﻿5S8 
  REPORT 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SURVEY. 
  

  

  P. 
  S. 
  — 
  Since 
  writing 
  the 
  above 
  I 
  have 
  made 
  another 
  grasshopper 
  survey, 
  and 
  find 
  

   numbers 
  of 
  them 
  yet 
  depositing 
  eggs. 
  

  

  By 
  the 
  same 
  mail 
  with 
  this 
  I 
  send 
  you 
  a 
  small 
  bos 
  of 
  the 
  eggs. 
  I 
  find 
  in 
  some 
  

   places 
  the 
  ground 
  at 
  the 
  proper 
  depth 
  is 
  fully 
  one-fourth 
  filled 
  with 
  their 
  eggs. 
  From 
  

   this 
  you 
  may 
  form 
  some 
  idea 
  of 
  their 
  incredible 
  numbers. 
  I 
  find 
  also 
  that 
  numerous 
  

   baiTowing 
  insects, 
  worms, 
  &c., 
  are 
  living 
  off 
  them. 
  

  

  W. 
  N. 
  B. 
  

  

  The 
  earliest 
  swarm 
  of 
  which 
  I 
  can 
  find 
  authentic 
  information 
  is 
  one 
  seen 
  

   at 
  Boulder, 
  Colo., 
  by 
  Professor 
  Eobiuson, 
  and 
  whose 
  history 
  he 
  has 
  

   kindly 
  given 
  in 
  the 
  following 
  account. 
  It 
  seems 
  impossible 
  that 
  this 
  

   swarui 
  which 
  began 
  its 
  migrations 
  so 
  early 
  as 
  July 
  20 
  could 
  have 
  beeu 
  

   raised 
  among 
  the 
  parks 
  or 
  canons 
  of 
  the 
  mountains. 
  We 
  are 
  forced 
  to 
  

   the 
  conclusion 
  that 
  they 
  were 
  bred 
  on 
  the 
  plains, 
  and 
  collecting 
  and 
  

   massing 
  east 
  of 
  the 
  mountains 
  were 
  borne 
  by 
  westerly 
  currents 
  beyond 
  

   the 
  usual 
  breeding-grounds 
  of 
  the 
  species 
  across 
  the 
  plains 
  to 
  Eastern 
  

   Kansas. 
  

  

  University 
  of 
  Kansas, 
  

   Lmvrtnce, 
  Kan., 
  October 
  11, 
  1875. 
  

  

  Dear 
  Sir: 
  I 
  will 
  very 
  gladly 
  give 
  you 
  my 
  observations 
  upon 
  the 
  swarming 
  of 
  the 
  

   locusts 
  from 
  the 
  Rocky 
  Mountains 
  eastward 
  in 
  the 
  summer 
  of 
  1874. 
  

  

  I 
  arrived 
  at 
  Denver 
  on 
  my 
  westward 
  trip 
  about 
  the 
  2:5d 
  of 
  June. 
  During 
  ja. 
  stay 
  of 
  

   sis 
  or 
  seven 
  days 
  in 
  the 
  city, 
  I 
  made 
  frequent 
  escursions 
  to 
  the 
  neighboring 
  country, 
  

   visiting 
  "ranches," 
  rambling 
  through 
  fields 
  of 
  grain 
  and 
  over 
  the 
  prairie, 
  with 
  eyes 
  

   wide 
  open 
  for 
  locusts, 
  potato-bugs, 
  &c., 
  of 
  whog'i 
  ravages 
  I 
  had 
  previously 
  read 
  many 
  

   reports. 
  At 
  this 
  time 
  I 
  found 
  very 
  few 
  locusts 
  anywhere, 
  not 
  enough 
  to 
  do 
  any 
  percep- 
  

   tible 
  damage 
  to 
  vegetation. 
  About 
  the 
  1st 
  of 
  July 
  I 
  went 
  over 
  the 
  Snowy 
  Range 
  down 
  

   into 
  Middle 
  Park. 
  Here 
  I 
  eagerly 
  renewed 
  my 
  search 
  for 
  locusts, 
  urged 
  on 
  by 
  the 
  

   desire 
  to 
  use 
  them 
  as 
  trout-bait 
  ; 
  and 
  you 
  may 
  be 
  sure 
  I 
  hunted 
  them 
  vigorously, 
  for 
  

   with 
  nearly 
  every 
  locust 
  I 
  could 
  catch 
  a 
  fine 
  trout. 
  But 
  the 
  trout 
  were 
  far 
  plenticr 
  

   than 
  the 
  locusts. 
  Coming 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  mountains 
  about 
  the 
  20th 
  of 
  July, 
  by 
  way 
  of 
  

   Golden 
  City, 
  just 
  at 
  the 
  baseof 
  the 
  foot-hills, 
  I 
  encountered 
  the 
  advance 
  of 
  an 
  immense 
  

   swarm 
  of 
  locusts 
  sweeping 
  from 
  the 
  north, 
  filling 
  the 
  air 
  from 
  the 
  ground 
  upwards 
  for 
  

   hundreds 
  of 
  feet. 
  Two 
  or 
  three 
  miles 
  from 
  the 
  hills 
  their 
  flight 
  appeared 
  to 
  swerve 
  

   somewhat 
  more 
  toward 
  the 
  east. 
  I 
  passed 
  through 
  the 
  svrarm 
  about 
  five 
  miles 
  from 
  

   where 
  they 
  were 
  first 
  encountered. 
  The 
  next 
  doy 
  they 
  settled 
  down 
  to 
  business 
  in 
  

   the 
  wheat-fields 
  near 
  Denver. 
  

  

  The 
  28th 
  of 
  July, 
  leaving 
  Denver 
  for 
  Lawrence, 
  I 
  overtook 
  them 
  at 
  Salina. 
  The 
  13th 
  

   of 
  August 
  they 
  first 
  appeared 
  in 
  Lawrence, 
  They 
  staid 
  about 
  ten 
  days, 
  long 
  enough 
  

   to 
  eat 
  everything 
  green, 
  and 
  then 
  passed 
  on 
  to 
  the 
  Southeast, 
  Where 
  food 
  was 
  abun- 
  

   dant 
  they 
  traveled 
  slowly. 
  They 
  were 
  ten 
  days 
  in 
  going 
  from 
  this 
  plo.ce 
  to 
  Olathe, 
  27 
  

   miles 
  farther 
  east, 
  and 
  five 
  or 
  six 
  weeks 
  in 
  reaching 
  Sedalia, 
  Mo. 
  

   Yours, 
  respectfully, 
  

  

  D. 
  H. 
  ROBINSON. 
  

  

  In 
  addition 
  to 
  the 
  facts 
  regarding 
  the 
  locust 
  in 
  Colorado 
  in 
  1875, 
  1 
  

   may 
  cite 
  the 
  following 
  facts 
  from 
  Professor 
  Eiley's 
  eighth 
  report. 
  Mr. 
  

   N, 
  C, 
  Meeker, 
  of 
  Greeley, 
  writes 
  that 
  •' 
  on 
  the 
  plains, 
  they 
  appeared 
  late 
  

   in 
  April 
  and 
  the 
  first 
  of 
  May 
  ; 
  along 
  the 
  foot-hills 
  in 
  May 
  ; 
  in 
  the 
  timber- 
  

   region 
  and 
  along 
  the 
  Snowy 
  Eauge 
  irom 
  June 
  to 
  July. 
  * 
  * 
  About 
  the 
  

   1st 
  of 
  July, 
  the 
  first 
  hatched 
  in 
  the 
  plains-region 
  departed 
  toward 
  the 
  

   south. 
  A 
  week 
  ago 
  (August 
  20) 
  those 
  hatched 
  in 
  the 
  Blue 
  Mountains 
  

   cams 
  down 
  upon 
  us 
  and 
  then 
  departed 
  in 
  a 
  southeasterly 
  direction 
  ; 
  but 
  

   now 
  we 
  are 
  having 
  them 
  from 
  the 
  Snowy 
  Eange 
  in 
  what 
  may 
  seem 
  in- 
  

   credible 
  numbers. 
  Their 
  numbers, 
  however, 
  are 
  almost 
  nothing 
  in 
  com- 
  

   parison 
  with 
  the 
  myriads 
  that 
  keep 
  southward 
  every 
  day 
  about 
  noon. 
  

   I 
  estimate 
  that 
  they 
  cover 
  in 
  the 
  sky 
  east 
  and 
  west 
  a 
  space 
  twenty 
  or 
  

   thirty 
  miles 
  wide, 
  while 
  they 
  move 
  in 
  a 
  body 
  half 
  a 
  mile 
  deep. 
  They 
  

   consume 
  about 
  two 
  hours 
  in 
  passing, 
  and 
  we 
  can 
  estimate 
  from 
  this 
  

   statement 
  how 
  much 
  ground 
  they 
  would 
  cover 
  if 
  they 
  should 
  all 
  alight." 
  

   It 
  seems 
  from 
  this 
  extract 
  that 
  so 
  far 
  north 
  as 
  Greeley 
  the 
  locusts 
  

   came 
  late 
  in 
  August 
  from 
  over 
  the 
  mountains 
  to 
  the 
  westward, 
  and 
  not 
  

  

  