﻿668 
  EEPOET 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SUKVEY. 
  

  

  REMEDIES. 
  

  

  The 
  locust 
  may 
  be 
  most 
  effectually 
  dealt 
  with 
  while 
  in 
  the 
  egg-state, 
  ii 
  

   Boiiuties 
  should 
  be 
  paid 
  by 
  the 
  different 
  States 
  and 
  Territories, 
  I 
  ; 
  

   as 
  is 
  done 
  by 
  European 
  governments. 
  As 
  the 
  eggs 
  are 
  laid 
  verylj 
  

   close 
  together 
  and 
  only 
  an 
  inch 
  beneath 
  the 
  surface, 
  the 
  top 
  soil 
  might*' 
  

   be 
  gathered 
  into 
  heaps 
  and 
  heated 
  through 
  by 
  bonfires, 
  or 
  passed 
  

   through 
  crushing 
  mills, 
  or 
  the 
  egg-sacs 
  picked 
  out 
  by 
  women 
  and 
  chil- 
  

   dren 
  and 
  liberal 
  bounties 
  be 
  paid 
  — 
  so 
  much 
  a 
  bushel 
  — 
  by 
  town 
  or 
  county 
  

   inspectors, 
  and 
  then 
  burned. 
  Deep 
  plowing 
  and 
  heavy 
  rolling 
  are 
  very 
  

   advisable, 
  and, 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  hand, 
  harrowing 
  the 
  field 
  in 
  autumn 
  so 
  that 
  

   the 
  egg-sacs 
  may 
  be 
  turned 
  up 
  and 
  exposed 
  to 
  the 
  frost 
  and 
  birds 
  and 
  

   hogs 
  and 
  cattle. 
  

  

  When 
  the 
  locust 
  is 
  still 
  wingless 
  it 
  does 
  the 
  most 
  harm, 
  and 
  can 
  then 
  

   be 
  best 
  kept 
  within 
  due 
  limits. 
  In 
  Colorado 
  and 
  Utah, 
  where 
  irrigation 
  is 
  i 
  

   practiced 
  almost 
  entirely, 
  fields 
  can 
  be 
  flooded, 
  the 
  ditches 
  can 
  be 
  oiled, 
  ■ 
  

   and 
  myriads 
  be 
  destroyed. 
  Oil 
  or 
  any 
  greasy 
  substance 
  is 
  the 
  best 
  remedy 
  

   in 
  dealing 
  with 
  any 
  insect, 
  as 
  it 
  should 
  be 
  remembered 
  tha,t 
  insects 
  do 
  

   not 
  breathe 
  air 
  through 
  the 
  mouth, 
  but 
  inhale 
  it 
  through 
  small 
  open- 
  

   ings 
  (spiracles) 
  in 
  the 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  body 
  ; 
  if 
  these 
  holes 
  are 
  covered 
  with 
  a 
  

   thin 
  film 
  of 
  oil 
  or 
  grease 
  of 
  any 
  kind, 
  they 
  die 
  at 
  once. 
  By 
  taking 
  en- 
  

   ergetic 
  measures; 
  the 
  farmers 
  of 
  Colorado, 
  as 
  will 
  be 
  seen 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Byers's 
  

  

  letter 
  on 
  p. 
  , 
  in 
  the 
  spring 
  of 
  1876 
  effectually 
  destroyed 
  the 
  young 
  

  

  brood. 
  Fowls 
  should 
  also 
  be 
  turned 
  among 
  them 
  ; 
  the 
  soil 
  should 
  be 
  

   rolled 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  crush 
  them, 
  and 
  trenches 
  dug 
  and 
  filled 
  with 
  straw 
  and 
  

   set 
  on 
  fire 
  and 
  the 
  locusts 
  driven 
  into 
  them 
  with 
  switches, 
  or 
  prairie- 
  

   fires 
  be 
  lighted 
  in 
  a 
  circle 
  around 
  them, 
  and 
  the 
  locusts 
  driven 
  into 
  them, 
  j 
  

  

  In 
  Colorado 
  a 
  great 
  deal 
  of 
  ingenuity 
  has 
  been 
  evinced 
  in 
  dealing 
  

   with 
  the 
  locust, 
  as 
  may 
  be 
  seen 
  in 
  reading 
  the 
  two 
  following 
  extracts 
  j 
  

   from 
  the 
  newspapers, 
  which 
  contain 
  some 
  useful 
  practical 
  remedies 
  : 
  ' 
  

  

  This 
  is 
  how 
  the 
  embattled 
  farmers 
  of 
  Colorado 
  deal 
  with 
  the 
  grasshoppers: 
  A 
  lonjr 
  

   sheet-iron 
  bos, 
  open 
  at 
  the 
  top, 
  is 
  swung 
  close 
  to 
  the 
  ground, 
  between 
  two 
  wheels, 
  by 
  

   which 
  it 
  is 
  moved 
  over 
  the 
  field. 
  Eising 
  two 
  or 
  three 
  feet 
  above 
  the 
  top 
  of 
  the 
  bos, 
  

   and 
  bending 
  forward 
  from 
  the 
  rear, 
  is 
  a 
  broad 
  sheet 
  of 
  tin 
  or 
  sheet-iron. 
  When 
  in 
  use 
  , 
  

   a 
  fire 
  is 
  built 
  in 
  the 
  bottom 
  of 
  the 
  furnace, 
  which 
  is 
  then 
  pushed 
  against 
  the 
  wind, 
  the 
  

   overhanging 
  wing 
  or 
  sail 
  taking 
  the 
  hoppers 
  as 
  they 
  rise, 
  and 
  feeding 
  them 
  in 
  the 
  

   flames 
  in 
  a 
  hurry. 
  Sometimes 
  a 
  miniature 
  windmill 
  is 
  added 
  to 
  the 
  outfit, 
  and 
  sucks 
  

   in 
  all 
  the 
  locusts 
  for 
  yards 
  and 
  yards 
  around, 
  destroying 
  them 
  by 
  millions. 
  Millions 
  

   more 
  have 
  been 
  drowned 
  in 
  irrigating 
  ditches 
  by 
  cunningly-devised 
  traps 
  wMch 
  pre- 
  

   vent 
  their 
  escape 
  from 
  the 
  water. 
  While 
  they 
  were 
  young 
  and 
  green, 
  and 
  before 
  their 
  

   wings 
  were 
  grown, 
  several 
  tons 
  of 
  them 
  were 
  destroyed 
  by 
  a 
  confidence 
  game 
  which 
  .• 
  

   deserves 
  description. 
  Between 
  the 
  young 
  hoppers 
  and 
  the 
  young 
  wheat 
  long 
  rowsof 
  j 
  

   dry 
  straw 
  were 
  strewn, 
  which 
  soon 
  became 
  literally 
  black 
  and 
  alive 
  with 
  the 
  wrig- 
  j 
  

   gling 
  little 
  insects. 
  When 
  no 
  more 
  hoppers 
  could 
  be 
  a,ccommodated, 
  the 
  straw 
  was 
  . 
  

   fired. 
  Another 
  device 
  was 
  to 
  drag 
  over 
  the 
  hopper-infested 
  regions 
  a 
  tarpaulin 
  plenti- 
  - 
  

   fully 
  coated 
  on 
  the 
  under 
  side 
  with 
  coal-tar, 
  which 
  is 
  instant 
  death 
  to 
  the 
  pests. 
  Still, 
  j 
  

   with 
  all 
  these 
  disadvantages 
  against 
  them, 
  grasshoppers 
  are 
  apparently 
  as 
  numerous 
  , 
  

   as 
  ever. 
  

  

  The 
  farmers 
  of 
  Colorado 
  are 
  btrsily 
  fighting 
  the 
  grasshoppers, 
  which 
  have 
  appeared 
  

   in 
  immense 
  swarms. 
  A 
  letter 
  fiom 
  Denver 
  says 
  they 
  "sluice 
  them 
  down 
  the 
  ditches 
  

   with 
  water, 
  gather 
  them 
  up 
  in 
  heaps 
  and 
  burn 
  them 
  ; 
  for 
  the 
  water 
  will 
  only 
  collect, 
  . 
  

   and 
  not 
  drown, 
  these 
  very 
  vital 
  pests. 
  They 
  set 
  cans 
  of 
  oil, 
  dripping 
  slowly, 
  at 
  the 
  

   heads 
  of 
  their 
  ditches, 
  and 
  the 
  slightest 
  touch 
  of 
  the 
  oily 
  film, 
  floating 
  down 
  with 
  the 
  

   running 
  water, 
  destroys 
  the 
  young 
  grasshopper. 
  They 
  drag 
  the 
  ground 
  with 
  huge 
  

   harrows, 
  covered 
  with 
  blazing 
  brush, 
  and 
  the 
  flame 
  scorches 
  its 
  tiny 
  millions 
  to 
  death. 
  

   They 
  draw 
  j)apers 
  or 
  platforms 
  smeared 
  with 
  tar 
  along 
  the 
  fields, 
  and 
  the 
  insects, 
  try- 
  

   ing 
  to 
  hop 
  over, 
  fall 
  on 
  the 
  tar 
  and 
  stick 
  there. 
  With 
  all 
  these 
  devices 
  they 
  only 
  thin 
  , 
  

   out 
  the 
  unwelcome 
  visitors. 
  

  

  The 
  following 
  pertinent 
  remarks 
  I 
  find 
  in 
  an 
  editorial 
  in 
  the 
  Eocky 
  ' 
  

   Mountain 
  iTews, 
  November 
  22, 
  1876 
  : 
  

  

  The 
  farmers 
  of 
  Colorado 
  have 
  demonstrated 
  the 
  fact 
  thart 
  they 
  can 
  successfully 
  com- 
  

   bat 
  and 
  conquer 
  the 
  young 
  grasshopper. 
  They 
  undertook 
  the 
  fight 
  with 
  extreme 
  re- 
  

  

  