SETTLEMENT OF THE PERMANENT REGION. 
19 
and some, which depend upon the possibility of irrigation, are applicable 
on an extensive scale only in the permanent region, and may be used 
there with a very large degree of success. 
A careful investigation of this subject for several years and repeated 
visits in person to this region have served to convince us that, with the 
advantages afforded by the system of irrigation necessarily adopted, 
there is no reason why the agricultural area lying along the east flank 
of the range should suffer any more from these pests than portions of 
the temporary regions. We do not think there is any likelihood of this 
section ever suffering from locust depredations to the same extent as 
Southern Eussia, yet the peasants and agriculturists there manage to 
carry on operations and maintain themselves, although greatly deficient 
in that intelligence and education which is necessary to enable them to 
combat these pests to the best advantage. The superior intelligence 
and energy of our farmers will enable them to accomplish results of 
which the Russian peasants are wholly incapable. 
But we refer to this simply as an illustration to show that this draw- 
back will not of itself prevent the settling and cultivation of the arable 
areas of the permanent region. The agriculturist of those sections will 
become accustomed to these insects and acquire a thorough knowledge 
of their history and habits, and by this means — and, as we trust, largely 
through the work of this commission — learn how best to counteract 
them ; and thus in the course of a few years the terror their invasions 
once caused wdl be no longer felt, and they will be ranked side by side 
with the chinch-bug, Hessian -fly, cotton-worm, and potato-beetle. 
Although we confess we do not see any way of entirely preventing 
the incursions of invading swarms or of wholly avoiding injury by them, 
yet we think it possible and feasible to greatly modify the evil. 
First, the means already suggested in our first report of destroying 
the young of the resulting broods, if carried out with energy, will not 
only save to a large extent the crops, but will destroy a very large 
number of the locusts ; as the population increases the results will be 
more and more favorable ; and year by year the methods of destroying 
them will be improved upon and probably new plans discovered. Aside 
from this direct favorable effect of the increase of the agricultural popu- 
lation of this section, there will be a secondary effect which will ten<d to 
modify the evil. 
This agricultural belt, extending from Colorado into British America, 
is partly along the margin of and partly in the very heart of the perma- 
nent breeding- grounds where the swarms that invade the temporary 
region originate ; it follows, then, as a natural consequence that just so 
far as the numbers are lessened by the operations in this section, just 
so far will the agriculturists of the temporary region be benefited, and, 
as we will hereafter see, like operations in the latter region will benefit 
those in the permanent region. We are fully aware of the fact that the 
part of this vast region which can be irrigated and cultivated is small 
