﻿IX, B. 1 Reiser: Plague in the Philippines 21 



died, and smears from the intestinal contents showed plague-like 

 Ijacilli. From the foregoing, it would appear that perhaps in- 

 fected bedbugs might be concerned in spreading the disease. 



The recent experience already described in this paper, in which 

 live fleas containing plague bacilli were found in the desk of Mr. 

 Crozier after the rat must have been dead for at least two weeks, 

 would also seem to make it possible that plague might have been 

 introduced by infected fleas, although the liability of such in- 

 troduction is greatly reduced because the clothing and other 

 effects of all second- and third-class passengers are disinfected 

 with steam. 



CONSIDERATIONS WITH REGARD TO A PRACTICAL METHOD TO 



PREVENT THE INTRODUCTION OF RATS OR INSECTS IN 



CARGO OR PASSENGERS' EFFECTS 



Since attention has been directed to the possibility of rats 

 being present in cargo, it has been a frequent experience for 

 customs employees and warehousemen to report rats in cargo 

 during unpacking operations. For instance, rats are found more 

 frequently among onions than among potatoes. Certain varieties 

 of potatoes are much more popular with rats than others. Rats 

 or insects that are free in the holds or other places on a ship 

 can be eradicated fairly successfully by fumigation while the 

 cargo is in course of being discharged or even afterward. 



Experience has shown that rats that are actually concealed 

 in cargo cannot be reached with sulphur gas with any degree of 

 certainty while such cargo is in the hold. There is also the 

 important consideration that when a gas is used which is suf- 

 ficiently strong to penetrate the containers, there is great danger 

 of injuring cargo like cloth, camphor, tea, etc. An effort was 

 made to unpack all cargo liable to harbor plague rats in a rat- 

 proof room or inclosure, but the cost was found to be prohibitive. 

 A conference was held with the importers for the purpose of 

 having an expression of opinion as to whether cargo liable to 

 harbor rats could not be shipped in metal containers, but these 

 last two procedures were declared by them to be too expensive 

 from a commercial standpoint. 



A review of the literature of plague fails to reveal any plan 

 effectually to deal with the prevention of the introduction of 

 rats in cargo. It is obvious that this is a most important con- 

 sideration, especially when cargo can be delivered within ten days 

 from the time that it was shipped from an infected port. 



