REPORT ON ^lOSOUITOES. 375 



the entire 3,500 acres of marsh not one hundred acres remain on 

 which there is any breeding whatever, and that is dangerous only 

 in a few places and under certain abnormal conditions. 



Including old ditches cleaned out, about 360,000 running feet 

 of ditches have been dug on the Newark marshes, partly by ma- 

 chine and partly by hand, and if the work is not entirely success- 

 ful, that is due to the defects pointed out and which were not 

 included in the drainage scheme. 



It is a safe prediction, I think, that Newark will have no early 

 brood of mosquitoes in 1905, comparable with the invasions of 

 1903 and 1904. 



b. THE ELIZABETH PROBLEM. 



Elizabeth was the first large city of the State to begin a. sys- 

 tematic mosquito campaign and a somewhat full study of the 

 results obtained, of the money expended and of what yet remains 

 to be done seems to be justified. 



The work during 1902 was in charge of Dr. Wm. F. Robinson, 

 whose report is reprinted here, omitting all descriptive matter. 

 During 1903 and 1904 it was in charge of Mr. Louis J. Rich- 

 ards, the Health Officer, who supplies a concise statement of 

 what has been accomplished. I have been in touch with the work 

 throughout the entire period, and the use of "killies" in cisterns 

 was adopted at my suggestion. Especial attention should be 

 called to that part of Mr. Richard's report which speaks of the 

 results obtained from work under the Duffield amendment to 

 the general health law. When the usefulness of this provision is 

 fully appreciated, city, town and village breeding places will 

 exist only because local boards of health want them there. 



Mr. Richard's report is as follows : 



In 1902 about $500 was raised and spent by a Citizen's Committee, organ- 

 ized in April and composed of sixteen or more representative citizens and 

 public officials. The work done was temporary and consisted of oiling and, 

 in the vicinity of areas treated, resulted in a diminution of numbers of mos- 

 <luitoes. 



In April, 1903, the sum of $1,000 was appropriated by the City Council, 

 of which $700 was spent in permanently draining very nearly ninety acres 

 of salt meadow along and near the mouth of the Elizabeth river. In this 

 work part was done by hand and part by machine. In the hand work a 

 sort of bog-saw was made to cut the sides of the ditch, and also heavy 

 pieces of iron, with sharpened edge and iron handle, to cut off the sod as 

 sawed out. The machine was much more economical where the ground would 

 admit of its use. $92.50 was spent in having 10,000 pamphlets on mos- 

 quito extermination, by Dr. W. F. Robinson, printed for public distribution, 

 especially in the schools of our city. 



This ninety acres is relatively small to the large extent of our whole 

 meadows, but is an area which contributed more than its corresponding ratio 



