THE SALT-MAESH MOSQUITOES 329 



on the biting or singing pests that intruded everywhere, and the tendency was to 

 sell out. But the owners were not ready to quit without a fight, and an improve- 

 ment society was formed which consulted with my office and followed my advice. 

 In one year the bulk of the breeding area was drained, mosquitoes have since 

 been absent almost entirely ; one gentleman, not a large owner, either, told me 

 his property had increased $50,000 in value, and new settlers began to come in. 

 This year one of the worst breeding areas of the olden day was used as a camping 

 ground and 100 new residences are planned for next year. 



" New Jersey has miles of sea coast that is unequalled for summer resorts. 

 All but a few points are practically abandoned as uninhabitable. Barnegat Bay 

 and its surroundings constitute a fisherman's paradise, and again and again 

 settlements have started, done well for a season and have been abandoned. Those 

 who came one year never came again, and many who came for a month stayed 

 only a day. 



" The only thing that prevents a continuous line of summer resorts along the 

 entire shore line is the mosquito pest, and were that removed there would be a 

 scramble to get land. 



" We may take the result on Staten Island as an example. This Island, now a 

 part of Greater New York, is geographically a portion of New Jersey, separated 

 from the mainland by a narrow stream or 'kill,' on both sides of which salt 

 marsh flats extend for a mile or more to the highland. The southern and 

 eastern shore is a continuation of the New Jersey coast line from the mouth of 

 the Earitan Eiver, and like it has a number of indentations more or less bordered 

 by salt marsh areas. On all these marshes mosquitoes bred in uncounted 

 millions and spread throughout the island. Eesult: several square miles of 

 most desirable territory for suburban residences entirely unsettled. There are 

 two shore resorts, South Beach and Midland Beach, feeble imitations of Coney 

 Island in some directions, but more desirable in others, that just maintained 

 themselves despite their attractions. During the day conditions were tolerable 

 along shore, but as soon as the sun was low in the horizon trouble began, and as 

 it became dusk the fight began, and pleasure seekers sought shelter behind 

 screens or started for home. 



" This past summer, under the supervision of Dr. A. H. Doty, state quarantine 

 officer, the salt marshes have been drained in the manner advocated by me, and 

 the beginning was made on the eastern and southern shores, where Midland and 

 South Beach are situated. I need hardly say that very few believed in good 

 results, and scepticism was general even in circles where we might have expected 

 material support. But we got the needed money, secured a contractor within 

 our estimate, and the eastern and southern shore work was done before the breed- 

 ing season set in. 



" Eesult : there have been very few mosquitoes of any kind, and practically no 

 marsh mosquitoes along this shore during the entire season. Visitors stayed 

 longer and came more frequently to both beaches, which enjoyed a season of 

 unparalleled prosperity, taxing the full capacity of the transportation companies. 

 As the season advanced, the drainage work extended farther and farther away 

 from the populated sections, permanent residents began to notice that nobody 

 was putting in screens, and that screened porches were never used. On the golf 

 links games could be carried on while the light lasted, and outdoor dinners 

 and suppers became the rule at the Country Club. When it was fully realized 

 that there was practically no mosquito pest, and the improvement in the char- 

 acter of the drained territory was obvious, there was a change in public senti- 

 ment. Plans were made for extending the attractions at the beaches, and many 

 thousands will be put into new amusement enterprises during the present winter. 

 Land values stiffened and very little was offered for sale. 



