122 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF ONTARIO. 



as powdered borax and the many brands of'pyrethrum powder are mentioned, and "stov- 

 ing " with sulphur is given a prominent place under remedies. 



Deer Forest Fly : For some years Mis3 Ormerod has made a special study of 

 the llippoboscidce or Forest flies, and another chapter of her most interesting observations 

 on these little-known insects 'is given in the present report, with excellent figures of 

 the common Forest fly and the Deer Forest fly. 



Earwigs : The injuries of earwigs in hop gardens and to mangolds, swedes and 

 turnips, likewise to apple blossoms, have been serious in 1896. The old method of 

 trapping the insects in inverted flower pots or tin pots containing a wisp of straw 

 has given good results ; also beating them at night on to tarred boards. 



The House Fly [Musca domestica, L): One of the most interesting monographs 

 in this report, at any rate to the general public, is an account of the troubles caused 

 by the common house fly. Ihe life his'ory of the insect is treated of at considerable 

 length with quotations from the several authors who have written on the Bubject of 

 " flies " and a statement as to the serious annoyance by house flies in India upon 

 horses. Dr. Spooner Hart, V.S., of Calcutta., sent numerous specimens of a fly which 

 was examined carefully by specialists and found to be true Musca domestica. He says : 

 " March 24th. It is the worst pest the horse has here, and at this time of the year 

 it exists in thousands especially in the suburbs. It attacks in great numbers the eyes 

 principally, and is constantly flying off and coming back all day long to the same site. 

 This causes great irritation and inflammation, which, being continued day after day 

 and neglected, will lead to blindness, disfiguration of the eyes and ulceration of the 

 face. 



"Our hackney carriages (cibs) here are drawn by wretched half starved ponies 

 fed principally on grass, cut all day exposed to the sun, stabled in filthy holes and 

 are most disgracefully treated and neglected. Dozens of these unfortunate creatures 

 are blind from irritation set up by these flies, and present huge ulcers on either side of 

 the face just below the eye3, the result of constant lachrymation and irritation of the 

 flies. The eyelids are thickened and averted and the appearance is awful. The flies 

 are dreadfully persistent, and will not be shaken off." Under the head of Prevention 

 and Remedies it is pointed out that as house flies as far as is actually known for 

 certain, breed wholly in horse manure, much may be done to lessen the numbers by keep- 

 ing stables clean and removing as quickly as possible all horse droppings and getting 

 them into the land as soon as convenient. Further, as many observers believe that 

 house flies breed also in other decaying matters it i3 advised to pay special attention to 

 garbage thrown into ash pits. 



With regard to the attacks of flies to horses' ears, eyes, etc., Dr. Hart writes that a 

 carbolic wash when freshly applied will keep the flies away. Horses in India are also 

 protected by eye fringes, made of hanging white cords which cover the eyes and prevent 

 the flies from settling. The irritation to horses described above reminds us of the dis- 

 tressing accounts given by travellers in Egypt of the diseased condition of the eyes of 

 the Egyptian beggars, particularly of babies and children, from the irritation caused by 

 flies. The prevalence of ophthalmic troubles would suggest the frequent spread of these 

 diseases by flies, the infection being carried from person to person. 



As to the manner in which these sores are made Miss Ormerod says as follows : 

 " Several other kinds of flies are very commonly to be found in our houses, including; 

 Stomox>/s calcitrans, sometimes called the " stinging fly," which can give a painfully 

 sharp prick by mean3 of a needle-like proboscis. From these the house fly can be dis- 

 tinguished by its having not a sharp pricker, but a soft proboscis adapted for suction, but 

 incapable of penetrating the skin, so that when these insects trouble man and animals it 

 is only to imbibe their perspiration. But the various other flies which commonly pass 

 under the name of " house flies " much resemble them in many particulars of their life- 

 history, and speaking generally of these " flies " it is obvious that even of those which do 

 not sting, where the foot has the "pads" coveted with hundreds of hollow tubes 

 secreting a viscid fluid by which they adhere to the smoothest surface, and the organs 



