74 MOSQUITO ERADICATION 



SUGGESTED POLICY TOWARD PROPERTY-OWNERS 



It is the belief of the writer that some sort of compromise is 

 best. It would appear to him that oiling, fish control and other 

 routine measures rendered necessary by the presence of natural 

 streams, etc., by rains or other causes not due to the fault of the 

 property-owner should be carried out by the city forces without 

 cost to him. On the other hand, he should be compelled to 

 remedy any condition originating through his negligence, 

 the continuance of which would cause extra work to the city 

 forces, such as letting his drain pipes leak and form a pool under 

 his house, having unscreened or untreated water-barrels about, 

 letting his pond grow up with aquatic plants so as to impede 

 control by fish, failing to do necessary drainage work bearing 

 a reasonable relation to the value of the property, etc. In case 

 of failure to do the work after reasonable notice, it should be 

 done by the anti-mosquito forces and its cost charged up to him. 



It is not suggested that there be adopted a set rule in the matter 

 under consideration, since all sorts of situations are bound to 

 arise which cannot be forseen. The director should be left a 

 certain latitude to meet these situations. Thus, it would be 

 unreasonable to ask the owner of a tract of swamp land on the 

 outskirts of town, worth, say, $5 an acre, to spend $25 an acre to 

 drain it. There must be power to co-operate and a willingness 

 to meet the situation on a fifty-fifty basis. On the other hand, 

 unless there is some general policy determined upon, there is 

 danger that too much will be asked of willing citizens, while 

 the unwilling ones get the benefit of the work without having 

 done their "bit." 



RAISING FUNDS 



Assuming that a definite decision is made along the lines 

 suggested by the writer, and that the estimate has been made 

 accordingly, the next step is to get the money. This should be 

 obtained preferably from the city, since the work is for the benefit 

 of all citizens alike. Furthermore, protecting the health of its 

 citizens is one of the first duties of a municipality. 



The first step is for those interested in the matter to put it 

 before the city authorities. The incidence of the diseases 

 locally, the large economic loss they cause and the saving to the 

 community in dollars and cents in eradicating the diseases should 

 be fully outlined. If possible, the City Health Officer and the 



