SOME EXPERIMENTS ON THE HOUSE-FLY IN 

 RELATION TO THE FARM MANURE HEAP. 



By H. ELTRINGHAM, M.A., D.Sc. 



{Eolhamsled Experivwntal Station, Harpenden.) 



In the early part of the present year the suggestion was made to 

 me by my friend Mr J. C. F. Fryer that I should carry out a series of 

 experiments designed to test the fly-breeding capacity of the open 

 farm manure heap as distinguished from heaps in close proximity to 

 dwellings. 



Of late years the danger of the fly pest has been made clear to the 

 most unscientific of the public and in many directions determined 

 efforts have been made to reduce the number of flies infesting houses, 

 thus minimising not only the physical nuisance, but also a far more 

 important factor, the danger entailed by the flies' power of carrying 

 disease. 



It is unnecessary here to set forth the proofs which have been 

 obtained of the capacity of flies to convey bacteria, or the methods by 

 which they distribute the organisms they carry and contain. Those 

 who desire to learn the details of a somewhat unpleasant study should 

 read Dr L. 0. Howard's work. The House-Fly — Disease Carrier. There 

 they will find the whole subject set forth in a manner which leaves the 

 reader wondering which to admire more, the completeness of the work 

 or the literary skill which can make so unsavoury a subject both readable 

 and entertaining. Neither is this the place to summarise the excellent 

 work carried out by many investigators amongst whom the names of 

 Dr Graham Smith, Dr L. 0. Howard, Dr C. Gordon Hewitt, Professor 

 Maxwell Lefroy, Professor R. Newstead, and others, will immediately 

 occur to those who are interested in these matters. Dr C. Gordon 

 Hewitt's volume on the House-Fly is the standard work on the 

 anatomy and life-history of the insect. ■ - -^ 



