﻿TSETSE 
  FLY 
  IN 
  SOUTHERN 
  RHODESIA, 
  1918. 
  77 
  

  

  number 
  of 
  cases 
  in 
  the 
  Hartley 
  district, 
  the 
  impression 
  up 
  to 
  that 
  time 
  is 
  summed 
  

   up 
  in 
  the 
  following 
  passage 
  from 
  the 
  report 
  of 
  the 
  Director 
  of 
  Agriculture 
  for 
  that 
  

   year 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  " 
  The 
  free 
  shooting 
  of 
  game 
  allowed 
  in 
  the 
  neighbourhood 
  of 
  Hartley, 
  with 
  the 
  

   object 
  of 
  eliminating 
  tsetse-fly 
  from 
  that 
  populous 
  area, 
  appears 
  to 
  have 
  achieved 
  

   its 
  object 
  in 
  a 
  very 
  large 
  measure, 
  as 
  the 
  fly 
  is 
  by 
  no 
  means 
  as 
  abundant 
  as 
  formerly 
  ; 
  

   and 
  though 
  domestic 
  stock 
  are 
  more 
  widely 
  distributed, 
  very 
  little 
  is 
  heard 
  of 
  their 
  

   being 
  fly 
  struck. 
  The 
  suppression 
  of 
  trypanosomiasis 
  amongst 
  cattle, 
  consequent 
  

   on 
  the 
  reduction 
  of 
  fly 
  by 
  driving 
  away 
  the 
  game, 
  cannot 
  be 
  proved 
  to 
  demonstration, 
  

   but 
  certainly, 
  as 
  in 
  the 
  destruction 
  of 
  dogs 
  to 
  eliminate 
  rabies, 
  everything 
  points 
  to 
  

   this 
  result 
  having 
  been 
  obtained." 
  

  

  It 
  will 
  be 
  seen 
  therefore 
  that 
  not 
  only 
  the 
  writer's 
  personal 
  observations 
  but 
  the 
  

   whole 
  veterinary 
  record 
  for 
  the 
  district 
  prove 
  the 
  great 
  reduction 
  of 
  fly 
  that 
  took 
  

   place 
  in 
  the 
  area 
  between 
  the 
  years 
  1908 
  and 
  1913. 
  

  

  The 
  fact 
  of 
  a 
  great 
  reduction 
  of 
  game 
  having 
  taken 
  place 
  during 
  the 
  same 
  period 
  

   scarcely 
  needs 
  proof, 
  seeing 
  that 
  free 
  shooting 
  was 
  allowed 
  in 
  a 
  comparatively 
  populous 
  

   district. 
  The 
  writer 
  noted 
  a 
  steady 
  diminution 
  in 
  both 
  game 
  actually 
  seen 
  and 
  fresh 
  

   spoor 
  from 
  August 
  1909 
  onwards, 
  and 
  the 
  increasing 
  difficulty 
  of 
  obtaining 
  a 
  " 
  bag 
  " 
  

   was 
  a 
  common 
  complaint 
  as 
  time 
  went 
  on, 
  the 
  scarcity 
  of 
  wart-hog, 
  which 
  was 
  at 
  

   one 
  time 
  abundant, 
  being 
  especially 
  noted. 
  The 
  marvel 
  is 
  that 
  any 
  game 
  survived 
  

   the 
  constant 
  persecution 
  ; 
  but 
  so 
  attractive 
  was 
  the 
  area 
  at 
  certain 
  seasons 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  

   that 
  big 
  buck 
  were 
  to 
  be 
  met 
  with 
  at 
  times 
  even 
  after 
  the 
  deforestation 
  commenced 
  

   and 
  are 
  probably 
  not 
  altogether 
  absent 
  at 
  the 
  present 
  day. 
  Professional 
  hunters 
  

   shot 
  largely 
  in 
  this 
  area 
  up 
  to 
  about 
  1909, 
  as 
  the 
  remains 
  of 
  their 
  camps, 
  littered 
  with 
  

   bones 
  and 
  refuse, 
  in 
  that 
  year 
  indicated. 
  They 
  apparently 
  did 
  not 
  find 
  it 
  worth 
  

   while 
  in 
  the 
  years 
  following, 
  but 
  residents, 
  at 
  Hartley 
  especially, 
  made 
  hunting 
  ex- 
  

   cursions 
  to 
  the 
  Suri-suri 
  an 
  agreeable 
  week-end 
  recreation 
  as 
  long 
  as 
  there 
  was 
  a 
  

   reasonable 
  chance 
  of 
  getting 
  a 
  shot. 
  The 
  reduction 
  of 
  game 
  is 
  actually 
  a 
  more 
  

   difficult 
  matter 
  to 
  prove, 
  apart 
  from 
  personal 
  observations, 
  than 
  the 
  reduction 
  of 
  

   fly, 
  but 
  the 
  Hartley 
  residents 
  who 
  were 
  in 
  the 
  habit 
  of 
  using 
  this 
  area 
  as 
  a 
  happy 
  

   hunting 
  ground 
  are 
  not 
  likely 
  to 
  call 
  the 
  statement 
  into 
  question. 
  

  

  The 
  fact 
  that 
  a 
  large 
  area 
  remained 
  untouched 
  by 
  civilisation, 
  with 
  the 
  exception 
  

   of 
  the 
  reduction 
  of 
  game, 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  cutting 
  on 
  the 
  wood 
  contract 
  commenced, 
  is 
  

   easily 
  established. 
  The 
  writer 
  has 
  in 
  his 
  possession 
  a 
  copy 
  of 
  a 
  large 
  scale 
  map 
  

   drawn 
  up 
  by 
  the 
  contractors 
  showing 
  the 
  area 
  blocked 
  out 
  for 
  wood 
  cutting, 
  the 
  areas 
  

   reserved 
  for 
  other 
  mines 
  and 
  the 
  remaining 
  untouched 
  forest 
  in 
  the 
  neighourhood. 
  

   There 
  was 
  a 
  continuous 
  area 
  of 
  virgin 
  forest 
  not 
  far 
  short 
  of 
  a 
  hundred 
  and 
  fifty 
  

   square 
  miles, 
  embracing 
  the 
  bulk 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  fly 
  belt, 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  the 
  wood 
  cutting 
  

   concession 
  was 
  granted, 
  dating 
  from 
  the 
  1st 
  January 
  1913 
  (see 
  Map 
  III). 
  

  

  As 
  it 
  is 
  impossible 
  that 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  European 
  settlement 
  could 
  have 
  any 
  direct 
  

   effect 
  on 
  tsetse-fly 
  four 
  or 
  five 
  miles 
  away 
  in 
  the 
  shady 
  depths 
  of 
  its 
  native 
  forest, 
  

   there 
  are 
  only 
  two 
  alternative 
  explanations 
  of 
  the 
  Hartley 
  phenomenon. 
  Either 
  

   the 
  reduction 
  of 
  the 
  game 
  was 
  the 
  direct 
  cause 
  of 
  the 
  reduction 
  of 
  fly 
  or 
  we 
  must 
  

   appeal 
  again 
  to 
  natural 
  causes 
  and 
  coincidence. 
  

  

  In 
  connection 
  with 
  the 
  Cam 
  and 
  Motor 
  wood 
  contract, 
  a 
  light 
  railway 
  was 
  run 
  

   down 
  into 
  the 
  fly 
  area 
  in 
  1913 
  and 
  in 
  October 
  of 
  that 
  year 
  a 
  considerable 
  number 
  

  

  