182 1,99 82 | 1,871
Redwood......+-.-s| 8,779 | 101,225) 2,847 52,217) 2,163 | 36,107
Retivillevies.s ss ee AGIs] 80,341) 1,180 | 26,198) 19,392 | Ohya
Bibleyspssaa> sfpabas 7,632 114,627 1,987 68,852 3,070 | 85,940

|

2,0024 58,951
“18 1 a Ra

Watonwan......see-| 9,424 | 133,449 2,426 90,282
|
|

WATKIN. oo sae ee eee wc 89 615

}

Yellow Medicine.... 17 | 60

for)

120 ceeoeee eee eee oe ee

|
Total.....++es/167,8724 BNP D TR 38,5694/ 1,127,780 51,7545 790,9819

a oe

AGRICULTURE. 109

Statement of Grasshopper Damages in the State of Minnesota in the
year 1875.—Continued.

| BARLEY. RYE. BUCKWHEAT.
aliaeunaipinbeesan Ss hninitires ronersstinesec ccs
i 2 a z
Pare cceae aes
COUNTIES. | SE 22 38 ag BE ag
| $8 | BS | BA | Bs [ea | es
A m a | a ca}
Acres. |Bushels.| Acres. Bushels Acres. |Bushels.
BockeFvweweddes.| 48 | 1/878 3 ie oer | 130
Blue Earth.......--. 224 | 6,518 41 765 | 26 466
yi dcieee| ee | arom he] fOr. 4. 80 935
Cottonwood....++ +++. 89 2,486 1 40 | 35 747
Jackson....... ye ae 434 LOBBA {oe eas] <0 eee 14 45
Le Sueur....--0- sees 1 0 165 34 70
DYON iv sveworoes does. 154 270 | cccvcce|ecerveseees svenslevasiivece
May tinct «< cse Soran 16 362 ] 18 174 207
MobeOdererenenit te: 33 m9, 4 80 26 528
MUITAY «+++ ve ee eee ee 264 POR: ki PBC Aare ee 21 255
NiGOMEt. Hes 636 S42 oe 263 8,932 | 123 145 107% 1,390
NODIES esceriere roe e HP oi 174 2,905 | es oo 46 1,528
Otter Tail...-.+e---- 4 LD Vy aires BE Satish so als SRR Fx
Redwood,...se+e sees: PRB | Byete [eee eees [ones tees | 854 | 3,860
SRST Kis vos wabineg| << |-204-|.- - 208M ee BAT cocoons Joosa nse nh tepeene be
Sibley... bs ow sus ; | 280 5,346 | 26 421 | 169 4,320
Watonwan,-seeresees 73 3,095 aor aon 62 1,974
WHKIN, «roo c0see vows 164 GEO oboe sobre - + +n) dacmseieeee Ns
Yellow Medidin@.s<:sfegsenapeherss sss | EVs 8s «fire ee «05, LRM RSLS She's

Total.» .cccvecees| ~1,5663 41,059 | 1044 | 1,131 6584 | 16,450

NPR ap AUER pit

ee ee ee

110 STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA.

Statement of Grasshopper Damages in the State of Minnesota in

the year 1875,—Continued.

POTATOES. BEANS. SORGHUM
| ed
Z Z | 2
SUS ee. ae | aces Onn
Pert eae hae (v5) |e
BS ® ZO Det SS ® ¢3
COUNTIES. } wot Bo be es ae Oe ie: be
S o Bo I S Ho ES 3 Bo
3h a aA B aR =
“A <3) A joa) | R Q
pers : | ‘
Acres. |Bushels.| Acres. |Bushels.. Acres. (Gallons.
Becker + vecece sss cea 544 7,610 1 Tide e eh ee | eacats wars
Blue Earth ..... siege 124 8,225 13 230 f 183
IBTO WAH. ced. «0s sees 203 ma 39 490| 1 20
Cottonwood ......... 258 12,790 98 1,593 3 194
SAO hs x4 oe eee 61 6,284 42 Ls eee | alae ice
ee SUGUPANG s+ tasis.cghallies Gils ave’e bescave ata Balits by bte.@ shale Wikis Vie. a a's ©, | 0-0 010% a oeal aaphle gama
A Ba 0a Pee EET, 804 5,254 394 588 :
Ravel: Aph<save aap 53] 888 4h, 39 24 140
MGG60d:s Gees nas Sa 30 1,870 3 Be ikiss vs: o py srtliones oe
MUPYAay. +0b%. 0 edeceecs 58 5,800 174 SLO sins casy lqouseths
paleatlst cocescudenzs: 437 | 84,162) 8 71, 88 | _-2,680
INNODLGS @ seis 66:0 aie a wa 65 1,959 100 LOS cake etl aaa aremt
OUEST TAL, tk wa siets dni 1 80|.... A
Redwood... ss. Sek 18 | 5,187 NG el ik col nome
ReENVENGitiicito0s incase 149 | TRABBN hee tetas < bas yo. 4 2380
Sibley vi. sa@hi oo 4:0 2 48% 281 18,449 10 211 48 | 1,645
Watonwan .......e.. 1034 8,223 106 1,770 4 130
eM aL ERAN We. 3 0 atiocavte Mate eoeoeeeceoe ee eeeeweae eee ee ee . oe . .
HOLLOW UCI GIN Gra: sa svaslielv.oes ses | caw sand ee ese es Pe ACU R SOP. PY
Patel, phen’ << ba 2,028 | 130,886 5274 7,971 101 5,172

AGRICULTURE.

ag

Statement of Grasshopper Damages in the State of Minnesota in
the yeas’ 1875.—Continued.

CULTIVATED HAY.

os
oe
COUNTIES. bp 5
es
A
Acres.
Becker. vevcesseccces 14
Blue Wath. Soc. Ses. 965
Brown 40625 8s cncSe 53
Cottonwood ...... «. 2
JHCKBOW 5.005 da-0cs os cmon en
Le Sueur.. .... 260... 284
Lyon... van
Mantis asso: Sees 5
McLeod : 10
MUITAY «+00 ccivces voce 15
Nicollets a3 +765 en 47
NODIGSSS Ss CEI Ren
Otter Tail bette ceeeee 7
REAWO0d irate ne Sees
Renville. 166% Wo. ges 11
Sibley 2s once vee wees 53
WOALOIWAlL. «Gua sikesti|e sede ss
Wiikinws.. sees Sr doG an kennyse
Yellow Medicine...-.|........
Potal a i<ceveqs > ot rloe

7 ve
HOPS | FLAX.
f et : :
da: | 82.) Bal acl eg
Bact BS ota je Baw lee
=O 80 & 30 el 3
eu Sn Su Sa oa
3° ao. 1a” EA 3 Oo
n Rn nN
>) A | i>) A |
Tons. | Acres. eee: Acres. | Pounds.
3 é a
1,286 ne ‘
156 10 SOlndcmssuexl aerate
Gas oo a tenes 1,334] 11,208
(dbl VIM. QOS dene osied sinne«
SOM eis ae Aa ae tists poh eek oh ie
. | oe e@e;jeeeeneeneetivsne eee
Orel aekte Sap eaee 105 646
ee ll 186 ee eeeerel eee ee
66 eee wees eee eleeee
90 ‘ eee . . OB20:6.7 409 2.20 0
5 RR Preston Roepe 616 4,085
10 eee . . ve . . * .
he @xvesceeeleceee eeeeiseeeseeoe i seeeee ee seeoeee @ .
15 ee * . ee
WO rata rors c's | wis, y sibs! steel Cie avila role ae
Berg. ae ee Se ee 527; 6,746
|
2 —
1,8024 198 2,253 2,582! 22,6385

ed

re

112 STATISTICS OF MINNESOTA.
PRACTICAL SUGGESTIONS BY GOVERNOR PILLSBURY.

In the proclamation issued August 30, 1876, Governor Pillsbury
gave in a compact form most of the known means of combating
the locusts, the essential parts of which [ print for information as
follows :

First.—The crushing of the insects by rollers and other implements, and
the catching of them by bags and traps during the season of copulation or
mating, when by reason of their stupid and inactive condition they may be
destroyed in vast numbers. This is the first and vital step towards their
destruction, and can be resorted to immediately, the insects being in the
condition named from about the middle of August variously until the ap-
proach of cold weather.

Second.—The plowing under deeply of the eggs and the thorough harrow-
ing of the bare, dry knolls and comparatively small, warm spots where the
eggs are deposited, so as to dislodge them from their cells or pods, which
destroy their germinating power. New breaking being a favorite resort
for such egg deposits, this mode of destruction is readi y available in the
ordinary course of farm work, for which purpose these operations should be
delayed till as late a period in the fall as practicable.

Third.—Co-operative action for the preservation of the prairie grass until
the proper season for its burning in the spring, by means of extended fire-
guards along township boundaries or other large areas, to be accomplished
by means of plowedsstrips or by wide parallel furrows and the careful burn-
ing of the intervening space. The burning of the grass thus preserved,
when filled with the young grasshoppers in the spring, has been found to be
a very effectual means for their. wholesale destruction.

Fourth.—T he placing of loose straw on or near the hatching places, into
which the young insects gather for protection from the cold in early spring,
where they may be destroyed by firing the straw at the proper time. To
this end straw should be carefully saved and not needlessly destroyed at
threshing time.

Fifih.—The consti uction of deep, narrow ditches, with deeper pits at in-
- tervals, as a defence against the approaching insects in their infant condi-
tion. Into these the young, when comparatively helpless, accumulate in
vast numbers, and perish.

Sixih.—The sowing of grain in ‘‘lands” or strips, fifty to one hundred
feet wide, leaving narrow vacant spaces through which to run deep furrows
and construct ditches into which the young grasshoppers may be driven and
destroyed.

Seventh — The catching of the insects at various stages, and especially
when young and comparatively inactive, by meaus heretofore employed, and
by such improved instruments and process as our experience may suggest.

Highth.—And, finally, the driving of the winged and matured enemy from
the ripening grain by passing over it stretched ropes continually to and fro,
aided by avnoying smoke from burning straw or other smudges, and by loud
and discordant noises made by striking tin vessels, and by shrieking and
yelling with the voice, which are said to aid in disturbing the pests and in-
ducing their flight.

IVERSITY OF wees oe ate

COLLEGE OF AGRrowLTLRE—MIN NEAPOLIS.

For the information~of } persons hiommbdubeilis, state who may
not be awareof what provision has been made for givinginstruc-

i
4