l6 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



done. This is entirely practical in many places and in accord with 

 the best agricultural practice. Sanitary regulations of the District 

 of Columbia permit the keeping of manure in barrels, provided it is 

 tightly packed and removed within a certain period. Manure 

 spread upon the field dries out so rapidly that the insects are unable 

 to complete their transformations. The persistence of flies m 

 localities where this practice prevails, means that certain breeding 

 places have been overlooked and, as a rule, the evil can be corrected 

 without great expense. There is no reason why stables and barns 

 on farms in particular, should be located so near the house as to 

 cause serious trouble on account of flies. One or more of the 

 above measures is applicable to every stable in cities and villages 

 and should be practical under most farm conditions. 



It will be found in practice that some flies are very apt to exist 

 in a neighborhood even after the adoption of rigid precautions. 

 They should be kept out of houses, so far as possible, by the use of 

 window and door screens, supplemented by the employment of 

 Tanglefoot or other sticky fly-paper, or better yet, a sweetened 5 to 8 

 per cent solution of commercial formaldehyde. This latter should 

 be renewed from day to day and exposed in saucers or other shal- 

 low dishes in places where flies are most abundant. A 40 per 

 cent solution of formaldehyde can be purchased in drug stores, 

 and if diluted with five or six times its volume of water, will give 

 the desired strength; add a little sugar or other sweet. This ma- 

 terial is somewhat expensive but much preferable to arsenical or 

 cobalt poisons so extensively used against flies. Fresh pyrethrum 

 powder placed upon window sills has also been highly recommended. 



The control of this pest is of great importance to the community. 

 Individual effort in this direction should be strengthened and sus- 

 tained by all officials charged with protecting the public health. 

 The Health Department of Washington, D. C. has already pro- 

 mulgated excellent ordinances against the fly pest. Similar action 

 should be taken by health officials in our municipalities and villages. 



Fruit flies 



These light brown flies, only about % of an inch long, are most 

 commonly found about the pomace of cider mills and on overripe 

 or partly decaying fruit. They are attracted by fermented liquids, 

 such as wine, cider, vinegar, beer, and may frequently be observed 

 on the sides of jars containing preserved fruits. There are two 



