The Washington times., 1901-12-30
CLEAN BILL
FOR HAVANA,
No Yellow Fever During the
Month Of November.
WAR ON MOSQUITOES THE CAUSE.
Finlay Theory of 6 erm Propaga-
ton by Flying Pests Almost Fully
Authenticated by Results Re-
ported From Other Usually Un-
healthy Locations.

The public health bulletin FOR the
Surgeon General Wyman from officers of
the Marine Hospital Service. all bearing
on the theory of Flnlay that the germs Of
malarial and yellow fevers are trans
mitted by the bite OF the mosquito. DR..
Gorgas. chief sanitary officers at Havana
reports no case of yellow fever or death
from the disease In the Cuban capital dur
ing the month Of November n condition
not obtaining since 1862. November has
always been the worst for yellow fever
in Havana, the average number Of deaths
having been forty-eight. and the maxi
mum PA cases and fifty four deaths. while
this year there we're but five deaths from
April 1 to December ., and the. l'st case
occurred September 2s.
This result Or. Gorgas attributes to the
system introduced last February of kill
ing infected mosquitoes In the neghbor-
hood of each point Of Infection as it oe-
ours. The campaign against the mosquito
he says, has been most systematic, with
the result that the mosquitoes in Havana
this year are only about one-tenth as
numerous as last year. In many places
where they were numerous last year they
had almost entirely disappeared, while in
other localities. despite the work o. de-
struction and for reasons not yet discov
cred. they were not as bad as last year.
All Favor Fininy Theory.
Or. +. de Gouvea. who has had thirty
years practice IN Brazil. in a paper to
the Paris Medical Bulletin on the re-
lation OF mosquitoes to yellow aver. on
cludes that the conditions under which
the disease has been prOpagatod in Rio
de JareiTo and Sac Paulo have at all
times been such as 10 fulfill the require
monts OF the Finlay theory. Rio de
Janeiro and parts OF Sac Paulo, he points
o.. are built on low. humid soil. which,
with the accompanying stagnant pools,
formed veritable paradise Tor mos
quitoes:
yellow fever RACES in these Two places
almost continuously while a lew miles
away i'll the Highlands. where there were
no mosquitoes. even case brought from
the Iowlands aid not spread the disease.
While an epidemic Of yellow f"ver was
raging in the lower portion OF Sac Paulo,
staguant pools nor mosquitoes. was eN-
ompt. and no single case of transmission
had ever been observed among the at
tendants al the yellow fever hospital.
police Caught Mn~quit"cS.
Surgeon Kerr, at Honkong, reports or
a long series of experiments with mos
anitoes made by DIT. ] c. Thomson. al
English expert who also reports the dis-
coyery OF two new species. Dr, Thom
son had examined 3l.5gu mosquitoes, which
oad ocen collected weekly throughout The
colony By members of the police force.
Three and seven-tenths OF the whole
number he found to be auopheles, consist
ing Of three species
Two Of the species We're recognized as
new. and had been named anophelts
maculatus and anUphelcs minimus by f..
Y Theobold. chronological at the British
Museum. The third species was sub
variety Of anopheics siEens!s- chart
ACCOMPANYING the report shows the rela
tive prevalence Of malaria and anopheies.
The anophcies curve reached its lowest
point in February and It's highest point
In July. The malaria curve, bascd on The
presence of the disease among the troops
stationed Ia Eongkung, also reached its
lowest point IL. February and It's highcs'
in July.
The most interesting Of the culeX grcup
vas the culex fatisans, The usual inter
mediate host OF the blood parasite. fiiosis
nochirua. which was not uncommon In
Hongkong.