﻿EXTERMINATION 
  OF 
  LOCUSTS 
  IN 
  CHINA. 
  [67] 
  

  

  fclie 
  Emperor 
  that 
  one 
  should 
  escape 
  this 
  celestial 
  pimishment 
  hy 
  doing 
  good, 
  and 
  re- 
  

   .miuded 
  him 
  of 
  Loo-tzoon, 
  who 
  had 
  not 
  succeeded 
  in 
  destroying 
  the 
  locust, 
  and 
  had 
  by 
  

   that 
  dragged 
  his 
  country 
  into 
  greater 
  trouble. 
  Tao-tchoon 
  answered 
  him 
  reprov- 
  

   ingly 
  : 
  ' 
  Loo-tzoon 
  was 
  a 
  prince-usurper, 
  and 
  his 
  virtues 
  did 
  not 
  surpass 
  his 
  falseness 
  ; 
  

   now 
  baseness 
  does 
  not 
  surpass 
  the 
  virtues 
  ; 
  in 
  ancient 
  times 
  the 
  locust 
  did 
  not 
  ap- 
  

   I)roach 
  places 
  where 
  the 
  commanders 
  were 
  good 
  men, 
  and 
  now 
  one 
  advises 
  to 
  look, 
  

   without 
  doing 
  anything, 
  at 
  the 
  destruction 
  of 
  the 
  crops, 
  and 
  who 
  is 
  the 
  man 
  who 
  ad- 
  

   vises 
  this 
  — 
  the 
  local 
  chief 
  ! 
  ' 
  Neejo-Shoei 
  got 
  frightened 
  at 
  this 
  speech, 
  and 
  took 
  to 
  the 
  

   destruction 
  of 
  the 
  locust, 
  and 
  gathered 
  40,000 
  dan 
  of 
  it 
  (1 
  dan 
  is 
  100 
  shen). 
  But 
  some 
  

   men 
  condemned 
  the 
  minister, 
  and 
  did 
  so 
  much 
  as 
  to 
  influence 
  Uau-tzoon, 
  who 
  also 
  

   began 
  to 
  doubt 
  whether 
  the 
  minister 
  was 
  right. 
  Tao-tchoon 
  said 
  to 
  the 
  Emperor, 
  

   * 
  One 
  cannot 
  change 
  stux^id 
  scientific 
  men 
  nor 
  pedantic 
  books; 
  though 
  we 
  cannot 
  get 
  

   entirely 
  rid 
  of 
  the 
  locust 
  and 
  the 
  evil 
  they 
  bring, 
  it 
  would 
  still 
  be 
  better 
  to 
  destroy 
  

   them 
  than 
  to 
  give 
  up 
  one's 
  self 
  to 
  ruin.' 
  Uan-tzoon 
  was 
  satisfied 
  with 
  this 
  answer, 
  but 
  

   the 
  minister's 
  colleague, 
  Loo-hooai-chen 
  answered 
  : 
  'Can 
  human 
  power 
  do 
  anything 
  

   against 
  a 
  celestial 
  punishment 
  ? 
  From 
  the 
  destruction 
  of 
  too 
  many 
  of 
  these 
  insects 
  

   the 
  equilibrium 
  of 
  the 
  elements 
  must 
  be 
  injured.' 
  The 
  minister 
  answered 
  him 
  : 
  *In 
  

   ancient 
  times 
  Prince 
  Djooan-Uan 
  swallowed 
  an 
  insect 
  and 
  was 
  cured 
  from 
  an 
  illness. 
  

   Shoe-Nao 
  has 
  cut 
  a 
  snake 
  in 
  two 
  and 
  luck 
  never 
  left 
  him 
  after 
  that 
  ; 
  and 
  now 
  with 
  

   the 
  locust 
  luck 
  can 
  also 
  speedily 
  return 
  ; 
  and 
  if 
  we 
  do 
  not 
  do 
  something 
  against 
  this 
  

   insect 
  the 
  crops 
  will 
  be 
  destroyed. 
  In 
  destroying 
  the 
  locust 
  we 
  save 
  men. 
  All 
  the 
  

   responsibility 
  for 
  this 
  shall 
  fall 
  on 
  me, 
  and 
  not 
  on 
  those 
  who 
  but 
  execute 
  my 
  orders.' 
  

   Yery 
  soon 
  after 
  this 
  distress 
  from 
  the 
  locust 
  entirely 
  ceased." 
  

  

  REGULATIONS 
  REGARDING 
  THE 
  EXTERMINATION 
  OF 
  LOCUSTS. 
  

  

  (a.) 
  Orders 
  lyublished 
  under 
  the 
  reign 
  of 
  the 
  Emperor 
  Slien-tzoon 
  : 
  

  

  1. 
  Wherever 
  locusts 
  apx)eaT, 
  and 
  the 
  landowners 
  or 
  their 
  neighbors 
  conceal 
  it, 
  and 
  

   the 
  elders 
  don't 
  take 
  measures 
  for 
  its 
  detruction, 
  each 
  of 
  them 
  will 
  have 
  a 
  hundred 
  blows 
  

   of 
  a 
  bamboo 
  rod. 
  If 
  the 
  local 
  chief, 
  having 
  been 
  informed 
  of 
  the 
  arrival 
  of 
  locusts, 
  

   should 
  do 
  nothing 
  against 
  them, 
  or 
  not 
  be 
  personally 
  present 
  at 
  the 
  execution 
  of 
  

   measures 
  of 
  destruction, 
  or 
  not 
  having 
  destroyed 
  all 
  the 
  locusts, 
  inform 
  wrongly 
  the 
  

   Government 
  of 
  having 
  destroyed 
  them 
  all, 
  he 
  will 
  be 
  liable 
  for 
  eack 
  of 
  those 
  offenses 
  

   to 
  the 
  above 
  said 
  number 
  of 
  bamboo-rod 
  blows 
  and 
  to 
  twenty 
  additional 
  blows. 
  

  

  2. 
  Whenever 
  locusts 
  leave 
  desert 
  places 
  to 
  go 
  to 
  populated 
  ones 
  the 
  local 
  chiefs 
  are 
  

   obliged 
  to 
  hire 
  poor 
  people 
  and 
  have 
  the 
  eggs 
  destroyed. 
  If 
  all 
  of 
  them 
  should 
  not 
  

   be 
  destroyed 
  and 
  the 
  locust 
  therefrom 
  reappear 
  the 
  next 
  year 
  those 
  commanders 
  will 
  

   be 
  punished 
  with 
  100 
  bamboo-rod 
  blows. 
  

  

  3. 
  In 
  the 
  villages 
  where 
  the 
  locust 
  passes 
  and 
  leaves 
  eggs 
  the 
  landowners 
  and 
  

   elders 
  will 
  be 
  punished 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  way 
  for 
  the 
  imperfect 
  destruction 
  of 
  those 
  eggs. 
  

  

  4. 
  If 
  the 
  measures 
  of 
  the 
  corn 
  distributed 
  as 
  pay 
  for 
  such 
  labor 
  should 
  be 
  inten- 
  

   tionally 
  smaller 
  than 
  due, 
  the 
  punishment 
  would-be 
  equal 
  to 
  that 
  received 
  by 
  oflicials 
  

   in 
  villages 
  for 
  taking 
  bribes, 
  concealing 
  Government 
  property, 
  or 
  appropriation 
  of 
  

   strange 
  property. 
  

  

  5. 
  If 
  commanders 
  in 
  places 
  overrun 
  with 
  locusts 
  would 
  appropriate 
  to 
  themselves 
  

   strange 
  property 
  they 
  would 
  suifer 
  the 
  punishment 
  of 
  those 
  receiving 
  bribes 
  from 
  

   convicts 
  placed 
  under 
  their 
  care. 
  

  

  6. 
  During 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  locusts 
  the 
  local 
  commander 
  will 
  always 
  be 
  responsible 
  

   even 
  if 
  he 
  should 
  be 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  absent 
  on 
  duty 
  — 
  as 
  long 
  only, 
  however, 
  as 
  it 
  will 
  be 
  

   w^ithin 
  the 
  limits 
  of 
  his 
  district. 
  

  

  (&.) 
  Manners 
  of 
  destroying 
  the 
  locust. 
  

  

  1. 
  Every 
  morning 
  at 
  sunrise 
  the 
  locusts 
  creep 
  up 
  the 
  stems 
  of 
  the 
  corii 
  and 
  strong 
  

   grass 
  so 
  as 
  to 
  drink 
  the 
  dew 
  ; 
  at 
  that 
  time 
  they 
  are 
  heavy 
  and 
  can 
  neither 
  fly 
  nor 
  jump. 
  

   At 
  that 
  time 
  one 
  must 
  drive 
  them 
  with 
  sticks 
  into 
  baskets 
  and 
  from 
  there 
  put 
  them 
  

   into 
  bags 
  and 
  then 
  burn 
  them 
  on 
  fire 
  or 
  pour 
  some 
  boiling 
  water 
  over 
  them 
  or 
  

   dig 
  a 
  hole 
  in 
  the 
  ground, 
  make 
  a 
  fire 
  inside, 
  and 
  throw 
  them 
  in 
  it. 
  Everyboily 
  knows 
  

   that 
  it 
  would 
  not 
  be 
  sufficient 
  to 
  simj)ly 
  bury 
  them, 
  as 
  they 
  could 
  creep 
  out 
  through 
  

   the 
  small 
  holes 
  in 
  the 
  earth. 
  

  

  2. 
  Locusts 
  don't 
  die 
  easily. 
  lu 
  knocking 
  with 
  a 
  stick 
  on 
  a 
  fresh 
  larva 
  one 
  not 
  

   only 
  would 
  not 
  kill 
  it, 
  but 
  would 
  also 
  destroy 
  the 
  crops. 
  Old 
  leather 
  or 
  even 
  grass 
  

   soles 
  would 
  do 
  much 
  better. 
  One 
  must 
  put 
  the 
  sole 
  on 
  it 
  and 
  press 
  it 
  with 
  the 
  hand 
  

   against 
  the 
  ground. 
  This 
  would 
  keep 
  the 
  corn 
  unbroken. 
  Out 
  of 
  one 
  bull's 
  skin 
  one 
  

   could 
  make 
  many 
  a 
  sole, 
  and 
  give 
  them 
  to 
  keep 
  to 
  the 
  elders 
  for 
  case 
  of 
  need. 
  One 
  

   says 
  such 
  method 
  is 
  used 
  in 
  Mongolia. 
  

  

  3. 
  If 
  the 
  locusts 
  are 
  on 
  au 
  ox)eu, 
  free 
  place, 
  one 
  must 
  dig 
  a 
  ditch 
  across 
  their 
  way 
  in 
  

   front 
  of 
  them. 
  The 
  larger 
  the 
  ditch 
  is 
  the 
  better. 
  One 
  must 
  cover 
  the 
  ditch 
  with 
  

  

  