the same locust, and buried him as deeply in
the ground as I could dig with a pocket
knife. I marked the place, and the next
morning I looked for my friend, but he was
gone. Nothing will kill them but smashing
them to a jam with a blow, or boiling them.
There is no protection against them. They
despise and eat through the thickest cloths,
or sacking, or matting; and glass coverings
for a large extent of ground would be of
course too expensive. The only way in
which one of my neighbours was enabled to
save part of his harvest was by gathering his
fruits and cutting down his corn when the
locusts came, and then burying his
property in holes dug in the ground and covered
over with a heavy stone at the aperture, as I
had seen the peasantry do in some parts of
Western Africa. This saved him a little.
No barn or room would have done so.

Yet another three weeks, towards the end
of July, and the cloud which has hovered
over the land so long is clearing away. And
there arises a great wind, so that the locusts
are swept off in countless armies to the sea,
and so drowned. It is impossible to bathe for
days, or to walk by the sea-shore, because of
the stench of them. But, they are gone, and
their bodies float over the sea like a crust,
extending to the opposite coast of Asia Minor.

I found out while busy with this subject,
that the locusts were supposed to have come
from Asia Minor to Mytilene; that when
they first appeared on the northern coast of
the island, they were few in number,—a
greater portion of the flight which settled
here having been probably drowned on their
passage. It was not till the third year that
they became so numerous and so mischievous
as to cause alarm. Their devastations were
principally confined to the vines and olives;
afterwards, they grew more general.

Last year the inhabitants, dreading their
return, endeavoured to take timely precautions
for their destruction. There was some
difficulty about this, however. It was necessary
to apply to the Turkish local authorities.
The local authorities were obliged to refer the
matter to the Grand Sehoul-Islam, who
published a fetfah, or decree, on the subject. But
the fetfah was not obtained without a great
deal of importunity, as it was believed by many
learned doctors that the demand was altogether
contrary to Moslem law. However,
as the ravages of the locusts continued to
increase to an extent, which seemed to menace
the revenue derived from the island, a fetfah
was at last issued. In virtue of this, permission
was given to destroy the locusts by
all means save those of fire and water.
It was necessary to evade this provision,
since fire and water were universally
acknowledged as the only effectual means of
destruction.

The matter was now made the subject of a
fixed legal regulation, by which every family
was required to destroy from about twelve to
twenty-five pounds weight of locusts, according
to their numbers, for the common benefit.
Some of the villages where labour was scarce,
paid this tribute in money. Twopence a
pound was first given for locusts; but, the
price afterwards sunk to a farthing. The
efforts of some places were, however, defeated
by the indifference or superstition of others;
so that labour, time, and money were all lost.
More than seven hundred thousand weight
were destroyed without any visible effect on
their numbers. Their weight at this time
was about two hundred and seventy to the
ounce.

The Turks resolutely refused to assist in
these proceedings. They looked upon the
visitation as the will of God, with which it
was impious to interfere. The captain
of a Turkish man-of-war, seeing a locust
drowning in the sea, bade his favourite coffee-
boy plunge into the water to save it.

Some of the uneducated Greeks had also
their own peculiar way of going to work.
They insisted that the locusts had arrived in
punishment for the sins of the community,
and consequently that human efforts against
them would be vain. It appeared to them
that public prayers and processions were much
more reasonable. They also applied to a
certain St. Tryphon on the subject, for St.
Tryphon is the recognised patron and protector
of fields and plants. They likewise sent a
deputation to Mount Athos, requesting St.
Tryphon to come and pass a few days at
Mytilene—but he didn't.

It has been noticed that they appear,
invariably, about the middle of May, and that they
die or depart in August. They are most
mischievous during the month of June. They have
an objection to damp or marshy grounds. The
females bury themselves in the earth when
dying, probably to conceal their eggs. The
males die above ground, where the ants and
smaller insects speedily devour them.
Neither rain nor cold, however severe, appears
to destroy or injure the eggs, which lie in
the ground like seed during the winter, and
burst forth into life in the first warmth of
summer. Each female is understood to have
about fifty young, which, in some measure,
accounts for the astounding increase of the
tribe. They require about twenty days to
attain their full growth; sometimes longer, if
the weather is unfavourable.

Now ready, price Threepence, or Stamped for Post, Fourpence,

THE

SEVEN POOR TRAVELLERS,

Being the

CHRISTMAS NUMBER

of HOUSEHOLD WORDS, and containing the amount
of One Regular Number and a Half.

Next Week will be Published the NINETEENTH PART of

NORTH AND SOUTH.

By the AUTHOR OF MARY BARTON.