﻿THE 
  TROBLEM 
  A 
  NATIONAL 
  ONE. 
  2$ 
  

  

  to 
  locust 
  ravages 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  the 
  duty 
  of 
  the 
  general 
  government 
  to 
  offer 
  

   bounties 
  for 
  the 
  eggs 
  and 
  young 
  locusts, 
  as 
  this 
  would 
  be 
  one 
  efficient 
  means 
  

   of 
  destroying 
  these 
  pests. 
  But 
  it 
  is 
  difficult 
  to 
  convince 
  members 
  of 
  

   Congress 
  from 
  Mississippi 
  and 
  Georgia 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  any 
  better 
  reason 
  

   for 
  paying 
  the 
  citizens 
  of 
  Minnesota 
  and 
  Nebraska 
  for 
  destroying 
  insects 
  

   injuring 
  their 
  wheat 
  and 
  corn 
  than 
  there 
  is 
  for 
  paying 
  the 
  planters 
  of 
  

   Mississippi 
  and 
  Georgia 
  for 
  collecting 
  the 
  worms 
  injuring 
  their 
  cotton. 
  

   It 
  is 
  therefore 
  not 
  at 
  all 
  probable 
  that 
  any 
  such 
  plan 
  will 
  ever 
  be 
  adopted 
  

   by 
  Congress, 
  at 
  least 
  in 
  States 
  which 
  have 
  power 
  to 
  adopt 
  such 
  measures 
  

   for 
  themselves. 
  But 
  there 
  is 
  another 
  light 
  in 
  which 
  this 
  question 
  may 
  

   be 
  considered 
  which 
  brings 
  it 
  out 
  somewhat 
  from 
  under 
  the 
  principle 
  

   stated. 
  If 
  it 
  could 
  be 
  shown 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  limited 
  area 
  within 
  the 
  

   bounds 
  of 
  our 
  national 
  territory 
  from 
  which 
  the 
  cotton-worm 
  moths 
  pro- 
  

   ceed 
  and 
  spread 
  over 
  the 
  cotton 
  States 
  to 
  deposit 
  the 
  eggs 
  that 
  produce 
  

   the 
  worm, 
  and 
  that 
  by 
  destroying 
  the 
  insects 
  in 
  this 
  native 
  home 
  the 
  

   spreading 
  would 
  be 
  prevented, 
  then 
  the 
  subject 
  becomes 
  a 
  national 
  one^ 
  

   just 
  as 
  the 
  passing 
  of 
  lines 
  of 
  commerce 
  over 
  State 
  boundaries 
  renders 
  

   them 
  subjects 
  of 
  national 
  control. 
  If 
  this 
  native 
  habitat 
  should 
  be 
  in 
  a 
  

   territory, 
  this 
  fact 
  of 
  itself 
  would 
  bring 
  it 
  more 
  exclusively 
  under 
  na- 
  

   tional 
  control. 
  

  

  That 
  all 
  these 
  supposed 
  conditions 
  do 
  apply 
  to 
  the 
  locust 
  problem 
  has 
  

   been 
  fully 
  shown 
  in 
  our 
  reports, 
  and 
  is 
  well 
  known 
  to 
  every 
  one. 
  The 
  

   question 
  then 
  arises, 
  Is 
  not 
  the 
  general 
  governmemt 
  under 
  obligations 
  

   to 
  make 
  a 
  reasonable 
  effort 
  to 
  prevent 
  the 
  hordes 
  of 
  locusts 
  bred 
  in 
  the 
  

   Territories 
  from 
  invading 
  the 
  States 
  1 
  The 
  lands 
  of 
  Minnesota, 
  Nebraska, 
  

   Iowa, 
  and 
  Kansas 
  have 
  been 
  sold 
  to 
  those 
  who 
  have 
  them, 
  or 
  have 
  been 
  

   granted 
  to 
  them 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  inducing 
  them 
  to 
  settle 
  upon 
  and 
  

   improve 
  them. 
  Xow 
  they 
  find 
  they 
  are 
  subject 
  to 
  the 
  ravages 
  of 
  an 
  in- 
  

   sect 
  which 
  has 
  its 
  native 
  home 
  and 
  breeding 
  grounds 
  beyond 
  the 
  bounds- 
  

   of 
  their 
  own 
  States, 
  and 
  in 
  Territories 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  over 
  which 
  

   their 
  State 
  authorities 
  have 
  no 
  control, 
  and 
  where 
  they 
  can 
  take 
  no 
  

   measures 
  for 
  destroying 
  the 
  pests 
  or 
  preventing 
  their 
  invasions. 
  These 
  

   facts 
  render 
  the 
  case 
  peculiar, 
  and 
  different 
  even 
  from 
  that 
  of 
  the 
  Colorado 
  

   potato 
  -beetle. 
  In 
  the 
  latter 
  case, 
  as 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  many 
  other 
  injurious 
  

   insects, 
  it 
  was 
  an 
  extension 
  of 
  the 
  permanent 
  home, 
  thus 
  bringing 
  all 
  

   possible 
  remedies 
  within 
  the 
  reach 
  of 
  the 
  authority 
  of 
  any 
  State 
  or 
  

   section 
  invaded. 
  But 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  so 
  with 
  the 
  locusts; 
  their 
  migrations 
  are 
  

   not 
  a 
  spread 
  of 
  their 
  native 
  habitat, 
  and 
  do 
  not 
  bring 
  within 
  reach 
  of 
  

   the 
  authority 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  invaded 
  all 
  possible 
  remedies 
  ; 
  in 
  fact, 
  the 
  

   most 
  effectual 
  remedies 
  are 
  beyond 
  the 
  control 
  of 
  the 
  States 
  in 
  the 
  tem- 
  

   porary 
  region 
  ; 
  they 
  have 
  no 
  authority 
  to 
  take 
  even 
  the 
  first 
  step 
  toward 
  

   preventing 
  the 
  invasion 
  of 
  their 
  territory, 
  and 
  hence 
  are 
  entirely 
  help- 
  

   less 
  in 
  this 
  respect. 
  

  

  We 
  hold, 
  therefore, 
  that 
  this 
  is 
  an 
  exceptional 
  case, 
  and 
  that 
  the 
  gen- 
  

   eral 
  principle 
  above 
  mentioned 
  does 
  not 
  apply 
  to 
  it; 
  and 
  we 
  think 
  it 
  is 
  

   the 
  duty 
  of 
  the 
  general 
  government 
  to 
  make 
  a 
  reasonable 
  effort 
  to 
  pre- 
  

  

  