THE RURAL WEW-YORMER. 
377 
frey is certainly a bandsomo plant, and will 
doubtless become very popular for ornamental 
purposes. While speaking of this variegated 
sort, we are reminded of our plantation of 
PR1CKIEY COMFREY, 
planted a few weeks since, from small pieces of 
roots obtained from Messrs. R. H. Allen A Co. 
of 189 Water St., N. Y., who have taken consid¬ 
erable interest in the dissemination of this new 
forage plant. 
In spite of (lie very dry weather during the 
past spring, onr plants are growing finely; and 
although wo shall not be able to cut leaves for 
use the present summer, still the prospects for 
a good crop next year are now quite promising. 
We believe in trying all such new plants, for it 
is scarcely possible that mankind has learned 
everything wort h knowing in this world, although 
judging from the way some men have talked 
about the new, or lately introduced forage plants, 
they think there is nothing more on this mun¬ 
dane sphere worth discovering. 
(Antonio logical. 
THE SEVENTEEN - YEAR CICADA. 
The woods along the hanks of the Hudson, on 
Staten Island, and in some parts of New .Jersey 
have, for several days past, resounded with the 
bum of the Seventeen-year Cicadas, or Locusts, 
as they are more generally called. Much in¬ 
terest has been manifested in these curious in¬ 
sects by the younger portion of the population 
of the regions named, especially by those who 
were too young to remember their appearance 
seventeen years ago. There arc also some older 
persous who have a confused idea of tho general 
habits of those largo four-winged dies, for they 
are nothing more. Although called locusts, 
they do not belong to the Grasshopper or “ Lo- 
custa ’’ family of insects, for tho latter have 
mandibles or jaws for biting, and they use them 
effectually in devouring vegetation, while tho 
former have none, hut merely a slender beak or 
proboscis, with which they may, perhaps, suck 
up water or the juiceH of some succulent plants, 
but they cannot do more in the way of obtaining 
food. 
If these insects appeared at odd intervals from 
year to year, as do several other species of the 
Cicada, they would excite no particular atten¬ 
tion. There is certainly nothing wonderful in 
the fact that they remain for seventeen yearB in 
the larval and pupa state, for there are other in¬ 
sects which require an equally loDg time to pass 
through their various metamorphoses ; but tho 
“wonderment” is awakened by tho appearance 
of such vast numbers at regular and stated po- 
riods. 
Of courso all the seventeen year Cicadas in the 
United States do not appear in the same year, 
for there are quite a number of distinct broods, 
each appearing at regular intervals of seventeen 
years but in different years. How they came to 
be separated in this manner iH unknown, and of 
course the Darwinist will not admit, that each 
Btarted from an individual pair, due to as many 
distinct creations. While we are not inclined to 
argue this point, it must be confessed that there 
must have beeu great confusion at the commence¬ 
ment of the Cicada race, else there have been 
some retarding or hastening processes at work to 
bring about so much disorder, or so many sepa¬ 
rations of these insects into different broods ap¬ 
pearing in different years. That these insects 
however eomo and go at regular intervals of 
seventeen years has been so fully established that 
no one, knowing anything of their history, 
thinks of doubting this circumstance, still many 
have but very vague ideas of what they really 
are, or why they should come to the surface of 
the earth at all. 
The accompanying illustration, drawu by Prof. 
Riley, shows the insect in the pupa state (a) as 
it first appears after coming out of the ground, 
which generally accurs in the morning between 
G and 9 o’clock. Immediately after coming to 
tho surface they crawl away to some bush or 
weed and fasten themselves to it w ith their feet, 
the pupa skin busting open on the back, allow- 
ing the perfect fly to emerge, while the discarded 
skin adheres to whatever it may have been at¬ 
tached to, as shown at (6). The wings soon dry 
and expand (a) and then that mysterious W., 
which to the ignorant means “ war,” can be seen 
on each wing. 
The maleH generally appear a day or two, or 
even more, before the females, and begin their 
purring song ; for be it remembered that the 
males only have the power of making a noise, 
and this is done by the aid of two little drums (e) 
placed under their wings, or perhaps, more prop¬ 
erly, within the body, with an orifice which can 
be opened or closed at will. Soon after the sexes 
meet, the females repair to the nearest trees or 
shrubs, and selecting some of the young twigs 
with a soft smooth bark, commence depositing 
eggs therein, after cutting a groove (<l ); they 
place two eggs Bide by side, and arrango them 
in rows to the number of fifteen or tw enty. Those 
hatch in four or five weeks, when the young 
grubs drop to the ground and immediately bur¬ 
row beneath the surface, there to remain for 
seventeen years feeding, as it is supposed, upon 
the roots of trees or other vegetable matter in 
the soil. How deep they penetrate into the earth 
less as so much sand. It is certainly true that 
care should ho exercised in handling or keeping 
such a virulent poison about ono’s premises; 
but it is folly to talk cither of its injuring the 
tubers or poisoning tho land upon which it is ap¬ 
plied. 
Then, again, Mr. Hayes hints that we had 
better suffer the loss of “ several crops of pota¬ 
SKVENTKKN-YKAR CICADA. 
is not known, but they have been found at the | 
depth of ten feet. 
THE INJURY THEY 00. 
As wo havo already said, these insects cannot 
eat any solid substance; hence all talk of their 
stripping trees of leaves and “eating up every 
green thing," iB all sheer imagination; still, 
they do a great doal of damage in orchards, when 
abundant, by scarifying tho young branches of 
trees in depositing their eggs within. The young 
twigs of trees wounded in the operation are gen¬ 
erally killed, and during July and August the 
leavoB wither, and tho orchards and forests ap¬ 
pear to havo been visited by some kind of blight. 
In other words, the Cicadas do an immense 
amount of summer priming, which is entirely 
unnecessary for the good of tho trees. 
— ■ ♦ » ♦- 
A STATE ASSAYER ON BUGS. 
It is always amusing to see a man who is 
“ high up " in one branch of science trying to 
appear to lie equally proficient in all others; 
for, ninety-nine times out of a hundred; he will 
Bhow his ignorance in the first sentence he 
utters, while totally oblivious to the fact him¬ 
self. Here is a case in point Mr. Dana Hayes, 
State Assayor of Massachusetts, writes to the 
Boston Journal a letter protesting against the 
use of Paris green for poisoning tho Colorado 
Potato Beetle, commencing it by saying : “Will 
you oblige me by publishing these few lines on 
Paris green for potato bugs, in reply to several 
correspondents ? ” 
Now, we might excuse the ordinary farmer, or 
other unscientific person, for calling tho iukfect 
in question a bug ; but a man holding so re¬ 
spectable an office as “State Assayer” should 
know better, or else not attempt to dabble in 
entomology, if Mr. Hayes will get some child’s 
book ou entomology, and read it, he may learn 
that the Colorado potato beetle (Chrymnuda 
10 -Hneata) belongs to the order Coleoptara, aud 
not to Ihmnptera, where wo find the true hugs ; 
and the insects of these two orders are not qnito 
so near related as a goose is to a turkey-buzzard. 
After admitting that Paris green has been ex¬ 
tensively used in the West for killing this pest, 
without any recognized injurious effects upon 
tho potato or on the persons using the tubers, 
ho trios to alarm Eastern people by saying : 
“ Nevertheless, the rlauger is much too great 
to permit its use by New England farmers. It 
is not known that the arsenic or copper is ab¬ 
sorbed by the plants. They may be, but assum¬ 
ing that they are not; then the danger attend¬ 
ing the common mode of digging and gathering 
potatoes, from the adhesion of particles of the 
poison, in a soil upon which it has been scat¬ 
tered ; the danger in distributing it and in plac¬ 
ing it in the hand# of the workmen; and the 
danger to animals, such as poultry, sheep, hogs, 
and even dogB, who may venture into the fields, 
make only a part of a list of the dangers that 
may be readily brought to mind. And when we 
add to this that the effects of metallic poisoning 
may not be observed for months—or years, in 
some cases—there is certainly reason for saying 
that the indiscriminate use of Paris green on 
these plants may be more disastrous in its re¬ 
sults than the loss of several crops of potatoes. 
I cannot suggest any harmless chemical agent 
that will drive off the bugs; but do not use a 
metallic poison.” 
Now, this same kind of nonsense has been re¬ 
peated over and over again by persons who seem 
to know nothiug of the fact that Paris green, 
Boon after ooming in contact with the soil, loses 
its poisonous properties, and is about as harrn- 
toes ’’ than to use a metallic poison like Pal in 
green. By this, wo suppose, ho means that if 
the fanners of New England only cease raising 
potatoes for a few years, the beetles will bo 
starved out; all of which shows his ignorance of 
the habits of this insect, as well as of tho plants 
which it infects. Tho facts of tho case are sim¬ 
ply these. We havo given it the common name 
of potato beetle because it appears to prefer the 
cultivated potato to other kinds of plants; hut 
if it caunot find potato-loaves, it will tako to 
something else, for there arc at least fifty differ¬ 
ent species of plants upon which it in known to 
havo lived, without suffering any particular in¬ 
convenience. 
It has probably lived and multiplied ou the 
Western plains for thousands of years before the 
introduction of our cultivated potatoes, and al¬ 
though preferring plants of tho genus Solanaoea'., 
it is by no means confined to them for a living. 
Consequently, should wo stop planting potatoes, 
egg-plants, and tomatoes, and banish petunias 
from the garden and destroy all ’the wild horse- 
JMttCus, nightshades, ground cherries, henbanes, 
aud scores of other closely-allied plants from our 
fields and waste grounds, the Colorado potato 
past could still find enough to cat, even if no bet 
ter pasture was offered than the common smart- 
weeds (Polygonums) found along tho roadside 
and in almost every ditch and about waste ground 
everywhere. 
There is but one way to avert the ravages and 
multiplication of this pest, and that is to kill it 
whenever and wherever found. 
Jarm <£tonomji. 
EVERGREENS POISONING CATTLE. 
It has long been claimed that the leaves of 
our native evergreen shrubs, erroneously called 
“ Laurels,” were poisonous to cattle, winch some¬ 
times, during great scarcity of food, browse upon 
these plants, when first turned out to pasture in 
spring. For this reason the narrow-leaf laurel 
(Knlmia angusltfolia) has received the local 
names of “ Kill-calf" and “Lamb-ldll,” from 
its supposed, or real, poisonous properties. But 
whether the loaves of tbeBo plants were really 
poisonous to the animals eating them, or that 
death followed in consequence of the overcrowd¬ 
ing of the stomach through eating such indi¬ 
gestible food as laurel leaves, is still a mooted 
question among agriculturists, aud we suppose 
it matters very little to either the animal or the 
owner which way it may be eventually decided, 
so long as injury or death follows tho eating of 
such food. 
Onr English exchanges have of late, been dis¬ 
cussing tho poisonous properties of the English 
yew (Taxus baccata), and it seems to have been 
conclusively proven that tho leaves are poisonous 
to milch cows. If this be true of the English 
specieB, it is quite probable that the American 
variety ( T. Canadensis) contains the same prop¬ 
erties, and it would be well for those of our farm¬ 
ers who pasture in woods and fields where this 
plant abounds, to be on their guard againBt turn¬ 
ing out their stock too early in spring. Cattle 
will not browse on these shrubs except early in 
the season, aud when other herbage is scarce. 
'The English Farmer for May 21, refers to a 
case of Yew poisoning recorded by M. Harten- 
steu of AuviUera les Forges, givon in the columns 
of tho French Archives Veteriiiairos, the particu¬ 
lars of which ho is enabled to vouch for, sinco it 
occurred under his own observation. On the 
8th of April last a herd of seventeen cows were 
driven a distance of nearly 24 miles in search of 
pasturage, tho time occupied in the Journey ex¬ 
tending over eleven hours. On arrival at their 
destination tho pasturage was, for some reason 
or other, not obtainable, aud for want of better 
accommodation, the animals were placed for tho 
night in a sort of hare garden, round which a 
few conifers were planted. A small quantity of 
hay was thrown to them, and they were left to 
themselves. In the morning four of tho finest 
oows were found dead, and three others fell 
down in extremis as an attempt was mudo to re¬ 
move them from the place. Tho remulning ten 
were p? rfectly well. Search being made in the 
garden, it waB found ttiat the leaves round the 
whole circumference of a yew-tree growing 
there had been cropped duriug tho night. 
Post-mortem examination showed the bodies 
distended, the eyes dim, and the nostrils clogged 
with a mixture of blood and mucus. Tho livers 
appeared literally cooked, as if they had been 
thrown into boiling water; the small intostino 
for a distance of 3 yards was almost black, as 
also was its mucus membrane; the luugs per¬ 
fectly healthy; the rumen was found lull of 
green herbaceous matter, in whioh small pieces 
of yew leaves wore easily recognized. The im¬ 
munity of the ten surviving cows is probably ex¬ 
plained by tho fact that they were older animals 
than the others, and had at once lain down to 
rest on reaching their journey’s end, while tho 
younger ones, being less fatigued, sought about 
for provender, and found it in the Tacus bac- 
caUx. 
In commenting on this case, M. Hartenstoin 
points out that, not a few French authors still 
maintain that the yew is not a poisonous plant. 
While admittiug that tho berries may possibly 
be harmless, he thinks that no impartial observer 
can reasonably doubt the deadly nature of the 
leaves. 
--- 
YOKING CATTLE BY THE HOKNST 
A cobrehi’ondknt of the Weekly Globo (Can¬ 
ada), who appears to know what he is writing 
about, replies as follows, to an article copied 
from the Country Gentleman recommending tho 
yoking of cattle by the horns. I would just say 
that the yoking of cattle by the horns is the 
most cruel way l have ever seen. 1 havo seen 
more cattle ruined in that way than by any other 
method. They call it the Cubuu method in the 
West indies. I claim, Mr. Editor, and know 
from experience, that the cattle worked in the 
Canadian yoke can perform nearly double the 
work with the same feed ami will last on tho 
average several years longer, I will admit that 
tho cattle are more manageable and cannot crowd, 
butanything further than that experience teaches 
me better. 
I have seen the cattle's horns cut nearly half 
off with tlie fastening around the horns, and 
also have seen the cattle on a wain tongue with a 
load with their noses to the ground, because they 
were unable to bear the load. Does it look rea¬ 
sonable that oxen can bear the same weight on 
tho top of their heads that they oan on their 
necks? Cattle yoked with tho common yoke and 
bows can go ou the side of a stoop hill better 
than the ones yoked by the horns. 
I remember an incident that happened in the 
West Indies. Our cattle with their yoke and 
bows climbed the side of a hill with all ease, but 
the cattle yoked as the Nova Scotia farmer re¬ 
commends, one of them slipped, and they rolled 
to the bottom of the hill and nearly broke their 
necks. Cattle yoked in that way arc as helpless 
as men with their hands tied behind them backs. 
1 found in one of their herd-books on an estate 
in Jamaica Islaud, that they had lost eighty-three 
bead of cattle by yoking them by tho horns. 
Valuing these cattle at their common price, £11 
each, amounts to a nice bum indeed. Tho estate 
was very lully, but not so hilly hut that tho yoke 
and bow oxen could work with all ease. 
I claim to be a farmer, but not an advanced 
one, but I could not let these absurd ideas pass 
without replying, as I have seen and know for 
myself. 
-- 
TO PRESERVE FENCE POSTS. 
The American Chemist says that a Western 
farmer discovered, many years ago, that wood 
could be made to Last longer than iron in the 
ground. Time and weather, he says, seem to 
have no effect on it. The posts can he prepared 
for less than two cents a piece. This is the re- 
oipe : Take boiled linseed oil and stir it in pulver¬ 
ized charcoal to the consistency of paint. Put a 
coat of this over the timber, and, hs adds, there 
is not a man who will live to see it i ot. 
-■» ♦ 
A wealthy man in Indiana has lost a thousand 
bushels of wheat through the work of grain wee¬ 
vils ; hut wo venture to say, if somebody had 
I asked him to pay two dollars for a hook on nox- 
- ioua insects, or subscribe for an entomological 
l paper, he would indiguautly refused to do either, 
: and considered himself “ smart ” in refusing. 
