REMEDIES AGAINST MOSQUITOES 215 



ing is equal to oil of citronella. He has used this on the 

 seashore with great success for three summers, and has 

 recommended it to guimers and others, who have re- 

 ported good results. Mr. E. H. Gane, of the firm of Mc- 

 Kesson & Bobbins, of New York, informs me that the 

 essential oils which he has found most effective in keep- 

 ing away mosquitoes have been the oils of lavender, cit- 

 ronella, and eucalyptus, in the order named. The sub- 

 stance, however, which he has found to work with most 

 perfect success is castor oil. He wrote under date of Oc- 

 tober 3, 1900, " Of course the application of this oil in its 

 natural state is almost as objectionable as the bite of the 

 insect, but by dissolving it in alcohol and adding some 

 kind of essential oil or perfume, a preparation can be 

 made which is not objectionable to most people and is 

 very effective as a iDreventive of mosquito bites. The 

 formula which I have been using with great satisfaction 

 is : Castor oil, 1 ounce ; alcohol, 1 ounce ; oil of lavender, 

 1 drachm. The solution should not contain less than fifty 

 per cent, of the oil, to be satisfactory in all cases. 



Eucalyptus. 



In addition to the use of eucalyptus oil to keep mos- 

 quitoes from biting, as mentioned in the previous para- 

 graphs, the growth of eucalyptus trees is said by certain 

 persons to drive mosquitoes away, and trees of the genus 

 Eucaly|)tus have been especially recommended for ]dant- 

 ing in malarial regions. In 1893, Mr. Alvah A. Eaton, of 

 California, wrote that in portions of California where the 



