On the Frontier:
Beelzebubs
Soda Lake - Mojave National Preserve
The place where we are has some minor annoyances ; rattlesnakes, tarantulas, scorpions, centipedes, horned-toads, lizards, immense ants, are everywhere. They all evince a most friendly and confiding disposition, and are not at all difficult to become acquainted with. But the greatest pest of the place is a huge horse-fly. I do not suppose this fly is restricted to the shores of Soda Lake ; I hope he is. I have only seen him there, and certainly do not want to see him anywhere else. His body is about an inch and a half long, and his wings much longer. He is a black, hairy, large-eyed, vicious-looking fly, and I hate him. Indeed these Beelzebubs are no joke. I have seen a white mule literally covered with blood from their bites, and though I never lost any animals by them, not having on any occasion stopped more than one day at Soda Lake, I know of several cases of cavalry horses having died of weakness from loss of blood caused by their pertinacious attacks.
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