OR THOP TERA . 307 



ountiy had so lately been the victim. In 1822 were spent again, in 



Vovence, 2,227 francs for the same object, In 1825 were spent 

 ; ),2oo francs. A reward of 50 centimes was given for every kilo- 

 ¥"■■ gramme of eggs, and half the sum for every kilogramme of insects. 



'Fhe eggs collected were burnt, or else crushed under heavy rollers. 



fhe gathering was entrusted to women and children. The operation 



I consisted in dragging along the ground great sheets, the corners of 



''' v'hich were held up. The locusts came and settled on these, and 



rere caught by rolling the sheet up. 



In the territory of Saintes-Maries, situated not far from Aigues- 

 '^Mllortes, on the Mediterranean coast, 1,518 wheat sacks were filled 

 I yith dead locusts, amomiting in weight to 68,861 kilogrammes; and 

 iceiit Aries 165 sacks, or 6,600 kilogrammes. The rewards given 

 oi ii,mounted to 5,542 francs ; but, notwithstanding all this, the following 

 ^■' ^ear the locusts caused still greater damage. 



Locusts are always to be found in Algeria, in the provinces of 



)ran, Bona, Algiers, and Bougia, but they never commit those terrible 



avages which change cultivated countries into deserts. There are 

 . I h Algeria years of locusts as there are with us years of cockroaches, 

 m if blight, of caterpillars, &c. These plagues are fortunately rare. The 

 idii* aost terrible took place in 1845 ^^^ i^ 1866. In the former year a 



.onnidable invasion of locusts took place. It lasted five months, from 

 ioB .ffarch to July, each day bringing new bands of these devastating 

 e^ ftsects ; and M. Henry Berthoud, then in Algeria, saw a column of 

 1 1 hem, whose passage began before daylight, and had scarcely ended at 

 U our o'clock in the afternoon. Dr. Guyon, doctor to the army, and 

 bk orrespondent of the Institute, addressed to this learned body an 

 k; jccount of a few peculiarities of this invasion, of which he was a 

 sett ntness. He speaks of a band which passed on the i6th of March 

 i oc ^ver the plain of Sebdon, going in the direction of the desert of 

 erE ingard. Their passage lasted three hours. The locusts, having 

 vfi ound nothing to devour in the desert, came back again, and next 

 on,: !iay made a descent upon the plain of Sebdon, which is 30 kilometres 

 bng, by 12 to 15 kilometres broad. In four hours all the crops were 

 vi;; devoured, and all vegetation destroyed. " The locusts," says the 



)octor, " left behind them an infectious odour of putrid herbs, pro- 



uced by their excretions." 

 :;; ^ At Algiers, in the Faubourg Bab-Azoum, they penetrated in 

 tosses into the barley stores, and there was the greatest difficulty in 

 \§. iiriving them away, great barricades being raised before the store- 

 S iiaoms to stop the invasion. In 1845 they penetrated into the pits 



I which the natives preserve their wheat. According to the report 



u 2 



