COMMUNITY wore: 357 



the possibilities of the wholesale destruction of the salt-marsh mosquito and 

 other kinds of mosquitoes. The bill passed one branch of the Legislature, but 

 failed in the other branch. The Governor of the State, however, was able in 

 other ways to provide Doctor Smith with a limited sum to carry on researches. 

 In this work he discovered a number of most interesting and vitally important 

 facts concerning breeding habits of the salt-marsh mosquitoes, indicating that 

 the breeding-places of this species are more or less circumscribed, and that the 

 matter of control is by no means as expensive as would appear at first sight, and 

 it was these discoveries that eventually led to the passage of the law which will 

 be mentioned later. 



Admirable community work was taken up during 1901-2 by other New 

 Jersey towns, notably South Orange, Elizabeth, Montclair, Monmouth Beach, 

 and Summit. Independent work was begun in greater New York, under Doctor 

 Lederle, and mapping mosquito breeding-places within city limits was begun. 

 Independently, the health officers of Brooklyn, Jamaica, and Bronx Borough 

 began efficient work, while the summer resorts of Arveme and Woodmere re- 

 duced the mosquito supply by intelligent operations. At Willets Point intelli- 

 gent and efficient work was carried out on a small scale. In Massachusetts in- 

 teresting and important work was done at Brookline and at Worcester. In 

 Brookline, the Board of Health first considered the work in August, 1901, and 

 in September all the breeding-places of the malaria mosquito and of the other 

 mosquitoes were treated. In 1902, all pools, ponds, ditches, and other breeding- 

 places, including catch-basins, were located on the town map. The approximate 

 areas were determined and the number of catch-basins ascertained. Breeding- 

 places of Culex and Anopheles, respectively, were determined, and also the places 

 where both kinds were breeding — this being done in order to ascertain the proper 

 intervals for treatment ; that is, whether every two weeks or every three weeks. 

 Public dumps and other places where accidental receptacles of water might be 

 found were also located on the maps. Light fuel oil was used on all breeding- 

 places. The public dumps proved to be very important in the work, since many 

 accidental receptacles, like bottles, cans, wooden and tin boxes, and the like, were 

 found to contain larvae. Where these were breakable, they were simply broken; 

 when not, they were carried and dumped into pools to assist in filling these. 



This Brookline work was so thorough that the community was greatly relieved 

 from the mosquito pest, although in the autumn some low meadows near the 

 town, where drainage work had been postponed, were found to be breeding mos- 

 quitoes in great numbers. 



At Worcester, the work was of the most interesting kind. Dr. William Mc- 

 Kibben and Dr. C. F. Hodge started the crusade. Breeding-places were mapped 

 and photographed and public lectures were given. The school children of the 

 several grades were interested and were organized into searching parties. Many 

 breeding-places were filled up and others were treated with kerosene. A strong 

 point was made in Worcester, by those engaged in the crusade, of the prevalence 

 of malaria in many places in the city. The relation between the mosquito breed- 

 ing-places and the houses where there were malaria patients was effectively 



