The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1917-03-15
Or. L. o. Howard, Federal Ento-
moIogist, Urges Cooperative
Effort Against Pest.
URGES EDUCATING PUBLIC
Expert Tells Of Many Disease
Germs Carried by Rapidly
Propagated Insect.

Not only Is Il necessary to swat the
fly, but 1t Is equally important to
swat the neighbor who negiects to
swat the fly.
This is the sentiment of DIR. L. o.
Howard, chief of the Bureau of Ento-
mology. Department Of Agriculture.
who says that single-handed and
alone, one person can make but slight
progress toward eliminating the fly.
Educate the public" DR.. Howard
says. THAT is the nrst and most i'm
portant element in any anti-fly cru
sade.
"1t has been the general experience
that people regarded the fly as q
harmless nuisance and the first work
In all anti-fly campaigns has been
to bring the people to q realization of
the dangers from flies and the pos
sibility of getting rid OF them"
Urges Varied Publicity
Every possible means of publicity
can be employed, including news
papers, lectures, moving pictures,
posters. handbills, cartoons, and In
struction in the schools. By the most
painstaking care one may prevent
nearly all fly breeding on his prem
Uses, but IL will avail him little IL his
neighbors are not equally careful"
DR.. Howard has been engaged for
years in intensive research work re-
garding the house fly. During the
winter OF 191415 he conducted an
experiment station at Arlington
-
terminating the fly because II carries
germs OF many diseases, he said:
THE body of the house fly Is
thickly covered with hairs and bris-
ties of varying lengths, especially on
the legs. When It crawls over in
fected material, 1t becomes loaded
with germs, and subsequent visits
to human foods result in their con-
taminatIon. The necessity and i'm
portance of house ny control thus ID
clear.
spreaders Of Disease.
intestinal germ diseases are car
ried by flies, also Asiatic cholera,
There is strong circumstantial evil
dence that tuberculosis. anthrax,
yaws, ophthalmia, smallpox, tropical
sore, and parasitic worms may be
and are so carried.
The number OF eggs laid by an
individual fly at one time Is undoubt-
eddy large, probably averging about
120. The eggs hatch in less than
twenty-four hours. In the climate
of Washington there IL abundance of
time for the development of from
ten to twelve generations every sum-
mer.
"a careful bcreening OF windows
and doors, with the supplementary
use OF sticky fly papers, il q pre-
ventive measure known to everyone.
It is necessary, however, to empha-
size the Importance of keeping food
supplies screened or otherwise GOV.
cred SO that flies can gain no access
to them.
"The use of fly papers. poisons and
traps in an effort to exterminate
the fly are at best only temporary
measures. The most logical method
of abating the nuisance 10 the elm
ination or treatment Of breeding
places"
Quotes Official Orders.
DR.. Howard cites a series Of orders
Issued by the District Health Depart
ment in 1906. The orders provide for
sanitary maintenance of stables and
specifically direct that refuse shall be
removed from barns at least twice a
week between June 1 and October 81.
He referred to York Village. Me-. as
a community whose activities in d.
the fly menace should be
emulated.
The appropriation for health work
In that city amounts to about 81 per
capita a year-the largest per capita
expenditure for public health work of
any city In the United States" he
said.
VERY often lack OF funds prevents