Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1915-08-20
West and South Philadelphia
Victims of Highly Efficient
Insect Air Raiders
WHILE thousands Of residents Of wss,
w Philadelphia slap at their ankle, in

VLTHILE thousands OF residents OF Wa,
w Philadelphia slap at their ankles N
vain efforts TO exterminate n few Of ,ho
many millions Of mosquitoes which infes,
the neiRhborhood, q few of the more an
ergetic sufferers have been making op,.,
Inquiries as TO the why and wherefore Of
the nuisance. They have made some
startling discoveries.
The logical source Of information an
the matter. James r. MoCrudden, aotinr
assistant chief OF the Division Of SANTA,
ton OF the Bureau of Health, was assed
what equipment his division had at lts
disposal TO fight the mosquito pest. His
reply, In writing. showed that S3s SO rem
resents the value of the entire equipment
now operated by the division, and that N
consists OF four items, namely I barrels
OF oil, 6 oil cans 3 oil sprinklers and 4
oil sprayers. There are two inspectors
employed for the investigation and abate-
ment OF the nuisance, one being assigned
to all territory north of Market street ana
the other to all territory south OF that
street
The employing of additional inspectors
there should be six in the opinion OF
Assistant Director of the Bureau OF
Health Lees, and the buying of adequate
equipment is rendered impossible because
no money for the purpose has been appro-
That work which has been done by the
division In fighting mosquitoes this year
was made possible by windfall, which
occurred when the Emergency Aid Com
mittee offered the division the services
Of force of men which they had been
enabled to employ by an appropriation OF
Councils to relieve the great suffering
among the unemployed of the city. The
men were put TO work filling ponds, dig
ging bitches and laying terra Gotta
drains, and accomplished work valued
at $,1231 10 toward the determination OF
mosquitoes, and were paid by the Emer-
genoy Aid Committee through the D.vi-
sion Of Sanitation
Mr.. McCrudden has also had at his
disposal two teams assigned to him tenn
porarily from the Medical Division Of
the Bureau of Health to use in spraying
ponds and swamps. In winter these are
used as disinfectors' wagons. At lib
eral estimate this item might be valued
at $500 for the summer, which would
bring the total of equipment and work
accomplished 0ncluding the Emergency
Aid donation) to S1.e61.92 for the division
When asked what sum he thought
necessary to the abatement of the mos
quito pest, Mr.. McCrudden said
IT would recommend that the entire
responsibility for the elimination of mos
quitoes in the city shall be put in charge
function Of the Health Bureau to have
charge of such work. and that it should
have the sum of $4,000 available an
nUally to eliminate mosquitoes"
The reference to the fixing OF respon-
sibility upon one bureau, it was found,
was occasioned by the work which has
been undertaken by the Bureau of High
ways, which, through appropriations
made to the Department of Public Works,
has been enabled to repair road bitches,
maintain canals in the southern section
of the city and to oil certain roads and
city inlets in south and West Philadel-
phia.
According to Director Ziegler. of the
Bureau of Health, and Assistant Director
Lees, the work of fighting mosquitoes has
been made exceedingly difficult by the
excessive quantities of rain, but II is not
denied that with sufficient equipment
and the necessary funds the pest might
have been abated to a negligible figure.
Director Zegler reports that there are
266 ponds remaining in the city, which
the bureau oils to the best of its ability
with the money and men put at its dis
posal by the Emergency Aid Commit
tee The following summary of mosquito-
breeding ponds abandoned during the
year up TO the present time is given out
by the Director:
Ponds abandoned by filing. .............,,. "a
Ponds abandoned by draining; ............. 9
Ponds abandoned during 1915. ....... I4s
Despite these optimistic figures the
mosquitoes continue to infest West and
South Philadelphia and feast upon the
exasperated inhabitants of those sections
TO their hearts content. In addition to
the 266 ponds remaining, there are vast
tracts of swamp in South Philadelphia
on property owned by the city, and other
tracts In the neighborhood of Baltimore
avenue and Cobb's Creek, which con-
tinue to produce the pests at the rate Of
several hundred billion a day.