Lower coast gazette., 1913-12-27
SATURDAY. DECEMBER 27, 1913.
The Destruction of Mosquitoes.

DR.. Malcolm Watson, in a paper when ne
read at the Royal Colonial Institute on Novem-
her 10th. discredited the belief that the freedom
from malaria enjoyed by Barbados Is due 10
the presence of a minnow called millions, IN
her ponds. In a recent research tour Wnlch
he made he devoted attention to the presence
of fish in relation to malaria in the dltterens
countries visited. As regards Barbados ne
arrived at the conclusion that the absence OF
malaria was not due to the millions" but to
the absence of breeding places. He drove some
fifteen miles along the coast in that Island,
and could enly find two pools. The country
is pcrous. being composed of a coral limestone,
and there are not even rivers, those marked
on the maps existing only at the ime OF a trop-
ical rain storm, and drying Immediately a1ter.
at is" said DR.. Watson, important that 1he
millions theory should be exploded: lney
have been imported to many countries WIZ
high hopes, which am afraid Will not DC rea'-
lied"
DR.. Watson showed that there were IN ma
larial countries several varieties OF the AM1-
pheles, the notwithstanding mosqulto, notary
among them the Anophe!eS Um6rosns, Willch
breeds in pools in the bush, ana can De eiao1-
Gated when the bush is cleared and the pools
drained, and the Anopheles MacNlatns Wnlcn
Dfe4QS III I'LL Sll CIliioS diiN SoAi SAJ
mated by covering the streams for certain dis,
tances. Some of the mosquitoes are pool
breeders. while others prefer running water,
and. again. some like clear water whilst others
= will not tolerate it and only thrive IN muddy
water.
Regarding British Guiana, which ne also
visited. DR.. Watson had some encouraging re-
marks to make. "The portion of that country
most extensively inhabited is q stretch OF low
alluyial land along the coast. Most OF it is
helow high tide level, having been reclaimed
from the sea by the Dutch, and Is protected by
. dyke or bund. or levee. The drains discharge
at low tide through tide gates. In some places
the water has to be pumped out. IN sucn a
Mace as this, and with such a mosquito as A.
Ih;mnn1s there would be the supreme test to
the theory that agriculture could abolish mala-
ria. carried by a pool-breeding mosquito.
Through the kindness of His Excenency Sir
walter Egerton, and DR.. Wise, and the Rev.
Mr.. Aitken, | saw a considerable part OF tne
country and had access to all the statistics.
To sum it all up I found one estate With a pop
ulation of 1890, a spleen rate OF z, a malaria
admission rate of II, a total admission rate o.
23333. and q death rate of 80 per l,ooO lot FL
And the inhabitants of this estate actually lWeo
OF. on the edge of 5000 acres of rice. inns was
not the only instance of extraordinary freedom
from malaria enjoyed by the inhabitants o.
the low coastal lands of British Guiana, bu1
il is enough to show that the malaria problem n
there is already half solved, and the road t
complete extinction clearly pointed out. Ihat
mosquito like A. Albimanus should be 50 easl!
cradicated is, in my opinion, Of the highest sig
nifcance, and gives us the highest hopes 10
many other countrios."-Wcst India Commute
CiiYcular.