Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1907-09-29
Keep Out the Flies.

When SO much attention Is paid to
the mosquito as disease dissomina-
tor and so much pains taken to OK
terminate the insect OH that account,
II is strange indeed that the ordinary
house fly should he looked upon only
as mere annoyance and q tolerated
nuisance in our households. says tho
New York Herald.
That he Is always with us I'm the
warmer months and is constantly In
evidence wherever we go * perhaps
one reason why we give so little
thought to any real danger OF his
presence. 1t must be rccollected.
however, that he is no more nor less
than busy scavcngcr. who liz con-
stnntly distributing his filth on every
thing he touches Az n transporter
of disease germs he Is n most busy
and unsupported worker. Because
this can not no demonstrated to the
naked eye the possibility of such
transportation Is not readily appreci-
| ntcd. But tho microscopic examlna-
| ton OF the fly OF his feet wings aud
intcstines-has proved to bacteriolog-
icnl investigators his constant menace
to our health. as we'll ms our comfort
Oven after ho IL dead his very dust
contains the morbfic elements OF
mortal disease to man.
| If these general statements were
| sufficient To call for Wholesale exter-
mination of the pest under all cir
cumstnnccs, one of the greatest adj
vances In sanitary science would he
near at hand. In every sense he is
n nuisance Tho very thought thar
he is nth carrier in the widest nos.
slblc sense would bc the strongest ar-
Eiment for his Punishment, rrespec.
two of his misunderstanding qualities.
We have only to think of these posi-.
bllitics to kill him on sight anywhere
and anyhow
| His very presence In any household
| prcsupposes that OF tho garbage on
which he must feed not necessarily
IN the house Itself, but surely in Its
vicinity.
This accounts for many of those
apparently mysterious extensions of
disease epidemics that can not be ex.
planned by direct contact with the az.
flicted patients. Take typhoid fever,
for Instance. The fly is notoriousiy
an inhabitnnt of the sick room and
| thrivcs on the eXcretions OF the m.
tent. Not only this, but lie trans
ports them from outside receptacles
and lntrincs, and industrously dlstrl-
Dutcs them upon the food and drink
or the we'll persons. SO well Is this
fact established that one OF the main
causes for the spread OF typhoid fever
III camps Is thus scientifically OK
! planned.
Again. with regard to tuberculosis.
the same thing happens. The snutum
Is ono of his dalDtics. He ingests 1t
With the relish OF n gourmand. and
not only smears hia feet and wings
with the bacilli but concretes them
unchanged on everything on which he
may alight If one could only seo
this with the naked eye, what more
revolving picture could be contem-
plated. ~
There is no reason to doubt. that
his possibilities of disease dlstribu.
tion are by any means limited to the
two Instances that are cited, although
lhosc are thus far tho most clearly
demonstrated ones. Why not dipthe-
ria, cerebro-spinal meningitis, pneu-
monia and various forms OF blood
poisoning?
We can lessen the plague somewhat
by screening our food and our houses,
abolishing garbage heaps. cleaning
manure pits and tho like In our neigh
borhoods, but nothing short of n gen
cral crusade of determination will eff
feet the purpose.
AT no time of the year is the fly
more of nuisance and danger than
now, and few mortals there are who
may not be persuaded to be his sworn
enemy anywhere. everywhere, and
every time.