0.2 
BEETLE. 
of Galway, brought thither by a south-west wind, 
one of the most common, I might almost say 
trade-winds, of this country. From hence they 
penetrated into the inland parts towards Hedd- 
ford, about twelve miles north of the town of 
Galway: here and there in the adjacent country 
multitudes of them appeared among the trees and 
hedges in the day-time, hanging by the boughs 
in clusters, like bees when they swarm. In this 
posture they continued, with little or no motion, 
during the heat of the sun; but towards evening 
or sunset they would all disperse and fly about 
with a strange humming noise like the beating of 
distant drums, and in such vast numbers that they 
darkened the air for the space of two or three 
miles square. Persons travelling on the roads, or 
abroad in the fields, found it very uneasy to make 
their way through them, they would so beat and 
knock themselves against their faces in their flight, 
and with such a force as to make the place smart, 
and leave a slight mark behind them. In a short 
time after their coming, they had so entirely eat 
up and destroyed all the leaves of the trees for 
some miles round, that the whole country, though 
in the middle of summer, was left as bare as in 
the depth of winter ; and the noise they made in 
gnawing the leaves made a sound much resem- 
bling the sawing of timber. They also came into 
the gardens and destroyed the buds, blossoms, 
and leaves of all the fruit-trees, so that they were 
left perfectly naked; nay many that were more 
delicate than the rest, lost their sap as well as 
