﻿• 
  GENERAL 
  REPORT 
  FOR 
  1881. 
  45 
  

  

  locust- 
  feeding 
  birds 
  would 
  be 
  correspondingly 
  increased, 
  and 
  the 
  amount 
  

   of 
  good 
  thus 
  accomplished 
  could 
  hardly 
  be 
  estimated. 
  As 
  long, 
  how- 
  

   ever, 
  as 
  there 
  are 
  no 
  retreats 
  or 
  building 
  places 
  in 
  which 
  these 
  little 
  

   feathered 
  friends 
  of 
  ours 
  can 
  rear 
  their 
  little 
  ones, 
  we 
  need 
  not 
  look 
  for 
  

   their 
  aid 
  in 
  fighting 
  insect 
  enemies, 
  * 
  

  

  The 
  increase 
  in 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  settlers 
  would 
  also 
  add 
  to 
  tlie 
  number 
  

   of 
  individuals 
  to 
  fight 
  the 
  locusts, 
  and 
  hence 
  help 
  to 
  increase 
  the 
  sum 
  

   total 
  of 
  their 
  dead 
  and 
  to 
  diminish 
  the 
  swarms 
  otherwise 
  remaining 
  to 
  

   do 
  damage 
  and 
  to 
  increase 
  at 
  the 
  ratio 
  of 
  an 
  hundred-fold. 
  

  

  There 
  has 
  been 
  a 
  great 
  deal 
  of 
  disagreement 
  in 
  reference 
  to 
  the 
  con- 
  

   tinuation 
  of 
  the 
  flights 
  of 
  locust 
  swarms 
  during 
  short 
  and 
  local 
  rain- 
  

   storms, 
  and 
  also 
  at 
  night. 
  That 
  they 
  do 
  continue 
  I 
  think 
  there 
  can 
  

   be 
  no 
  longer 
  any 
  doubt, 
  since 
  the 
  cases 
  where 
  locusts 
  were 
  seen 
  iii 
  the 
  

   air 
  immediately 
  before 
  and 
  after 
  local 
  rains 
  of 
  short 
  duration 
  are 
  quite 
  

   common. 
  This 
  summer, 
  while 
  near 
  Goldi'U, 
  Golo., 
  I 
  saw 
  a 
  few 
  locusts, 
  

   flying 
  very 
  high 
  during 
  the 
  progress 
  of 
  a 
  rain-storm. 
  I 
  was 
  at 
  an 
  eleva- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  about 
  8,500 
  feet 
  at 
  the 
  time, 
  and 
  the 
  locusts 
  Avere 
  seen 
  through 
  

   small 
  openings 
  in 
  the 
  clouds. 
  At 
  other 
  times 
  also, 
  of 
  which 
  1 
  cannot 
  

   just 
  now 
  give 
  the 
  precise 
  dates, 
  I 
  know 
  of 
  instances 
  where 
  thunder 
  

   showers 
  came 
  up, 
  and 
  during 
  their 
  progress 
  large 
  numbers 
  of 
  locusts 
  

   came 
  down 
  as 
  if 
  with 
  the 
  rain. 
  The 
  first 
  of 
  these, 
  of 
  which 
  I 
  have 
  any 
  

   knowledge, 
  occurred 
  in 
  the 
  month 
  of 
  August 
  about 
  fifteen 
  years 
  ago» 
  

   About 
  noon, 
  or 
  a 
  little 
  later, 
  a 
  heavy 
  thunder 
  shower 
  came 
  up 
  from 
  the 
  

   northwest, 
  and 
  we 
  boys, 
  who 
  were 
  out 
  with 
  the 
  cattle, 
  began 
  gathering 
  

   them 
  together 
  so 
  that 
  we 
  could 
  remain 
  in 
  the 
  shelter 
  of 
  a 
  tent 
  that 
  

   we 
  had 
  erected 
  duriug 
  the 
  coming 
  of 
  the 
  shower. 
  Well, 
  just 
  how 
  we 
  

   succeeded 
  1 
  do 
  not 
  now 
  remember 
  j 
  but 
  ' 
  after 
  it 
  had 
  rained 
  about 
  an 
  

   hour 
  we 
  went 
  out, 
  when, 
  to 
  our 
  great 
  surprise, 
  there 
  were 
  thousands 
  of 
  

   "grasshoppers" 
  jumping 
  about 
  in 
  every 
  direction, 
  and 
  others 
  were 
  

   coming 
  down 
  as 
  if 
  from 
  the 
  clouds. 
  The 
  majority 
  had 
  fallen 
  during 
  

   the 
  earlier 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  storm, 
  however, 
  as 
  we 
  noticed 
  comparatively 
  

   few 
  of 
  them 
  coming 
  down. 
  During 
  the 
  same 
  afternoon, 
  after 
  the 
  sun 
  

   came 
  out, 
  others 
  were 
  seen 
  in 
  the 
  air. 
  Those 
  which 
  had 
  fallen 
  did 
  not 
  

   leave 
  until 
  the 
  next 
  day. 
  A 
  few 
  of 
  them 
  must 
  have 
  been 
  killed 
  in 
  com- 
  

   ing 
  down, 
  because 
  every 
  now 
  and 
  then 
  we 
  found 
  their 
  carcasses 
  lying 
  

   on 
  the 
  ground, 
  some 
  of 
  which 
  we 
  picked 
  up 
  and 
  used 
  on 
  our 
  pin-hooks 
  

   for 
  catching 
  fishes. 
  Other 
  incidents, 
  similar 
  to 
  this, 
  have 
  occurred 
  

   since, 
  but 
  as 
  they 
  did 
  not 
  impress 
  themselves 
  as 
  vividly 
  upon 
  my 
  mind 
  

   as 
  did 
  this, 
  I 
  do 
  not 
  now 
  recollect 
  them 
  as 
  well, 
  and 
  therefore 
  can 
  give 
  

   no 
  date. 
  

  

  Also 
  during 
  nights 
  when 
  the 
  wind 
  continues 
  to 
  blow 
  quite 
  briskly 
  ,^ 
  

   and 
  the 
  temperature 
  remains 
  unchanged 
  or 
  falls 
  but 
  little, 
  swarms 
  

   that 
  are 
  on 
  the 
  move 
  sometimes 
  continue 
  to 
  fly. 
  I 
  recollect 
  several 
  

   instances 
  in 
  iiroof 
  of 
  this 
  where 
  locusts 
  were 
  known 
  to 
  leave 
  a 
  certain 
  

   localitj^ 
  about 
  noon 
  one 
  day, 
  and 
  were 
  not 
  known 
  to 
  have 
  come 
  down 
  

   until 
  some 
  time 
  during 
  the 
  following 
  day. 
  One 
  of 
  these 
  occurred 
  in 
  

  

  