﻿[68] 
  REPORT 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  ENTOMOLOGICAL 
  COMMISSION. 
  

  

  "boards 
  and 
  make 
  a 
  door 
  (double 
  folding) 
  in 
  the 
  center. 
  A 
  lot 
  of 
  men 
  must 
  drive 
  the 
  

   locusts 
  into 
  the 
  hole 
  with 
  branches 
  and 
  shouts, 
  and 
  some 
  others 
  stand 
  near 
  and 
  brush 
  

   them 
  in 
  with 
  brooms. 
  If 
  they 
  try 
  to 
  get 
  out 
  again 
  drive 
  them 
  back. 
  Once 
  filled 
  

   with 
  the 
  insects 
  the 
  hole 
  must 
  be 
  covered 
  up 
  with 
  dry 
  grass 
  and 
  fire 
  put 
  to 
  it. 
  How- 
  

   ever, 
  even 
  after 
  xhat 
  some 
  of 
  them 
  will 
  be 
  ^live 
  at 
  the 
  bottom 
  of 
  the 
  ditch. 
  For 
  

   that 
  purpose 
  one 
  will 
  have 
  to 
  bury 
  the 
  whole 
  thing 
  and 
  trample 
  on 
  it. 
  And 
  do 
  the 
  

   same 
  the 
  next 
  day. 
  One 
  could 
  also 
  make 
  a 
  fire 
  in 
  the 
  ditch 
  beforehand 
  and 
  drive 
  the 
  

   locusts 
  in 
  afterwards. 
  

  

  4. 
  Once 
  the 
  locust 
  appears 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  writing 
  to 
  be 
  done 
  for 
  excuses 
  of 
  absence 
  of 
  

   chiefs, 
  &c. 
  — 
  paper 
  won't 
  help 
  — 
  the 
  commander-in-chief 
  must 
  be 
  present. 
  The 
  serv- 
  

   ants 
  following 
  the 
  chief 
  in 
  those 
  cases 
  must 
  not 
  clean 
  out 
  whatever 
  valuables, 
  &c., 
  

   they 
  find 
  at 
  the 
  elders, 
  like 
  silk 
  worms, 
  as 
  the 
  elders 
  would 
  afterwards 
  pay 
  them- 
  

   selves 
  on 
  the 
  villagers. 
  In 
  that 
  case, 
  not 
  seeing 
  yet 
  the 
  good 
  consequences 
  of 
  the 
  

   destruction 
  of 
  the 
  locusts, 
  they 
  would 
  only 
  see 
  the 
  evil 
  accompanying 
  that 
  destruction. 
  

   One 
  cannot 
  admit 
  that. 
  

  

  5. 
  As 
  soon 
  as 
  locusts 
  are 
  noticed 
  in 
  the 
  neighborhood 
  of 
  a 
  town, 
  bills 
  must 
  be 
  dis- 
  

   tributed 
  describing 
  the 
  way 
  to 
  destroy 
  them 
  and 
  notifying 
  that 
  one 
  shen 
  of 
  corn 
  

   will 
  be 
  paid 
  for 
  each 
  ten 
  shen 
  of 
  locusts 
  at 
  sight, 
  whoever 
  may 
  briog 
  them, 
  woman 
  

   or 
  child. 
  In 
  doing 
  so 
  one 
  can 
  destroy 
  all 
  the 
  locusts 
  for 
  miles 
  around. 
  

  

  6. 
  Five 
  houses 
  form 
  a 
  precinct. 
  Its 
  elders 
  must 
  teach 
  its 
  inhabitants 
  the 
  useful- 
  

   ness 
  of 
  the 
  destruction 
  of 
  locusts. 
  A 
  great 
  thing 
  is 
  that 
  the 
  bread 
  in 
  store 
  and 
  money 
  

   should 
  not 
  be 
  spared 
  as 
  pay 
  for 
  locusts. 
  Then 
  the 
  destruction 
  of 
  locusts 
  will 
  find, 
  

   working 
  areas 
  in 
  the 
  neighborhood 
  and 
  will 
  progress 
  surely, 
  if 
  not 
  quickly. 
  The 
  

   exactitude 
  of 
  payment 
  is 
  indispensable, 
  as 
  otherwise 
  men 
  would 
  abandon 
  the 
  work. 
  

   The 
  Government 
  corn 
  store 
  belongs 
  in 
  princii:)le 
  to 
  the 
  people. 
  If 
  the 
  locusts 
  

   destroy 
  the 
  crops 
  the 
  peo]3le 
  will 
  sufier 
  from 
  hunger. 
  Judge 
  if 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  better 
  to 
  

   give 
  the 
  bread 
  to 
  the 
  poor 
  in 
  exchange 
  for 
  locusts 
  than 
  to 
  have 
  it 
  rotten 
  in 
  store 
  

   or 
  eaten 
  up 
  by 
  mice 
  or 
  sparrows. 
  

  

  7. 
  For 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  burning 
  the 
  locusts 
  one 
  digs 
  a 
  ditch 
  of 
  5 
  feet 
  deep 
  and\5 
  

   wide 
  (the 
  Chinese 
  foot 
  is 
  nearly 
  equal 
  to 
  the 
  Russian 
  one) 
  and 
  twice 
  as 
  long. 
  One 
  

   empties 
  the 
  bags 
  into 
  the 
  fire. 
  As 
  soon 
  as 
  the 
  locust 
  is 
  in 
  it, 
  it 
  won't 
  jump 
  out. 
  That's 
  

   what 
  the 
  poetry 
  means 
  by 
  " 
  delivering 
  them 
  to 
  the 
  flames." 
  Even 
  in 
  old 
  times 
  they 
  

   knew 
  that 
  if 
  you 
  bury 
  a 
  locust 
  he 
  will 
  creep 
  out 
  again. 
  Therefore 
  the 
  destruction 
  

   of 
  locusts 
  by 
  fire, 
  as 
  they 
  did 
  in 
  ancient 
  times, 
  is 
  the 
  best. 
  

  

  These 
  methods 
  are 
  really 
  not 
  very 
  humane, 
  but 
  if 
  you 
  avoid 
  the 
  destructioji 
  of 
  

   locusts 
  you 
  will 
  have 
  to 
  forget 
  the 
  welfare 
  of 
  the 
  people 
  ; 
  which 
  do 
  you 
  think 
  ought 
  

   to 
  be 
  thought 
  of 
  first 
  ? 
  Was 
  not 
  therefore 
  Tao-choon 
  wise 
  and 
  good 
  when 
  he 
  said, 
  

   "in 
  killing 
  insects 
  one 
  saves 
  men." 
  His 
  acts 
  proved 
  his 
  wisdom. 
  

  

  K. 
  SCATCHKOW. 
  

  

  Locusts 
  in 
  Cape 
  Colony, 
  South 
  Africa. 
  

  

  Nearly 
  all 
  the 
  l?ooks 
  of 
  Soutli 
  African 
  travel 
  speak 
  of 
  locusts 
  as 
  emi- 
  

   grating 
  in 
  vast 
  swarms 
  in 
  southern 
  Africa. 
  The 
  following 
  article 
  show^s 
  

   that 
  of 
  late 
  years 
  they 
  have 
  periodically 
  invaded 
  the 
  settlements, 
  and 
  

   that 
  the 
  people 
  there 
  have 
  had 
  nearly 
  the 
  same 
  experiences 
  as 
  on 
  the 
  

   the 
  frontiers 
  of 
  our 
  country. 
  The 
  article 
  appeared 
  in 
  the 
  Cape 
  Monthly 
  

   Magazine 
  for 
  March, 
  1879, 
  over 
  the 
  initials 
  0. 
  JS. 
  O. 
  : 
  

  

  ''For 
  some 
  years 
  the 
  locusts 
  have 
  not 
  been 
  troubling 
  these 
  parts 
  of 
  

   South 
  Africa, 
  but 
  probably 
  they 
  will 
  make 
  ^heir 
  appearance 
  again 
  

   before 
  long. 
  Since 
  my 
  arrival 
  in 
  South 
  Africa 
  in 
  1843, 
  I 
  do 
  not 
  re- 
  

   member 
  having 
  seen 
  any 
  but 
  flying 
  locusts 
  till 
  1854, 
  when 
  the 
  marching- 
  

   locusts 
  ("voetgangers'' 
  — 
  infantry), 
  those 
  which 
  have 
  not 
  attained 
  to 
  

   wings, 
  appeared 
  in 
  the 
  Oolesberg 
  district 
  of 
  Cape 
  Colony 
  and 
  the 
  

   country 
  now 
  known 
  as 
  the 
  ''Orange 
  Free 
  State." 
  The 
  locusts 
  then 
  

   destroyed 
  the 
  country 
  before 
  them, 
  leaving 
  in 
  their 
  rear 
  a 
  desolate 
  

   wilderness. 
  They 
  marched 
  uninterruptedly 
  through 
  the 
  village 
  of 
  

   Colesberg, 
  over 
  walls 
  and 
  houses, 
  and 
  destroyed 
  every 
  green 
  thing. 
  

   The 
  plague 
  lasted 
  for 
  weeks, 
  and 
  until 
  the 
  insects 
  obtciined 
  wings, 
  when 
  

   the 
  winds 
  soon 
  wafted 
  them 
  away 
  to 
  devastate 
  the 
  lower 
  country 
  until 
  

  

  