288 OUR INSECT FRIENDS AND FOES 



popular name implies, is transmitted by a Tick. 

 The Spirochaeta causing European relapsing 

 fever, on the other hand, is probably transmitted 

 through the agency of bugs and lice. Amongst 

 the diseases transmitted by Ticks to the lower 

 animals may be mentioned Texas or Red-water 

 fever, Rhodesian fever, or African Coast sickness, 

 Trans-Caucasian fever in cattle, Heart-water in 

 calves, sheep, and goats, " Yellows," the malig- 

 nant jaundice in dogs, Biliary fever in horses, 

 and the fatal spirillosus of fowls in Brazil and 

 the Argentine. 



The heavy loss of human life which occurs 

 annually from diseases transmitted by insects is 

 by no means confined to tropical and sub-tropic 

 countries, for the high rate of infant mortality 

 from zymotic diseases which prevails among the 

 working classes of our cities during the summer 

 months of each year is very largely due to the 

 agency of two of our most familiar native insects, 

 the common House-fly (Musca domestica), and the 

 common " Bluebottle" Fly (Calliphera erythro- 

 cephala). These flies have been most conclusively 

 proved transmitting agents of zymotic disease, 

 from their disgusting habit of alighting and 

 feasting upon every conceivable form of filth 

 and decomposing vegetable and animal matter, 

 and flying direct from such noisesome surround- 

 ings, laden with bacteria, to alight upon and 

 crawl over food ready prepared for the next meal 

 of the human inhabitants of the house. Thus, to 

 quote Dr. M. A. Veeder, these insects may in a 

 few minutes, "load themselves with the dejections 

 from a typhoid or dysenteric patient, not as yet 





