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THE YELLOW-FEVER MOSQUITO. 15 
- connected with the work, even in the most subordinate positions, 
private soldiers not only offering themselves for the presumably 
dangerous tests, but insisting that they should be accepted as sub- 
jects for experimentation. Dr. Reed, the master spirit of the in- 
vestigation, was, moreover, a man above all men for this work, no 
less in his ability to compel the greatest confidence and enthusiasm 
than in the absolutely complete manner in which the experiments 
were conducted. While the work was going on criticism was invited 
and urged from Habana physicians, from visiting surgeons, and from 
everyone interested, but so perfect were the plans that it seems im- 
possible that any cr ‘iticism could have been made. 
An experimental sanitary station was established in the open, a 
mile from Quemados. Two houses were built, tightly constructed, 
with windows and doors protected by wire screens. In one of these 
houses soiled sheets, pillowcases, and blankets were used as bedding, 
and this bedding was brought straight from the beds of patients sick 
with yellow fever at Habana. For 63 days these beds were occupied 
by members of the Hospital Corps for periods varying from 20 to 21 
days. At the end of this occupation the men, who were all nonim- 
munes, were taken to quarantine for five days and released. Not 
one of them was taken ill. All were released in excellent health. 
This experiment was of the greatest importance, as it demonstrates 
that the disease is not conveyed by fomites; hence the disinfection 
of clothing, bedding, or merchandise formerly supposed to have been 
contaminated by contact with yellow-fever patients is unnecessary. 
This disinfection work, which hitherto had been carried to the ex- 
treme in the case of yellow-fever epidemics in our Southern States, 
was shown to have been perfectly useless. 
In the other house, which was known as the “ infected mosquito 
house,” there were no articles which had not been carefully disin- 
fected. The house contained two rooms, and nonimmunes were placed 
in both rooms. In one room, separated from the other by a wire 
sereen partition, only mosquitoes which had bitten yellow-fever 
patients were introduced. In the other room they were excluded. 
In the latter room the men remained i in perfect health. In the mos- 
quito room 50 per cent of the persons bitten by infected mosquitoes 
(that had been kept 12 days or more after biting yellow-fever pa- 
tients) were taken with the disease, and the lp ey diagnosis 
was confirmed by resident physicians of Habana who were above all 
others familiar with the disease in every form. Persons bitten by 
mosquitoes which had bitten a yellow-fever patient within less than 
12 days did not contract the disease. In another series of experi- 
ments seven persons were bitten by infected mosquitoes by placing 
the hand in a jar containing the insects, and five of them, or 71 per 
cent, contracted the disease. 
B47 
