CHAPTER XIV 

 A MIGHTY ATOM 



THE deadly scourge of malaria has for long 

 been a source of considerable danger to 

 Europeans who travel in tropical chmes ; and 

 although medical science has worked wonders in 

 minimising the risks attending the dreaded fever, 

 yet much remains to be done before the white man 

 can be declared to be immune against its influence. 



Of late years it has been discovered that mos- 

 quitoes are largely responsible for carrying the germs 

 and inoculating the same into human beings, and, 

 consequently, war has been waged against the 

 larvae of these pests in an endeavour to destroy 

 them before they change into their winged state ; 

 for as the mosquitoes lay the eggs from which the 

 larvae emerge, in stagnant ponds or other suitable 

 situations, the work of destruction is rendered 

 much easier than would otherwise be the case if 

 the insects themselves had to be dealt with. 



In Barbados, where malaria is very prevalent, 

 it has been found that some tiny fish — known as 

 ' millions ' on account of their being found in immense 

 niimbers within the shallow waters of that island, 



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