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applied to the director of the company. The next 

 time the clerk was ill and obliged to absent him- 

 self from the office he was informed that the company 

 disliked sick employes, and it would be to his ad- 

 vantage if he put his house in order. The mosquito 

 brigade was at once sent for by the clerk. M. 

 Leonidas was a Greek, a great man, for he was a Con- 

 sul. He owned the only meat market in the town. 

 This meat market was in a foul state, for the base- 

 ment was flooded with sewage to a depth of four feet. 

 He refused to make repairs and could not be forced 

 to do so he was a Consul. Eventually he was con- 

 strained to rebuild the meat market in consequence 

 of representations to the Government which he repre- 

 sented ; for the tenants of the market joined together 

 and approached the Ambassador. 



But it is rare that the needs of public health re- 

 quire such lengths of diplomacy. In the majority of 

 instances a little persuasion will accomplish all that 

 is wanted provided that the landlords have the 

 means. A native, named Mohammed, came to the 

 office and salaamed. He said, in high-flown Arabic, 

 that the foreman of the mosquito brigade had asked 

 him to fill up a well which he had sunk in the floor 

 of his house ; he could not afford to make a proper 

 cesspool. In consequence the whole of the base- 

 ment of the house was flooded with sewage. He was 

 willing to fill up this well, but he could not afford to 

 pay for the cartage of sand from the seashore to the 

 house, and a great deal of sand would be required. A 

 telephone message to the superintendent of police 



