﻿EEPORT 
  OF 
  JOHN 
  MARTEN 
  ON 
  CALOPTENUS. 
  [53] 
  

  

  serious 
  apprehensioDS 
  of 
  danger 
  had 
  there 
  been 
  crops 
  for 
  the 
  locusts 
  to 
  

   attack. 
  The 
  eggs 
  were 
  generally 
  placed 
  in 
  low 
  ground, 
  rather 
  compact 
  

   and 
  sandy. 
  The 
  young 
  locusts 
  soon 
  after 
  hatching 
  seemed 
  to 
  be 
  more 
  

   numerous 
  on 
  the 
  higher 
  ground 
  than 
  on 
  the 
  lower, 
  which 
  was 
  a 
  fact 
  

   Mr. 
  Lang 
  could 
  not 
  account 
  for, 
  unless 
  they 
  migrated 
  from 
  the 
  low 
  

   ground. 
  In 
  August, 
  1878, 
  the 
  wheat 
  crop 
  and 
  garden 
  of 
  a 
  Mr. 
  Fox, 
  

   near 
  Mandan, 
  was 
  almost 
  entirely 
  destroyed 
  by 
  old 
  locusts. 
  And 
  in 
  

   the 
  latter 
  part 
  of 
  May, 
  1879, 
  locusts 
  began 
  hatching 
  on 
  the 
  farm 
  of 
  

   Mr. 
  Clark, 
  2 
  miles 
  from 
  Mandan, 
  in 
  the 
  Heart 
  Eiver 
  Yalley, 
  and 
  when 
  

   their 
  wings 
  were 
  fully 
  grown 
  th^ 
  flew 
  to 
  the 
  southeast. 
  They 
  were 
  

   not 
  in 
  sufticient 
  numbers 
  to 
  destroy 
  the 
  growing 
  crops, 
  but 
  injured 
  it 
  

   severely 
  in 
  places. 
  

  

  From 
  Mandan 
  to 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  Northern 
  Pacific 
  Railroad, 
  C. 
  spretus 
  

   was 
  found 
  at 
  every 
  stopping 
  place 
  in 
  small 
  numbers. 
  No 
  crops 
  were 
  

   seen 
  for 
  them 
  to 
  feast 
  upon 
  after 
  leaving 
  the 
  Heart 
  Eiver, 
  some 
  3 
  or 
  4 
  

   miles 
  from 
  Mandan. 
  

  

  At 
  Grreen 
  Eiver, 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  track, 
  I 
  could 
  find 
  no 
  one 
  who 
  could 
  

   give 
  me 
  any 
  definite 
  information 
  about 
  locusts 
  in 
  that 
  vicinity. 
  Mr. 
  

   ^^Gus" 
  Plumer 
  reported 
  that 
  at 
  his 
  ranche, 
  30 
  miles 
  beyond 
  the 
  end 
  of 
  

   the 
  track, 
  the 
  locusts 
  destroyed 
  his 
  garden 
  in 
  1878, 
  and 
  in 
  August 
  of 
  that 
  

   year 
  they 
  deposited 
  large 
  numbers 
  of 
  eggs 
  that 
  hatched 
  the 
  next 
  May 
  

   and 
  June 
  (1879). 
  But 
  not 
  enough 
  of 
  the 
  eggs 
  hatched 
  to 
  cause 
  him 
  any 
  

   annoyance. 
  Mr. 
  Plumer 
  could 
  not 
  account 
  for 
  so 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  eggs 
  

   failing 
  to 
  hatch. 
  The 
  locusts 
  that 
  flew 
  over 
  his 
  ranche 
  in 
  1878 
  were 
  

   going 
  nearly 
  south. 
  

  

  August 
  7.— 
  Left 
  Bismarck 
  in 
  a 
  wagon 
  going 
  overland 
  to 
  Huron, 
  Dak., 
  

   about 
  350 
  miles 
  distant. 
  The 
  first 
  two 
  days 
  we 
  followed 
  the 
  course 
  Of 
  

   the 
  Missouri 
  Eiver, 
  occasionally 
  going 
  upon 
  the 
  edge 
  of 
  the 
  Coteau 
  of 
  

   the 
  Missouri. 
  About 
  10.30 
  o'clock 
  of 
  the 
  morning 
  of 
  the 
  7th 
  I 
  saw 
  

   locusts 
  flying 
  a 
  little 
  east 
  of 
  south, 
  almost 
  following 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  the 
  

   river 
  at 
  that 
  place. 
  They 
  were 
  very 
  high, 
  but 
  not 
  very 
  thick. 
  About 
  

   3.30 
  p. 
  m. 
  the 
  clouds 
  obscured 
  the 
  sun 
  and 
  I 
  saw 
  no 
  more 
  locusts. 
  

  

  August 
  8. 
  — 
  Locusts 
  were 
  flying 
  at 
  11 
  o'clock 
  this 
  morning, 
  thicker 
  than 
  

   yesterday, 
  but 
  at 
  a 
  lower 
  elevation. 
  They 
  were 
  going 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  di- 
  

   rection, 
  east 
  of 
  south, 
  with 
  the 
  wind, 
  which 
  was 
  blowing 
  a 
  stifit* 
  breeze. 
  

   During 
  the 
  day 
  I 
  saw 
  numbers 
  of 
  locusts 
  rising 
  from 
  the 
  Coteau 
  and 
  

   by 
  rapidly 
  enlarging 
  irregular 
  circles 
  or 
  spirals 
  join 
  the 
  moving 
  swarms 
  

   above. 
  Sometimes 
  they 
  rose 
  so 
  numerously 
  as 
  to 
  strike 
  us 
  frequently 
  

   as 
  we 
  rode 
  along. 
  Many 
  more 
  locusts 
  were 
  seen 
  on 
  the 
  Coteau 
  than 
  

   on 
  the 
  low 
  ground 
  near 
  the 
  river. 
  

  

  August 
  9. 
  — 
  Locusts 
  were 
  again 
  seen 
  flying 
  today, 
  but 
  more 
  to 
  the 
  

   east 
  and 
  in 
  fewer 
  numbers 
  than 
  either 
  yesterday 
  or 
  the 
  day 
  before. 
  

  

  The 
  afternoon 
  of 
  August 
  8 
  was 
  spent 
  in 
  Fort 
  Yates. 
  Lieut. 
  D. 
  H. 
  

   Brush 
  stated 
  that 
  no 
  damage 
  had 
  ever 
  been 
  done 
  there, 
  within 
  his 
  knowl- 
  

   edge, 
  and 
  that 
  locusts 
  had 
  not 
  been 
  seen 
  flying 
  for 
  the 
  last 
  two 
  years. 
  

   But 
  I 
  learned 
  that 
  they 
  had 
  been 
  visited 
  by 
  locusts 
  in 
  1875 
  and 
  1876, 
  

   but 
  the 
  damage 
  done 
  was 
  not 
  great. 
  I 
  myself, 
  as 
  stated 
  above, 
  saw 
  them 
  

   flying 
  over 
  the 
  fort, 
  bat 
  not 
  so 
  thickly 
  as 
  I 
  had 
  seen 
  them 
  while 
  on 
  the 
  

   Coteau 
  east 
  of 
  the 
  river. 
  

  

  Monday, 
  August 
  9, 
  the 
  party 
  with 
  which 
  I 
  was 
  traveling 
  turned 
  east- 
  

   ward 
  from 
  Fort 
  Yates 
  across 
  the 
  prairie 
  to 
  the 
  James 
  Eiver, 
  distant 
  

   nearly 
  200 
  miles. 
  Soon 
  after 
  leaving 
  the 
  Missouri 
  we 
  lost 
  the 
  trail 
  and 
  

   wandered 
  about 
  until 
  near 
  evening, 
  when 
  we 
  struck 
  what 
  afterwards 
  

   proved 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  Big 
  Beaver 
  Creek 
  and 
  camped 
  for 
  the 
  night. 
  At 
  this 
  

   place 
  the 
  locusts 
  were 
  quite 
  abundant, 
  as 
  were 
  other 
  species 
  of 
  'hoppers. 
  

  

  August 
  10. 
  — 
  We 
  followed 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  the 
  Big 
  Beaver, 
  or 
  rather 
  a 
  

   parallel 
  course, 
  at 
  a 
  distance 
  of 
  several 
  miles, 
  returning 
  to 
  it 
  in 
  theeven- 
  

  

  