Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1903-07-28


Wardell Stiles. of the public health and
marine hospital service, discoverer OF
the parasi & Unchinaria Americana,
generally knt wn as the nook "ofhl'
or germ of .aziness, and whose ad-
dress last December before the SAM
1ary conference oil American repub-
lies, in which he told of the enects
of the ravages of the hook worm dis
ease upon social, industrial and econo-
mic conditions in the Southern States
attracted such widespread attention.
has made another discovery III the
parasitic world, which is considered by
government savants as Of the greatest
importance. This is the discovery and
isolation of what DR.. Stiles has named
the Agamamerms culicis, orher"lse
known as the mosquito destroyer,
parasite which kills millions of mos
ouitoes each year, and which, 1t is be-
ieved, under artificial propagation,
will prove far superior to any means
now known of ridding infested COM
munlties of these pests.
The discovery was not the result OF
accident or OF haphazard methoas'
Some time ago the officers Of the pub
lie health and marine hospital service
conceived the idea that at the present
time, when mosquitoes are being sub
jected to such careful study because
of the important relations they bear
to public health especially in connec-
ton with malaria, yellow fever and dis
eases of a like nature-the mosquito
having been recognized as a carrier
of fever germs-it was of the greatest
interest to determine by what para
sites they were naturally infested
At the time this determination was
made the nealth authorities were con-
vinced, although without the backing
of data, that the matter had praetl-
cal as we'll as scientific value, for 1t
was considered that it would make
possible the elimination OF certain non
pathogenc organisms from the life
cycle of pathogenic organisms, certain
stages of which were already known
to exist in mosquitoes. 1t had fur
ther practical bearing in that it was
then believed that the parasites of
mosquitoes might multiply to such an
extent as to become important factors
in their determination.
The experiments by DR.. Stiles, which
followed this decision have resulted in
entire success. The parasite has been
discovered and isolated. The right OF
the parasite to its common title OF
mosquito destroyer has been estab-
lished. All that now remains to be
dCne by DR.. Stiles and las associates
is to discover a RAPID and inexpensive
manner of propacoting the parasites
in sufficient number for general use
in marches, ponds and localities in
tested with the insects. The ''mosqul.
to destroyer" will do the rest.
Certain forms of intestinal parasites
had previously been found in mosquito
larvae in India, Italy and Spain, but
none had been discovered in American
mosquitoes until Prof. John B. Smith,
of Rutgers College. forwarded to Dr.
Stiles for examination two worms
taken from the abdominal cavity OF
New Jersey mosquitoes. One specl-
men was hardly in a condition to be
Of use for study but DR.. Stiles deter
mined that both specimens were larval
round-worms. belonging to the family
mermithidae, either to mermis or
paramermis. Dr.. Stiles christened the
parasite "agamomermis culicis.
The agamomermis cuIicis is an inter
nal parasite and has its habitat in tho
abdominal cavity of mosquitoes. inteo
stages of the growth of mosquitoes.
Mosquitoes infected with the parasite
are sluggish in their movements and
do not live long Female insects in
fected do not breed.
The researches which led up to the
discovery of the parasite agamomermis
cullcis showed conclusively that what
is generally termed "a bad year for
mosquitoes that is, when the pests