4 LICE AND THEIR MENACE TO MAN 



tolerably common. In mediaeval times it was 

 much more widely distributed, so that every one, 

 from the highest to the lowest, was all too 

 familiar with the pest, while it was accounted a 

 virtue in certain holy men that the lice swarmed 

 so thickly upon them uncontrolled. It was an 

 ostentatious manifestation of their humility that 

 they were unworthy to kill this, one of the most 

 disgusting products of creation. Like the spider 

 it took hold with its hands and was in kings' 

 palaces. Apart from references in literature we 

 have the evidences of " the scratching sticks ' : 

 that in times past it was no shame to be lousy. 

 These were of various patterns, the handle being 

 about twelve inches in length and having at its 

 end a little carved ivory hand with the fingers 

 bent in a scratching position. It was a con- 

 venient implement to slip under the garments to 

 alleviate itching in otherwise inaccessible places. 



As civilisation advanced and the frequent 

 changing of underclothing became a more pro- 

 nounced habit, body-lice became scarcer until 

 many people were unaware of the existence of 

 such an insect. The idea of lice became associ- 

 ated with that of dirt, and it was popularly 

 thought that only dirty people could become 

 lousy. The unfortunate who picked up a louse 

 in a tram or train treasured his secret in shame, 

 afraid to mention it to his closest friend. Worse 

 still, a person might become infested and feeling 

 the biting would look for a flea, never thinking 



