LOCUSTS 



doubting whether they deserve this reproach, except, of 

 course, in the case of the terrible ravagers who are the 

 scourge of Africa and the East. Their ill repute has 

 been fastened on all Locusts, though they are, I consider, 

 more useful than harmful. As far as I know, our 

 peasants have never complained of them. What dam- 

 age do they do? 



They nibble the tops of the tough grasses which the 

 Sheep refuses to touch; they prefer the thin, poor grass 

 to the fat pastures; they browse on barren land that can 

 support none but them ; they live on food that no stomach 

 but theirs could use. 



Besides, by the time they frequent the fields the green 

 wheat — the only thing that might tempt them — has 

 long ago yielded its grain and disappeared. If they 

 happen to get into the kitchen-gardens and take a few 

 bites, it is not a crime. A man can console himself for 

 a piece bitten out of a leaf or two of salad. 



To measure the importance of things by one's own 

 turnip-patch is a horrible method. The short-sighted 

 man would upset the order of the universe rather than 

 sacrifice a dozen plums. If he thinks of the insect at all, 

 it is only to kill it. 



And yet, think what the consequences would be if all 

 the Locusts were killed. In September and October the 

 Turkeys are driven into the stubble, under charge of a 

 child armed with two long reeds. The expanse over 



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