Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1902-03-22
THE MOSQUITO.
A Study of 1t as a Disease
Distributor.
Investigations Of Great Value to Med
ical Science.
Expariments Carried on in Italy and
in Cuba.

In 4 very fine article en- the Recent
in Medicine" in the new
issue Of Appletons' Annual Cyclic
naedia G9GDs a comprehensive re-
View IS given Of the part played by the
in the propagation of ma
ria and yeilow-fever germs. After
n description OF the various expert
mcnts Jhat succeeded in fastening sus-
p'c.1n on the pestiferous insect, an ac-
ount is given of some interesting tests
made COR the purpose of completing the
chain Of evidence against them.
Some infected mosquitoes were al
lowed t. bite a man in Rome, and
he soon developed the malarial para
: .tc in his blood. The skeptics, how
ever, insisted that he might have been
infected in some other way or had
/. latent Infection in his blood all the
l.rlc Or. Manson, therefore, wishing
10 make proof striking and positive,
devised two crucial tests, which were
carried out in the summer of 1900, and
the results have left the fair-minded
skzptic defenseless.
The first Of these consisted Of send.
ing two physicians, Drs. Sambon and
Low. to live in q very malarial district
IN the Roman Campagna (Ostia) dur
ing Thr most maiarious season of the
-a heir only protection from the
Olsen being mosquito-netting. No
ua.e'ne or other prophylactic was
% 'l-p, and they were directed to sleep
..i,h the windows and doors open. so
S To give any bad night air there
might he chance at them" This
hey did, livinG in house whose only
uliHrity lay in its being mosquito
proof. Here they stayed all summer,
Iand while the whole surrounding popu-
lation iof natives was down with ma
aria neither of the unacclimated ex-
pc iInenters- ever showed a trace of it.
| TITS proved that unacclimated people
could live in perfect health in an ex-
! tr-r1ely malarious region, where even
the accliraated natives are serious suf-
ferers, by simply avoiding mosquito
bites.
For the second experiments some
| laboratory mosquitoes were reared
from eggs in Rome, pastured on a ma
| iarial sufferer, and sent alive to Lon
don. Here they We're permitted to bite
! healthy man whose blood had been
eNamined and shown to be free from
| the malaria germ. Dr.. Mansons son
Volunteered for the service. He was
bitten freely by the mosquitoes, and
N q. short time he not only developed
an the heart of London the clinical
'ymptoms of malaria, but his blood
was found to be swarming with typical
Parasites.
+ Along somewhat similar lines ex-
ineriments have been conducted that
I complete the case against the mos
quito with regard to yellow fever
! some brave volunteers from the
mted States army gave themselves
, freely for the experiments, which were
made under the direction of the Yellow
7 Fever Commission in Cuba Camp
-azier, where the commissions expert
nents We're carried on, was about a
| mile from Quomados, Cuba.
| Three sets of tests were carried out
First, the attempt was made to infect
Iuon-immune individuals by exposure to
ultimate contact with infected clothing
Nd bedding by what are technically
Known as fomites; second, by the di-
rect injection of blood from cases OF
yellCw fever: and third, by the bites OF
mosquitoes that had been pastured Oh
! yelloW-fever sufferers. The equipment
; Of the camp included two frame build
inGs, one of which, known as the lin
I tecteJ mosquito building" was divided
near the middle by a permanent wire
/ Green partition, and had a good venti-
.atinE. The other known as the Gin
-acted clothing building" was pur-
Z 0oselv 50 constructed as to exclude
I aythinF like efficient ventilation. Both
7 aouses We're provided with wire screen
Joors. so that mosquitoes could be kept
( ithCut or within the buildings.
The first mosquito infection was OBJ
| aimed on December Sth. One OF the
volunteers. Kissinger by name, had
/ been bitten by five mosquitoes which
| lad previously been allowed to bite a
| yellow-feyer patient. On the date
mentioned he came down with a
! mal ked case of yellow fever. He had
| hcen under q strict quarantine for fiji
| t en days. 50 that the possibility of any
other cause of Infection was removed.
Within the period OF one week-from
December 9th tc December 15th-four
| If the volunteers who had allowed
| themselves to be bitten by the infected
mosquitoes developed well-marked
&c ses of yellow fever. And of the four
teen nou-irnmune individuals subjected
70 the bites Of infected mosquitoes dur
iii- the whole test. ten contracted vel
iow fever. the attack always following
bites within the period of incuba-
tou Of the disease.
| OF the five individuals who received
lireCt injections of blood from yellow
fevcr patients, four contracted the
disease.
On the other hand, seven non-im-
muna Americans who slept every night
in he infected clothing building"
poorly ventilated. and to which no sun
isl ever came, engaged in the morn
in, in packing boxes with garments
much soiled by contact with the bodies
and excreta of yeilow-fever patients,
AL at night unpacking these same
boxes ir order to obtain articles for
troir beds and clothing for their bodies.
$ ping in the very beds and gar
meats just vacated by yellow-fever
cases. these seven men came out of
this pest house Ut the end of the ex-
ne ment perfectly well not one Of
+tE"m having contracted the disease.