﻿REPORT 
  OF 
  THE 
  STATE 
  ENTOMOLOGIST 
  I908 
  2/ 
  

  

  a 
  harmless 
  species 
  which, 
  in 
  recent 
  years, 
  has 
  become 
  well 
  estab- 
  

   lished 
  in 
  many 
  houses 
  in 
  New 
  York 
  State. 
  It 
  is 
  credited 
  with 
  

   preying 
  on 
  house 
  flies, 
  cockroaches 
  and 
  presumably 
  other 
  insect 
  

   inhabitants 
  of 
  dwellings. 
  

  

  The 
  house 
  fly 
  as 
  a 
  carrier 
  of 
  disease. 
  The 
  house 
  fly 
  is 
  such 
  

   a 
  common 
  insect 
  that 
  altogether 
  too 
  much 
  has 
  been 
  taken 
  for 
  

   gTanted. 
  Up 
  to 
  recently 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  considered 
  simply 
  as 
  an 
  

   inevitable 
  nuisance. 
  Later 
  developments 
  have 
  shown 
  that 
  this 
  

   insect 
  may 
  be 
  an 
  important 
  factor 
  in 
  the 
  dissemination 
  of 
  certain 
  

   diseases. 
  

  

  Typhoid 
  fever 
  is 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  serious 
  ailments 
  to 
  w^hich 
  man 
  

   is 
  subject. 
  There 
  are 
  about 
  250,000 
  cases 
  of 
  this 
  disease 
  annually 
  

   in 
  America, 
  about 
  35,000 
  proving 
  fatal. 
  6o;» 
  of 
  the 
  deaths 
  in 
  

   the 
  Franco-Prussian 
  War 
  and 
  30;^' 
  of 
  the 
  deaths 
  in 
  the 
  Boer 
  War 
  

   were 
  caused 
  by 
  this 
  disease. 
  Positive 
  statements 
  have 
  been 
  made 
  

   to 
  the 
  effect 
  that 
  the 
  house 
  fly 
  was 
  an 
  active 
  agent 
  in 
  the 
  dissemi- 
  

   nation 
  of 
  this 
  disease, 
  while 
  certain 
  reputable 
  physicians 
  consider 
  

   this 
  charge 
  unproved. 
  The 
  Spanish-American 
  War, 
  if 
  it 
  accom- 
  

   plished 
  nothing 
  else, 
  called 
  attention 
  in 
  a 
  most 
  forcible 
  manner 
  to 
  

   the 
  part 
  flies 
  might 
  play 
  in 
  the 
  dissemination 
  of 
  typhoid 
  bacilli. 
  

   Dr 
  M. 
  A. 
  Veeder 
  of 
  Lyons 
  writing 
  in 
  1898 
  was 
  very 
  strongly 
  of 
  

   the 
  opinion 
  that 
  the 
  house 
  fly 
  w^as 
  largely 
  responsible 
  for 
  the 
  dis- 
  

   semination 
  of 
  this 
  disease 
  in 
  camps. 
  Dr 
  Walter 
  Reed 
  writing 
  of 
  

   an 
  outbreak 
  near 
  Porto 
  Principe 
  in 
  the 
  annual 
  report 
  of 
  the 
  War 
  

   Department 
  states 
  that 
  the 
  outbreak 
  '' 
  was 
  clearly 
  not 
  due 
  to 
  water 
  

   infection 
  but 
  was 
  transferred 
  from 
  the 
  infected 
  stools 
  of 
  patients 
  

   to 
  the 
  food 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  flies, 
  the 
  conditions 
  being 
  especially 
  favor- 
  

   able 
  for 
  this 
  manner 
  of 
  dissemination." 
  Dr 
  L. 
  O. 
  Howard, 
  writing 
  

   in 
  1900 
  on 
  the 
  fauna 
  of 
  human 
  excrement, 
  quotes 
  from 
  

   Dr 
  Vaughan, 
  a 
  member 
  of 
  the 
  army 
  typhoid 
  commission, 
  as 
  fol- 
  

   lows 
  : 
  

  

  27 
  Flies 
  undoubtedly 
  served 
  as 
  carriers 
  of 
  the 
  infection. 
  

  

  My 
  reasons 
  for 
  believing 
  that 
  flies 
  were 
  active 
  in 
  the 
  dissemi- 
  

   nation 
  of 
  typhoid 
  may 
  be 
  stated 
  as 
  follows 
  : 
  

  

  a 
  Flies 
  swarmed 
  over 
  infected 
  fecal 
  matter 
  in 
  the 
  pits 
  and 
  then 
  

   visited 
  and 
  fed 
  upon 
  the 
  food 
  prepared 
  for 
  the 
  soldiers 
  at 
  the 
  

   mess 
  tents. 
  In 
  some 
  instances 
  where 
  lime 
  had 
  recently 
  been 
  

   sprinkled 
  over 
  the 
  contents 
  of 
  the 
  pits, 
  flies 
  with 
  their 
  feet 
  whit- 
  

   ened 
  with 
  lime 
  were 
  seen 
  walking 
  over 
  the 
  food. 
  

  

  h 
  Oflicers 
  wdiose 
  mess 
  tents 
  were 
  protected 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  screens 
  

   suffered 
  proportionately 
  less 
  from 
  typhoid 
  fever 
  than 
  did 
  those 
  

   whose 
  tents 
  were 
  not 
  so 
  protected. 
  

  

  