No. 6.] RILEY — ROCKY MOUNTAIN LOCUST. 367 



north of our line. This force is intended to see that the peace is 

 kept, to watoh the Indians, to enforce the laws, and perform 

 other police duties. It could be utilized, without impariug its 

 efficiency as a police force, in the work I have indicated; or it 

 might be augmented for that same work. I have conversed with 

 the Canadian ministers of agriculture and of the interior, and 

 with Governor Morris, on the subject, and they see nothing im- 

 practicable in the plan. We have on this side the line a number of 

 signal stations and military posts in the country where the insect 

 breeds. Now, I would have our own military force co-operate with 

 the Dominion police force as a locust vigilance committee. Under 

 the intelligent guidance and direction of some special commis- 

 sioner or commission, I would have that whole country systema- 

 tically studied every year by such a force, with reference to the 

 abundance or scarcity of the locusts. I would have sueh a vigil- 

 ance force, by a proper system of fire-guards and surveillance, 

 prevent the fall fires in sections where the insects or their eggs 

 were known to abound, in order to burn them at the proper time 

 the following spring ; and where such precaution was not possible 

 or had failed, and the winged insects at any season were numer- 

 ous, I would have their movements carefully watched, and com- 

 municated daily to the signal officers, to be by them communicated 

 to the farmers. In this way the latter could be fully forewarned 

 of approaching danger. I would have the Western farmers adopt 

 some general plan of defence against possible invasion. The 

 straw that is now allowed to rot in sightless masses as it comes 

 from the thrasher, and that encumbers the ground unless burned, 

 should be utilized. Let it be stacked in small pyramids at every 

 field corner, and there let it remain until the locusts are descend- 

 ing upon the country. Then let the farmers in a township or a 

 county, or in larger areas, simultaneously fire these pyramids, 

 using whatever else is at hand to slacken combustion and increase 

 the smoke, and the combined fumigation would partially or 

 entirely drive the insects away, according as the swarm was 

 extended or not. In short, not to weary you, I believe, first, that 

 by proper co-operation on the part of the two governments inter- 

 ested, the excessive multiplication of this destructive insect may 

 be measurably prevented in its natural breeding-grounds, and 

 that the few thousand dollars that would be necessary to put into 

 operation intelligent co-operative plans were most trifling in view 

 of the vast interests at stake. In fact, with an efficient and prop- 



