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Great Hopper Plague Recalled Whihc tbis year the damiage in ~ Sskacheanis being donc by newî iatiedhoppers, back ini 1938 tile big loss camne on tic very eve of barvest wben buitndreds oef thousauds of acres wevre almiost readyv for the binder. Migrant hepperCs Camre bi n drves fromn breedling grouinds burndreds of ilehs te tic seti and miowed off bleads of ripe wheat ,befre barv'est m-1achines couild swinig inito action. Estimrated 1Ioss te Saskatichcewan iarmts that year fromn grassiopper damnage was $25,000,00, Particu- larly in tlic soutbeaýst suld close te3 ]Regina tie July f ligit of immi-grant, 'boppers cauised eniormiouis losses. Regilians in those bfot July days lu 1938 could look nup sud sec great silver clouds of 'hoppers being blown scross the sky iy strong soultbwest winds. The îinsects deluged tic city. Hedges, buishes, flewers, vegetailes -almiost tîitiinig edible was eaten, Storekeepers, even in the downtowu setohad te sweep tic grass- hoppeCrs eut frem their store en- trances two or tiree times a day. Reappeared in 193S lu 1939l grassio'ppers made ticir arppeatranice againi, bu-t inet in sncb )arge quiantities and not since then bas Reinia liad arrllyicvy plague. A look back inito bistory shows that grassiopper plagues biave occurred periodically on tic prairies even (bcfore white men 'settled on tic plains. Niiiety years ago, in 1858, Henry Yo)ulc Hinîd, in charge of tic Assin- ibome and Sas katcbcw ian expedi- tien acress tlic prairies, rau into a plague of 'hoppers and wroEte it in bis diary. Onie fiýgit started about, 9 a.m. su ctnud tili 4 p.m. "about wiici tinie thcy settled around us In counitiess multitudes and imme- diately clnng te tice leaves of grass aiud rested sftcr their jenrney," ht wrote. "Tice aspect of tic icaveus dur- ing tic grcatcst fligit we observed, was sinigularly striking. It produLced a feeling of uueasiness, amazement and awe in our inids, as if s;ome terrible, unpforesecui calamity were abouit te bappen. It recalled more vividîy ithan, wordis could express tic rlavages of tic Egyptisu scourges.' saw tic sky contînuially chsng- lng cler from bIne 't0 -iI-Cwiite, ash-grsy te le-ad celer, aiccording tote tinmbers in tic passiug clouidi ofinsects- Opposite te the sun tic prcvailiug 1bue wlas a silver white, perceptibfly flassiug. Hopipers at Red River "The ,-wbiohc horizon wore au un- earth-lyasn hue from the light ne- fîccted by their transparent wings. t The Red River settlers iad their troubles wth'hoppers, tee. Back in-1 .J9 911e of these pioneers Je- ïcribed the vIstatioriof that ycâr. "As early as tic latter end cf Julie tlic fields wcre over-runi by tliis sickeuning and destru-ct,ie pl1agu-,e. Nay, they weïre produced in masses, two,, tlirce and iu somne places necar water, four luches deep. The water was poisonced with them, "Aleng tic river thcy were te be foiind lu icaps, hike scawecd, and mighit be sioveled with a spade. It %a impossible te describe adequ.ate- ly tie desolation tins canised., "Every vegetable substance was tier. caten up or s3tripped te the bare stalk, Even fires, if kjndled ouit Of doors, wcre immed(iz4iatcly extiniguishiedý by tiemi and tlie de- Composition of tlicir Lodi'es wien dead ïwas still More offensive than their prsenice wien alive." A log of uuscalsouied wvood weiïgi- kgg 100 pounels, wieu dr;ied will weigh onliy aboutt 66puds For Safety's Sake In spite of the development ôf inewv andi powerful weed killers, wveeds still remnain one of our great- est rural problemns; and the çhief reason forisà is thjat so many more of them are puit back into the soit every ycar through the agency of iniproperly cleaned seed. Some weeds are 'so prolific in seed production that a rehatively dlean field m-ay become badly contamin- ated in just two or tirce years if the weeds areý allowcd to go to seed, or if poorly cleancd crop secd is sown. This is not surprising wvhen you consider that a single plant of wildl mustard, stinkweedi, pigweed,, f ox- tail or camipion ,will prod1uce firom 10,000 to 20,090 sfecds;hphr' purse aboutL 50,000, and tur1mhing must5'ard as)z many as 1,5,000OG. And miost of these seeds are se inconl- spîcuous that their presence can hardl y be noticed]. To paraphrase an oûld saying "Eternal vigilance is the price of freedomn from weeds." Even when victory seems won, a little careless- ness in allowing weeds to grow un- checked, or in planting "dirty" crop seed, can quickly bring things back to worse than their original state. Fait wheat ' in addition to its cash crop -value, is'an important crop for spring-seedcd clovers and grasses. Even wlin wbeat prices were much lowïer than now, wise farmers'grew it for no other reason than its aid In starting new meadows lu the spring. The main advantagc is that clover and grass seed can bc broadcast muci carlier in the year. This pro- vides carlier growti sud makes better use of the'soil moisture than is obtained with spring - seeded grains, 0f course little control is pos- sible over soil and cimatic condi- tio ns; but adequate supplies of essential plant foods go a long way toward guaranteeing a. good mca- dow. Suomost growers of f aIl wheat are se awarc of the importance of applying fertilizer to this crpp that it is probably the most widely en- ricbed of all cereals. To obtain. the greatest benefit fromi fertîlizer, a soilt est sbould be made before ordering your sca- son's requirements. If tic soif chemist is told tiat the faîl whea t is to be seeded to lover and grass in the spring he wîll be aile to make proper recommendations as to the. correct amounts of plant food. The proportion of plant nutrients is al- most as important as ,tbe amount. For example, if too much nitrogen is applicd in proportion to pjotash and phosphiate, yen may b ave a rank growth of wbeat appcarinig in the fal whJicb Is more suiject to winlter kilîing. If youýr shiecp Jack appetite for hay or grass, it may be that tbeyý necd a itlc cobalt. fust a ýfew cents Worth al, ycar can mauke aIl tfic dfferce ;in .the world. Sbecp don't yneed mi c obat- but tbey miust h!ave someî. JThis is ahIetrue of 9other fu tmce animaI11s, suci as catle. If cobalt is short in thc soil, whicbi leads to a simBilar shortage in the feed, it shiows uip qickly, in the shecep. They start lsiginter-est in the feed ýrack and soon begin losin-'g weight as well. In thleir wetlakene-id conditionth'r extra susceptible to diseases or paraites. Some sheetp raisers have found t'lat just one ounce of obl sl fate m ixe !i 00 pOund(-s of Saîtwill dàý great thinigs. it stepS lp appe- tite and may e.ven keep the szheep from Starvýing to dath on apparnt- lyJ good ifeed 't is onfly îin recen-jt years c tatfte' importance of thfis minerai for sheep and catle bias becomnown, Co- balt deficient areînas have been 'found in widely scattcerd areas of Amrirca, and. new sec-tionls lacking cobalt are being iscovered each year. Back, in -Mardli and April we, were talkinrg about the dïisast-rous western. loods whiîch d(id mî-illions of dllars of damage. Crops we-re ruined. Lifetime savings were, Iost. And the papers were filled with picýtures of families being rescued f 1rom flooded homes and of dead anmaIs trapped and drowned. So it is rather puzzling, but at thie same, time checring, to learn that those same floods were the- best thing that had happened to mnany parts of the West in haîf a centuiry. The immediate loss was small com- pared to tic ulthimate gain. The brighter side of thec picture ls shown in an article in. Farmi and Ranch Review wbich says, in. part: "Water supplies in the so-clled Drought Area of the Prairie Pro- vinces were restored to record levels ...Hundreds of lakes and s4treamns which were remnembered only by thie very earty settlers came to hf e again. Districts wbich have bee'n rcog- nized for 20 years as beingl par-t of Canada's potentiatl Dust Bjowlîar-e 110W dotted witb m narshes nd ks and traversed' by runiningl streamns 1'..While m1anyv farmers are natur- ally discouraged by thie damnage and dielays caused hy thec spingfod, in general they make no) com-plaint ...They niuch prefer- the ilooded lands to the black blizzards of thte 1930's. To manyof them t'he P- called floods have restored cni dence." Right, Wrong Ways 0f Riding Bicycles There is a rigit and wroing way to ride a bicycle. Proqgress does not merely consist of puin;ïg around the pedals. The obvious fault of manyii people is pedalling with the middle of the foot, tocs poinitedord and ankles rigid. For easy riding thecre should be smooth pedallinig, with tlic bal of the foot on tic pedal, the ainkle in constant uise, and thie foont parallel with thie framei.e.,poiniting direct- ly ahead. For easy" ridîiug thIe body shouldI be lihtl icliedforward fromn the bips, and in a more pronouniicedl Stoop for higheIrseds !SSUE 32 - 1948 Sl'm McDermott dropped in at the post office b)fe feheding iack to the cabin. Th lere waý s a clettcr for him and thie camýp nwpae The letter was from thie 1main onffice, "Mr. Franicis W.- cemot Silver Pinle CamilP. "Dear 1Francîs: Sorry to ïinterrul'pt anythinig so important as a honey- mnoon--even a deayed h1oneymoncr- with anytC1hing as trivial1 as businessF. However, tice Santa utiz deal broke sooner thanexeci d Fred Lang is havin-g te tae bs wife to a biglier attd.Yori have beenl ap- pointed district manage-r for thatt area. [lnsteald of reportin-g bere Monday, please go directly there. Fred bas arrange'd for you to takze over their place. Youi'reý a lucky dog. It's a nice, twvo-bediroom b ouse, furnisied. Best regards, TOM."ý Slimgrbd the groceries and legge'd thec trail to their cbin .Ds trict manager! 0Oh,ma. ow e cold u 'se that pay increase. dHon( y," lhe called, naigthe cabin, "where aire you,?" "Got a letter from-1 the boss, aid Slimi. "The Santa Ruiz deal's gone through." "Reallyl" cried Bill. An instant later she was ont on the porch. "«Let's seel" Slim handed it to ber. When sbe reached the part, about tlic b ouse, ber, face shone. "Oh, ]Jirling, 'm sotike. "My big, sweet District Man- ager!" said *Bill, softîy. "A real house! Let's celeirate." "Okeh," grinned Slim. , "flow about dinner at the Lodge? "Wonderful," said Bih'. "'lfiish Slim sat down in tic rocke r again; stretched ont bis legs. Life was prctty wonderful. He sat thlere tbinking about bis n-ew Job, the-n pickcd up the camip paper. Hiîs eyeUs cauight a news itemi "Wll, lIl bc- donie-gonle " lhE growied. "Ohý, this dairned nesar, grumrbîed Slim. Hie re-ad sarcast- icallîy. 'After a t7ýowo eeks stay ln Silver Pines, M1r. arid Mrs. Bill Me- Dcrmolctt leave Sunday for Sani Fran- çlsco.' Mr. and Mlrs. BILIM\c- Amo ng those presenit were Ilthle Bill McDermotts." Neyer "the Fran- cis McDirmotts." Theic a fo the city directory bad become ver1y Slim seethed. Things lîke that did something to a mnan. con fused when hieînevwdtem In the directory, it said quite plain- ly, "William McDermot,,t (Francs. Now she was back againi on th< porchi. Slim stared at hliinamiaze- ment. She hazýdon a pair of Slimi-'s slacks, She'd f olded)di te pattlegsaiii they bullgudini, wads it lher ank!es. J ustz Focr Fu n Thie nice old lady(ismiled at the little girl ho had been lef t in chairg( e fthcaesop rDnt )o11 mtie fe temted toet necfte r pu1ffs, my d, a1." se aked. Tlic littli girlwas quite shoc(,k- e;d. "0f Course no 1t," erepied "Thlat wold beutaig.Iol lick th!)cw fis flannmel shlirt huing la tobr lcnees; his tennIis sneaý,kerS Stu-ck out lik<e snlowslioes. His big bat camne down toulier eyes. "H-ow dIlOo1 k!-" shie akde face perectly sir "WiVat's thf ida? "D)on't fit se ood, d ty?"ý asked EBiltisting arond, lfing ber shirt tail and tugging at the baggy seat. Bili C ce over-t0 Slimi. She griznned athim", twcaked bis lnose, sat in is lp "This is goDiing to be, a new if e fo! us. A new town. New frîends." Bill qire around on Sim's1 lap. Slie took an enI-veope from a pocket, hande(Id it to hiii. Heopn cd it with som difficuilty. it was a legal dlocumiient. "What's ti? akdSlim--. "Read i,"said Bihl. "cdthe kast paragraph." Slim read aloud. "This court bereby stîpulaes Ot in the fuiture \il eairodMc- Dermott wil bie Legali.y,'known as VkietLlaW hrodMDr cotu . .. "VileF"snortcd SEim. "It's not so0 bad, Slim,ý" wbispered Bill, "if you just sa-y 'i. "IVi,"e ventured Slim caret-fully. Ile took bier in his armse and kiss- cd ber. He paused once to whisper "Vi, Durlng." Greatly djisturbed iy the iniroads niyilnhas made on thie puire sflk 1idustry tie Japane(se hLave now woke ot -a method by whîich they getgeae produlction onitof the, The silk Worm hiad a hbto knoickýin-g off w"ork four- times -a month i-ýfor afew days and liai,Ig long slep ie practice used to be to lierally bake tic worm 1" bec cou11ld tndi no longer. H-e was ,overcome icby the heat and went toc sleep. In, tic long run 'he simpljDy shriv-21elle up anid died. Thie nwmei is to warmiim r lea evreywiti thile resuit that he oniY taýkes three naps per montlv inst'cad of four.- He lives longer and prodIuces more-. In addition to tliat the japanese peop)Ile as a whole a-rewrkn long- er hours for less pay. -They are out to, rehalitatle ithir couintry by in1- creýasi;g their eprs Texýtile pro- ducers wl larin ']thie near future that- the Japs cai sedI more good& anid atsarprices 0than before. A Modest Mlan D1ctor: "Thie best thiing for yoný to, do is to g4ve ttp drinking an'd smkiggt ip early every morn- igand go to, bed early every nlighit." Patent "Smeiwdoctor, 1 don't deserve tlic best. What's thie seodbc-st? R.c s tic. o cordes yunchusewîI e frm Postman William Cairns was auxious te finish his rounds, Ordinarily he would have been through- around nloon but îhe heavy Faster mail made his task more difficuit. When lic came to the Sparks home on Westmorc. landAÀvenue lic open.ed the front door slightly, cirew a parcel in and then startcd to rush on. But somnething stoppied hiini. Open- in tic door again, he staggered back freux the heavy smell of illuminating gas. FINDS UNCONSCOUS WOMAN Tlakirug a big guilp of air he cutered the house. Heading for the kitchen lic found i9-year-old Mn., Sparks on thc floor -- un- conscious! H-e tried to pick lier ip but tic gas began to make himi fleel sick . .. and lie had to rush to tic veranda for air. Euctering the housenagain he mpaaged to carry ?&S. Spark's alm-ost to the door . .. but again lie fclt di-zzy and had to o ont co refil bis lungs. The c ird tce ie as success- fui in getting theic oan outsîde. He placed lier onq the verauda floor, ran co tel the neigh-ýbours te phoneý for he...... and then returued ce Che vicclux and ap- pied acfca respiration until llrceiinn ar-riveýd t-o relieve him. 50 minut7es 1later tic youuIg womau reýgaiuend conscioc)ýssý. 1ÉorliiUs llhand gall'.ant actions we a-re prend te ps,,y cribuceý te'7ilîmCai-ns of Toro)nco th7-u 1,'the presenta- tien o,' f The Dow Award. 11EDOWA WARDis a citaton fr uS taIng h-' e Cr.so f aprcaona gopcf c cs f adn The gas fumes wiere tee much for che brave ' 7-yea-r-old postuxan. Twicc hO, staggered te thce deor, sick and dizzy, and filled bis hangs witb fresi air. Finally he got the unconscious Young woman Oufte cite veranda. Tiere he applied artificial respiration until firemen arrived to cake ever tie task. -11mmr, ý- -