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small quantity of water the larvie can live in. On the Tucuche I 

 noticed numbers of larvte in the water Avhich collected in the axils of 

 the leaves of certain orchids, Bromliacpcf etc., and about our yard I 

 have seen mosquito larvfe enjoying themselves in a broken bottle 

 in about just \ inch depth of water. So you see, mosquitoes 

 have plenty of opportunities of increasing their numbers in our 

 yards, therefore away with all kinds of broken vessels which may 

 serve as receptacles for water. 



REMEDIES. 



There are two ways of dealing with insect pests, one is to 

 encourage and rear their natural enemies, either in plant or 

 animal life, for nature always provides these, and the other one is 

 to use insecticides. In Trinidad some species of small bats and 

 dragon-flies, or mosquito-hawks as they are called in tl)e States, rid 

 us of a good many mosquitoes in the evening at twilight. I am 

 sure you are all familiar with those dragon-flies, or mademoiselles 

 as some people call them here, which course up and down in front of 

 our houses between 5 and 6 in the afternoon. They seem to be 

 amusing themselves, but in reality are working havoc among the 

 mosquitoes, which at this time are buzzing about enjoying them- 

 selves in the way peculiar to this genus of flies. Mr. Robert H. 

 Lamborn oftered a prize of $100 about two years ago for the best 

 means of rearing dragon flies to destroy mosquitoes, but this 

 competition was not attended with any practical results ; by far 

 the best mosquito enemy we have here is, in my opinion, a little 

 Cyprinodonte about 1 inch in length. This little fish is found 

 anywhere where there is water, in the drains in the street, in the 

 rivers, ponds, etc., and is very hardy, standing a degree of heat 

 which would kill most fishes ; besides this it is viviparous, so that a 

 few put into a water-tank would increase without giving any 

 trouble at all. E^'ery tank, antiformica, fountain, etc., ought to 

 ha\'e these little fish, the}' are the sworn enemies of the mosquito 

 larv<'e and would not in any vvay spoil the water in tanks, 

 generally used for drinking. 1 would sti'ongly ad"s ise everybody 

 to keep these fish in their tanks, fountains, etc., as they render us 

 very good services. 



The insecticide that would be most useful to destroy the 

 mosquitoes in the cesspits would be to pour about a quart of carbolic 

 acid (ji- kerosine oil into them from time to time,. As far as the 

 other breeding places are concerned kerosine would be the best 

 lemedy, and I will give you an extrcict taken from Mr. Howard's 

 excellent article, in Insvct Life, entitled "An Expeiiment against 

 Moscjuitoes." 



" One of the most reasonable of the recommendations which 

 " have Vjeen made from time to time, and which look toward the 



