OUR RIVALS 151 



stems used. If you have an aggravated case of red 

 spider or thrips, stir into the mixture one pound of 

 whale oil soap for every fifty gallons. 



I shall have something to say in my next chapter 

 about flies and mosquitoes, for they are not altogether 

 quite the only sinners in the world, although they cer- 

 tainly are sometimes very keen rivals of the human 

 family. They render some sections uninhabitable 

 and they carry dangerous bacteria which make many 

 fevers more destructive. The most available method 

 for combating them is to spray crude petroleum over 

 the puddles and pools where mosquitoes breed; as 

 for the house fly, if you will see to it that there is not 

 a dirty stable within half a mile of you, you will see 

 very few flies about your home. They breed in ma- 

 nure piles, which should never be allowed to ac- 

 cumulate and should always be disinfected. 



Slop holes about a kitchen door and defective sew- 

 erage and puddles of standing water are a menace 

 to the public health, as well as to private comfort and 

 safety. By and by we shall prevent such things by 

 social enactment. The destruction of flies and mos- 

 quitoes should be a neighborhood affair. If you live 

 in the country you should not make your surround- 

 ings of a character that renders your home dangerous 

 to the welfare of the community. 



