The Adair County news. [volume] (Columbia, Ky.) 1897-1987, 1915-02-03
Did he see his shadow?
HEALTH OFFICERS COLUMN.
BY u. L. TAYLOR.


clean up day, which usually has been
in the early spring. That plan is
changed now, and instead of having
one or two clean up days, there will
be 1856 clean up days every year. A
clean town is nearly always healthy
town, but tirty and filthy town is
nearly always sickly. This notice is
not directed alone to town of Colum.
bia, but to every other town in the
county, as well as every private home,
and every school house. And the
teachers who will take charge of the
schools this year, are hereby notified
that they will be required to keep
their houses IN order. A feeble effort
was made by me last year in this d.
rection, but was never fully carried
out. The county school houses are
not alone required to be kept clean,'
but the yards as well. Our town is
usually in very good sanitary con-
diti0n, but there have always been
some eye sores, and I shah do my Ut
most to have these sores healed.
There is nothing that looks worse in a
town, than large quantity of loose
paper scattered over the streets and
alleys, and nothing is more easily
remedied. This article serves notice
on all the citizens that this must be
stopped. 1t is very frequent COM
plant too, that merchants, bankers,
lawyers &C., are in the habit of
throwing all sort of rubbish and
waste paper out of their back win,
dows, not particularly caring upon
whose back yards they may fall This
must not be any longer done. If the
cooperation of the citizens can be had,
the trouble will be over. Just burn
these things, and il there are any
germs mixed up with this filth, they
will be destroyed. All of our citizens
who do not want to be troubled with
malaria, must keep their rain barrels
covered, or keep coal oil poured into
them. This answers the same pur.
pose as far as the mosquitoes are con-
cerned, but one or the other must be
done. Another ugly habit that our
people have got into is, allowing emp.
ty tin cans to be scattered over their
premises. These afford breeding
places for the mosquitoes, because
each can catches a little water, just
enough to give the mosquitoes place
to lay their eggs. And these little
night riders are quick to take advan-
tage of chances like these. If any of
our people think they must scatter
these cans around, they ought to take
a Ratchet and cut them up, so they
will not hold water. By the fight
that has been upon the mosquito, ma
larial diseases are not half so common
as they were before the fight began.
l have not heard of case of old fash
Toned "shakin ager" for several years.
But what can be said of the fly? How
many OF our citizens will join an army
for the determination of the house
fly? Noah lost the chance of his life
when he failed to swat the two flies
which he had with him in the ark.
By one good and healthy swat, well
directed, the human race down to
the present time, would have occasion
to rise up as one man and call him
blessed. The fly is undoubtedly the
most prolific cause of disease of any
other, and think l would not be far
wrong, if | were to say it is as great a
cause as all others combined. And if
this army that L am proposing to
fight these pests can be organized, and
be ready for the opening of the spring
campaign before the flies become nu-
merous, they can be crippled and de-
stroyed so completely, that they
would not become numerous during
the whole summer. If every man and
woman in town and country will pre-
pare themselves with fly traps of the
most modern style, and an abundant
supply of tangle foot, and keep all
their doors screened, there is no rea-
son why the fly should not be destroy
ed so fast as it makes it appearance.
Keep the traps on the outside of the