Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-02-15
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MOSQUITOES IN PHILIPPINES
FOUR KINDS KEEP BUSY
SPREADING MALARIA.

Four kinds of mosquitoes are doing all
the work of spreading malaria in the
Philippines. according to Miss Clara
Southmayd Ludlow. NJ. S. Miss Ludlow is
a sister OF Col. Henry II. Ludlow of the
9Th Artillery and went to Manila i'm 1901
to take charge of her brothers house
hold. While there she began to study the
mosquitoes of the islands and their rela-
ton to the health of the people. and since
returning to the United States she las
continued the research. especially with
reference to living conditions of white
persons in the Philippines.
Mosquito specimens have been sent 10
her by army surgeons, and she has CLASH
fed them. discovering many new varie-
ties. Miss Ludlow has secured about
forty different species from the Philip
pines. sixteen OF which are "anophelina."
or disease-bearing. and of these sixteen
she concludes that four do the greater
part of the work of disseminating ma
laria.
Peril of Yellow Fever.
The stegomyia, which spreads yellow
fever in the tropics OF this hemisphere,
is also found in the Philippines. but Miss
Dudlow says that, as there is no yellow
fever In the islands and never has been.
the only danger to be feared is that when
the Panama canal is opened the fever
may De carried by individuals to tho
archipelago. and then the mosquito fl "a
bear the disease will proceed to dissefdH
mate it. Miss Ludlow regards this dam
ger as particularly grave. since a disease
new to a race is always unusually fatal,
reaching the magnitude OF a plague
The Filipinos. Miss Ludlow says. are so
immune TO ii. and il is from this that the
danger to white persons arises. for
mosquito transferring the disease from a
native to an American gives il to the lat
ter in a particularly virulent form. The
large infantile death rate among the Fill
pinos Miss Ludlow is inclined to ascribe
largely to malaria. those who survive the
disease being malaria-proof for the rest
of their lives. though a menace to their
white neighbors.
How to Check the Danger.
The problem set to army folk and CT.
william employees in the islands is there
fore. how to keep the mosquitoes down
and how TO keep the Filipinos at a dis
tance. This latter problem involves the
ever-present question of household serv-
ice. but this is usually solved by the
method adopted by An2lo-Indians of not
permitting servants TO sleep on the prem
ises.
Although considerable ditch;ng Is done
to drain marshes and make smaller sur
faces for kerosene treatment to kill mos
quitoes. vet this cannot always be done.
even near cantonments. for IL threatens
the rice culture. The people must have
rice. and the paddy fields. where the rice
Is grown. must be kept flooded for lolg
period every season. These flooded paddy
fields make an ideal breeding ground Tor
mosquitoes. When a camp Is near sucn a
field the only thing to be done. Mss Lud-
low says. is to use prophylactic measures
the use of mosquito bars and
dosing the men with duinins 10 head off
the malaria. If this is not done whole
companies come down at once with the
disease Even sections OF bamboo In the
palipxs are bored so that they will no:
hold water and thus breed the dangerous
pests.
Miss Ludlow intends to continue her
valuable researches.