554 HOWARD 



which follows we have shown that the house fly prefers horse 

 manure as a breeding place; we have shown, however, that in 

 army camps where human excrement is left exposed it will and 

 does breed in this substance in large numbers and may be at- 

 tracted to it without necessary oviposition ; we have shown that 

 in towns where the box privy nuisance is still in existence the 

 house fly is attracted to a certain extent to the excrement, and 

 we have shown that it is so attracted in the filth}^ regions of a 

 city where sanitary supervision is lax and where in low alleys 

 and corners excrement is deposited by dirty people. I have 

 seen excrement, deposited over night in an alle3^way, in south 

 Washington, swarming with flies in the bright sunlight of a 

 June morning (temperature 92° F.) and within 30 feet of these 

 deposits were the open doors and windows of the kitchens of 

 two houses occupied by poor people, these two houses being 

 only elements in a long row. 



Now when we consider the prevalence of typhoid fever and 

 that virulent typhoid bacilli ma}^ occur in the excrement of an 

 individual for some time before the disease is recognized in him 

 and that the same virulent germs may be found in the excre- 

 ment for a long time after the apparent recovery of a patient, the 

 wonder is not that typhoid is so prevalent but that it does not pre- 

 vail to a much greater extent. Box privies should be abolished 

 in every community. The depositing of excrement in the open 

 within town or city limits should be considered a punishable 

 misdemeanor in communities which have not already such regu- 

 lations, and it should be enforced more rigorously in towns in 

 which it is already a rule. Such offences are generally com- 

 mitted after dark and it is often difficult or even impossible to 

 trace the offender ; therefore, the regulation should be carried 

 even further and require the first responsible person who notices 

 the deposit to immediately inform the police so that it may be 

 removed or covered up. Dead animals are so reported ; but 

 human excrement is much more dangerous. Boards of health 

 in all communities should look after the proper treatment or dis- 

 posal of horse manure, primarily in order to reduce the num- 

 ber of house flies to a minimum, and all regulations regarding 

 the disposal of garbage and foul matter should be made more 

 stringent and should be more stringentl}' enforced. 



