Albuquerque citizen. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1907-1909, 1909-05-28
OIL ON WATER
WOULD HELP SOME
Scientific Review Of Conditions
Here and Elsewhere Shows
How Trouble Can
be Easily
Avoided.

lndt tnt NlbS anu county OiuCldlS
should distribute oil on the pools of
stagnant water in and about Albu-
querque and thus rid this section of
the valley of big part of its mos
quito population is the opinion of a
well known physician. who reviews
the health situation at length in the
following communication;
Editor Citizen Malaria and ty
phoid fever are two diseases most
prevalent throughout the United
states beginning from about this
time OF the year and extending
through the summer into the fall of
the year Both of these diseases are
preventable and have no reason to
exist in civilized communities whore
the public authorities take the proper
amount of care and consideration for
the health and comfort of those liv
ing under their administrator.
Both of these diseases occur in
large cities. but they are both pre-
eminently diseases of the country and
smaller towns. Swampy regions may
infrequently occur in large cities but
are very commonly found in the coun-
try or on the borders of smaller
towns This in measure accounts
tor malaria fever being known as
country disease.
For many years - was recognized
that malaria was more prevalent in
swampy districts than In those places
which were high and dry. and that
those persons who were exposed, par
ticularly after sunset, to swampy
districts, were most apt to contract
malaria. This gave rise TO the the
Ory that malaria was caused by in
haling some noXious material from
swampy districts which material was
most poisonous at night. In fact, the
very name of the disease presents
this theory. the word malaria coming
from malaeria Chad air.)
Within the past decade science has
taught that while everything we had
before noticed about swamp lands
ana their particular danger at night
vas correct. we had still overlooked
the real danger and that malaria
was not caused by the breathing of
the noxious gases emanating from
the swamp. but was due entirely to
the bite of a certain species of mos
quito, and that the swamp was more
dangerous at night than by day from
the fact that this species OF mosquito
is more prevalent after sunset than
before. Swamp lands, therefore, are
not particularly dangerous i'm them
selves but menace the health OF a
community by propa eating the mos
quito which insect alone can cause
malarial fever.
Malaral fever differs from all the
| other fevers to which we are prone
II. this locality in one particular point.
Typhoid fever tuberculosis, diph-
iberia, scarlet fever, etc, are all Caus-
ed by minute vegetable microscopic
organisms which may be given direct
| ly from one person to another Caus-
| ing the disease in the second iEdi-
vidual Malaria, on the contrary, is
caused by microscopic organism of
class known as the protoznn which
includes the lowest form of animal
life. and the organism called the
| plasmodeim Of malaria cannot cause
the disease by direct incubation from
one person to another. but before il
| becomes dangerous to the second per-
son has to pass a complete cycle of
| life i'm the body of a mosquito.
This has recently been discovered
true of "a number of other diseases
such as yellow fever. clephar tiasis.
sleeping sickness an Of which are
/ found in the tropical countries and
] each of which requires the protozone
/ organism causing the disease To man
to pass through the body of some
| particular species of mosquito or
! ny. before it arrives at that period OF
| its life when ii is capable of becom-
| ing dangerous to man. When this
| period in its life arrives the organism
! is ready 10 infect man ard the in
| fection takes place in the case of ma
| laria. through the instrumentality of
| the mosquito.
Malarial InfeCtou-Let us take
very briefly and by no means i'm de-
| tail the method by which malarial
J fever Is given from the infected TO the
| non-infected person, and the import
ant but possible role played by the
| mosquito A female mosquito Of the
genus Anopheles bites a person suf-
/, fering from malaria; the blood suck
ed from the infected individual con-
| tains a large number Of malarial or
ganlsns These organisms undergo
sexual development in the stomach