The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1899-04-15
AN INSE Z IRA ELS
Progress of'a South American Pest
Around the World. I
The SMALL Dut Troublesome JiEger
II Finding Its Way Into Every.
s@' Warm Country-Transppr {
IN t& ed In Sand, si3I +.

- T.
The jigger. one of the insect pests Of
the West Indies and South America has
at last crossed equatorial Africa frot
the Atlantic to Zanzibar. abon, 2.7....
miles. rs years after it's inirodlc1ie
into the continent. This variety of III
flea. much smaller than the commo
flea. is very troublesome. and If its Al
taclis upon few animals. includ'n.
man. are not prevented. it is sometimes
fatal to life. The fact that its gradq:,t
advance among the natives Of Africa
threw them into CONSERVATION offer
causing the abandonment, OF Villages
and districts. has made it easy 10 trac.
its progress step by step. and brie:
summary of its journey across Africa
will be interesting as a striking illus
tlEtion of insect navigation.
A sailing vessel arrived at Ambriz
Angola. in September. 1872. from Brazil
with sand ballast. which she dumped
on the beach. The jigger had crossed
the ocean in this sand. and,its propensi
ty for boring through the skin and
lodging between the cuticle and the
flesh soon made its presence known
There are effective means of preventing
its attacks. but before the natives
learned how to deal with it the little
pest caused great suffering. 1t was
long ago evident that the jigger was not
using its own powers of locomotion to
any large extent in it's journey through
Africa. but that it was carried by cara.
vans in the porterage service.
In 1855 travellers crossing the CONT
nent from Zanzibar heard nothing OF
the j;gger till they arrived within BOO
miles of the Atlantic. 1t had taken the
insect IL years to penetrate Ibis dis.
lance into Africa. The natives at Stan
ley pool had witnessed with sorrow the
advent of the unwelcome visitor that
abided with them. but sent on colonies
further up the river. Thenceforth the
jigger's progress was more rapid. for
steam boats and caravans were multi.
plying on the upper Congo. Seven
years later. in 1892. DR.. Oscar Baumann
reported the arrival of the pest at Blu
kumbi gulf. midway on the south coast
of Victoria Nyanza. 1t was still un-
known on the east shores of the lake
The natives declared that it had been
brought to the west coast by Stanley's
expedition for the relief of Emin Pasha
However that may be. the iigger ap-
peared about the same lime through.
out most of the central lake region
following the caravan route from tht
upper Congo through Manyeina TO Lake
Tanganyika. The natives along the
edge of Victoria Nyanza. suffered terri
bly, from the infiiction. and many vii.
lagos were abandoned. 49,. -, a. -:
Three years more%elapsed before the
missionaries at Mpwapwa reported the
arrival of the jigger amongthe noun.
tains at that point. 200 miles from the
Indian ocean. 1t took the insect Two
years more to reach the coast towns
Of East Africa. where it appeared al.
most simultaneously. late in 1897. Il,
all the towns between Bagamoya and
Pangan. along 70 miles of the coas,
ard another year elapsed before. late
'S's'' 'o'i' - was J'' pug e'IoHS 'AS SeauNS
of Zanzibar island
The people Of the east coast have sui.
fered mparatively little in compari
son with the inland tribes. for hundreds
Of Zanzibaris who had worked for years
on the Congo have returned home and
spread the information that rubbing
with tobacco leaves and. above all.
cleanliness and the wearing of shoes,
are effective protection against the jig
ger.
After its long journey from Brazil the
jigger is now established at the busy
mart whence many vessels sail tor the
Fast Indies and Oceanica. There seems
no good reason why this persevering
and successful traveller should not Cir
die the tropical world.-N. Sun.