LOCUST HISTORY IN TEXAS, 1868-1873. 59 



place, and were two weeks longer in reaching Brenham, seven and a 

 half miles to the south by east. (Riley's seventh report.) 



18G8. — The young hatched out in the spring, but were destroyed by 

 the heavy rains. Mr. Affleck states that they began to hatch early in 

 February, and by the 28tli of March began to mov^e in bands in or near 

 Brenham, Glenblyth Valley, and injure gardens. By April 23, vast 

 numbers of locusts went off. *' Some of them got off by flight, but the 

 bulk kept on on foot toward the northwest, followed and preyed upon 

 by hundreds of black hawks, or rather buzzards — I think the Falco har- 

 lanV^ No swarms of " emigrant" locusts arrived from the Northwest in 

 the autumn. Two observers, however, at Calvert, agree in stating that 

 locusts appeared there in the autumn of 1867 and 1868. There are no 

 records of the appearance of locusts after this until about the year 1872 

 or 1873. 



1872? — That locusts probably invaded Texas during 1872, and each 

 year following until 1876, will be seen by the following extracts Irom 

 reports from United States weather signal observers, forwarded by the 

 Chief Signal-Officer, United States Army, at the request of the Com- 

 mission : 



" They visited this section in 1876, and for five or or six years previ- 

 ous." (E. G. Prince, Fredericksburg.) 



" Visited every year twice since about four or five years." (J. C. 

 Eickli, Mason, Tex., June 13, 1877.) 



" Of late, for three or four years, they came to Western Texas every 

 year. They arrived in the latter part of September, during October, 

 and kept coming till November, till the first frost put a stop to their 

 wanderings." (J. C. Eickli, Mason, Tex., July 12, 1877.) 



These data may refer to 1872, but we leave the matter in doubt until 

 more exact information is received. The following statement, however, 

 tends to show that there was an invasion in 1872, as locusts are reported 

 as existing in small numbers in the spring of 1873. If these were not 

 native species, then there must have been a slight invasion of C. spretus 

 in 1872. 



"This section was visited by small numbers of these insects in the 

 spring and autumn of 1873 and 1875, and from October 1 to 15, 18[7]6. 

 None the present year." (William Norrington, United States Signal 

 Service, Uvalde, Tex.) 



1873. — " In September, 1873 [no specified date], there appeared at 

 this place, suddenly, immense swarms of locusts, coming from a north- 

 erly direction. The direction of their flight followed the Eio Grande 

 Eiver for about thirty miles in its course to the Gulf. For about five 

 days the multitudes kept traveling over this place, descending to the 

 ground at sundown and remaining below until shortly after sunrise the 

 next morning, when all would rise in a body and resume their flight. 

 The weather during this visitation was very dry and sultry, and the 

 prevailing wind northerly; the damage done immense. These locusts 



