156 ENTOMOLOGY FOR MEDICAL OFFICERS 



breathes, and many such boils, each containing a maggot of 

 the same age, may occur simultaneously in the same patient. 

 How the maggot reaches its station under the skin is not 

 known with certainty. According to Major F. Smith, the 

 natives of West Africa believe that the fly deposits its eggs 

 on the ground and that the young larva penetrate the skin 

 of people sleeping on the ground ; according to Major A. P. 

 Blenkinsop, it is a common opinion in West Africa that, in 

 the case of Europeans, the parasites are acquired at the 

 latrine ; according to Mr Austen, the belief among Europeans 

 in Rhodesia is that the fly lays its eggs on woollen clothing 

 hung out to dry. 



