West Branch Times, West Branch, Iowa, Thursday, June 29, 1922
Transcribed by Sharon Elijah, June 30, 2018

LOCUSTS ARRIVE ON SCHEDULE TIME AT LOWDEN

    The seventeen-year locusts are upon Iowa again. The woods to the north of Lowden along the river and those south of town are literally alive with the insects which made their last appearance in 1905. So much noise do the creatures make that a local wit said he could not hear his Ford for all the racket when driving thru the timber.

     As usual, the small “w” appears on each wing. Some superstitiously included say this is a prophecy of war, altho why the letter may not also stand for whiskey is not clear. Since the inverted “w” is an “m”, the two letters may indicate white mule, which occasionally sweeps down upon the town from the wooded regions about us. – Lowden News