The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-06-25
NEW YORK ID SOON BE B|G AS LONDON Population OfDistrict Fast
 Increasing ANTI-FLY CAMPAIGN
Is Spreading Over the Entire Coun- try-Cost of Surgical Supplies Is Increasing, Says Dr.
 Edmonds
BY ROBERT LEE CARTER

BY ROBERT LEE CARTER
 New York, June 4-(Special)-Before the next President of the United States has completed his term of office this country will probably have the greatest city in the world. The metro politan district of New York in 1910 had 6669,o6S inhabitants By reason of state lines these people are not all under one city government, but they are to all in tents and purposes New Workers and may fairly be classed as citizens.
 In the metropolitan district of London the population according to the census just completed was 7,252, ,963. This dis trict bears the same relation to London proper as the district about Manhattan does to New York.
 Now taking the census figures Greater New York is increasing at the rate of 167 .s9o a year while Greatest London is adding only 67,156 annually to its popula- ton.
 Under this rate of gain New York is now only 46.OOO behind London; the census year apart and New York was entitled to her years increase in the comparison.
 If the same ratio of gain Is maintained in 1915 the metropolitan district of New York will have a population of 761,4oS, against London's 7,5SS,s4S.
 The year book will not put New fork in the lead because of the peculiar pollt- ical conditions which prevents the whole district being placed under one govern ment as is the case in London, but she will be entitled to 1t just the same.
 Swat the fly, This battle cry is now heard from one end of the country to the other. And our old summer friend IS certainly getting all that's coming to him.
 He has even been dignified by the American Civic association, which only deals with mighty questions. The asso- citation has appointed a fly fighting com mittee of which Edward Hatch, Jr., one of the leading merchants of the city, now retired. is chairman, and this committee has been busy collecting information as to the best way to get rid of the murder ous contributions to the literature or the swat the fly campaign.
 Ijeut.-Col. J. R. Kean of the Medical Corps of the army, makes this state ,oan+ of the precautions taken to protect the United States troops in Texas rom disease and infection through the me Cium of flies: The essential features are as follows:
 i. The camps are kept clean, all horse manure as well as other nun oeirs promntlv collected and burned. Horses In camps are tied to picket lines Tn rows and as their droppings are comparatively destroy. tacn. nOTn- ing when the horses are taken out for drill or exercise the bedding and manure Is raked together. sprinkled with crude netroleum from watering pot and burned
 9 Kitchen garbage is also burned In sinnle and economical way. At eacn kitchen A trench is dug about i've rect long and two to two and a half wide' with A bottom sloplng from nothlng al one end to about three feet at the other This is filled with stones and the kitchen fire is built upon them over the deep emu of the trench. All Kitchen garbage is deposited on the stones at the cage or the fire and when thoroughly dried out is nushed into it and consumed. The siop water is poured upon the hot stones and evaporated without extinguishing the fire. No garbage is hauled away from this command of 12,0O0 men
 2 Instead of expensive inc1neratofs. privv pits have been built, four to i've feet deep. which are covered by nov able box seat a little longer than the trench and having the holes closed py tight lids This box has handles at the end by which 1t can be lifted off to one side. and this is done daily at a conven- tent time when straw is thrown into the nit. sprinkled With crude petroleum and set on fire. Most of the contents are thus consumed and the eggs and larVas or flies. if any should have gained admit tance. are killed. The seat box is then placed back In position.
 The other letter is from Col. John L. phillins. acting chief sanitary officer of the Isthman Canal Commission, who thus describes the methods employed in the canal zone to do away with flies:
 This has in a great part been accom- nlished by looking after the destruction of garbage and other refuse attractive to flies and in which they are likely to breed: as well as insisting upon the care of all stables and the timely removal or manure from them. The sanitary depart ment insists, | in so far as it is possible, upon the use of metal garbage cans as well as the keeping of the tops on them at all times. We also insist upon these cans being kept clean by occasional wash ing with a dsinfectant solution.
 'Daily collection of garbage is made. and it is burned. Careless disposal or kitchen refuse and other refuse which at- tracts flies or in which they are hkeiy 10 breed. is a misdemeanor and IT persisted is nnnished through the local courts. We reouire all meat stalls In the local mark ats and in the canal zone to be screened. Tn areas where water and sewers are not available we require all pit closets to be constructed so sthat they are fly proof, and in addition to this we have such closets disnfected largely for the pur- pose of fly propagation. We require all stables in the canal zone and in the cities of Colon and Panama to be con- erected. properly drained and kept clean. The removal of the manure is done at regular intervals and it is either burned, buried CT dumped at place remote from habtation.
 There is some valuable information in these statements which will doubtless in terest all enemies of the pesky, germ bearing little pest. And who is his friend? ?
 pr. Charles Edmonds of Louisville. who has been. in the east on visit says that along with the other Increases in the cost of living has come a sharp advance in all surgical supplies and appliances necessary to doctors.
 Even skulls and bones of Europeans who passed on many moons ago have advanced in cost so materially that med ical students have been forced to aban- don the idea of being the individual own CTS of the disarticulated forms.
 Previous to the enactment of the new lau uhich is said tO be rpspOuSibla for