294 ORTHOPTEKA OF NOVA SCOTIA. — PIERS. 



The earlier stages of this inroad were fully described by me 

 in my paper of 1896 (Trans. N. S. Inst. Sc, ix, 216-218). 

 Up to about 1891 the superintendent of the island had 

 neither seen nor heard of any locusts whatever upon that 

 isolated place. In that year, however, they suddenly made 

 their appearance, having without doubt flown from the main- 

 land, a distance, as has been said, of a hundred miles or 

 more, their powers of flight being great and the prevailing 

 southwest wind no doubt assisting them in their long journey. 

 Their numbers very soon increased at a most alarming rate, 

 the summer of 1892 being a dry one.* So destructive did 

 they become by vigorously attacking the grass, that in 1894 

 which was the dryest season on record, only one load of hay 

 could be cut where fourteen had previously been harvested. 

 It was said they devoured the grass near the root. This was 

 a most serious matter, for if the grass should disappear, 

 nothing could prevent the wind from rapidly shifting the 

 sand of which the island is entirely formed, and this would 

 ultimately result, unless extraordinary and costly preventive 

 measures were taken, in that oceanic sandbank disappearing 

 beneath the sea, causing an already dangerous spot to become 

 vastly more perilous to shipping. In 1895 the insects -were 

 more abundant than ever, particularly on the western parts, 

 and destroyed the gardens as well as the cultivated and wild 

 grass, and hay had to be imported to support the herds of 

 wild ponies, while more of the latter had to be sent to the 

 mainland to re luce the stock which required feeding. 

 The locusts were swept up in bucketsful from the doorsteps, 

 and they even entered a room and destroj^ed portions of a 

 cotton window-blind. Many had disappeared for the season 

 by 12 Oct., 1895, and a letter dated 10 Nov. stated they were 

 by that time all dead, although in 1894 they survived very 



*Iri 18S8 tiie prcc.iintadon in July, \nii., and Sept. wiw abovo normal; in ISSst the same 

 months were diy, it being a very dry year altogether; in 1890 .July was below normal, and Aug. 

 and Sept. above normal; in 1891 .Tuly was above normal and Aug. and .Sept. below; 1892 was 

 dry in .July and Sept. and somewhat wet in Aug.; in 189.3 the three months were wet; in 

 1894 they were very dry, it being an excessively dry year; 189.5 was fairly wet, and 1896 was 

 ■excessively wet. 



