The Montgomery advertiser., 1903-11-10
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 1908.
WORSE AND WORSE.

The Portland Oregonian thus sums up the whole matter:
 The latest is that the bacteriologist has the fly upon his list. The hygienic grand jury is certainly bringing in terrific lot of indictments. The COW gives us tuber- culosis; the dog kills us with hydropho- bia; the cat carries scarlet fever about in her clothing; the horse gives us glan- ders; the rat spreads the bubonlc plague; the mosquito is the great purveyor of, yellow fever. and now the fly is to be branded as the source of typhoid lever: True bills have been found against all these defendants. The rules of the court dd not, allow them an attorney. They are forthwith to be taken out and strung up to the nearest lamp-post.
 And so the fly has butted in. or has been dragged in, at least. We confess Co have been somewhat surprised that our old acquaintance. musca domestica, has so long escaped indictment. The truth is, the common housefiy has much better opportunities for acquiring and spreading disease than any animal or in- sect that lives. They are practically uni versal in this region for more than half of each year, and their number is almost without limit. Except as a protection against annoyance no one seems to con- sider it necessary to guard against them. They come and go at their own sweet wills and no portion of the premises Is secure against them. Even a room pro- vided with all necessary screens is not entirely immune. What is more natural than that they should attract and carry germs of disease in the same manner and with much more facility than the mosquito can? Unless special safeguards are used they swarm in the sick room and about the sick bed alighting on the patient and on everything in the room in turn. If any living thing can carry germs of dis ease the fly is that thing, for its oppor- tunities, both for accommodating and dis pensing microbes, are far ahead of those possessed by any of the agencies alluded to in the article quoted above.
 But if 1t is settled that the animals dictment are all guilty had we not just as well give 1t up? How is science and hu- manity to do battle against such black aggregation of disease-breeders as are here set forth? We might, by the exer- else of eternal and persevering vigilance In the course of time annihilate the mosquito, the fly and the rat, but we would still have the horse, the dog and the cat to contend with and we can't de- stroy them. Even If we did we could not feel sure of safety for cattle and sheep and goats and hogs and other domestic animals to say nothing of fowls, would stiI be to the fore. Does any one think the pestiferous germs will give up the fight just because some of their carriers have been put out of business? Not a bit of it. They'll get to us if they have to come by water with our fish and oysters.
 And there is another thing that musses us all up. If the animals and insects mentioned are carriers of disease, were they not always so? If they were, how did anybody escape in the days when germs were unknown and when no one thought of them or made provision against them? Even in the present day, when the germ of each human ailment has been uncovered, and a way found to circum- vent him, we get sick and die. How then did anybody escape when the little things roamed about the earth without let or hindrance? It may not be creditable to admit 1t, but the more we read about them the less we, seem to know.