EXAMPLES OF MOSQUITO EXTERMINATIVE MEASURES. 103 



The news was spread rapidly in the whole island and all the troops despatched there 

 became very cautious regarding the bites of mosquitoes. This raution itself gave 

 good results, and the number of patients and deaths decreased distinctly last year, 

 compared with the preceding years: 





Number of 

 patients. 



Number of 

 deaths. 



Ratio of 

 patients. 



Ratio of 

 deaths. 



From 1897 to 1900, average 



34.043 



22,438 



27,325 

 14,. 500 



Per cent. 

 242. 514 

 173.211 



Per cent. 

 1.947 



1901 



1.119 







Now it is very clear that the prevention of malaria is secured by guarding against 

 mosquitoes, and we believe that Formosa will become a healthy island within a few 

 years. 



In the recent war between Russia and Japan, the Japanese gave the 

 world an example of field sanitation hitherto unequaled in history, 

 a vivid account of which will be found in "The Real Triumph of 

 Japan," by Dr. Louis Livingston Seaman, formerly surgeon-major, 

 United States Volunteers (New York, 1907), from which the following 

 facts are drawn: 



Longmore's tables, based on the records of the battles of the last 

 two hundred years, show that there has rarely been a conflict of any 

 long duration in which there have not been four deaths from disease 

 to one from bullets. In the Spanish- American war there were 14 

 deaths from disease to 1 from battle. Japan in her war with China 

 in 1894 lost 3 from disease to 1 from bullets; but from February, 

 1904, to May, 1905, in her war with Russia 4 were lost in battle to 1 

 only from disease, the exact figures being 52,946 lost in battle and 

 11,992 lost from disease, and the significant fact must be added that 

 of the total sick only 3.51 per cent were sick with infectious diseases. 

 There were only 1,257 cases of malaria in the whole army, 600,000 

 strong, in the eighteen months duration of the war, whereas in 1894, 

 in the war with China, there had been 41,734 cases of malaria. At 

 the outset of the campaign the purifying of cities occupied was begun 

 and attention was paid to mosquito breeding-places. One of the 

 orders issued was that the waste water of the barracks should be 

 connected with the town gutters. Incidentally it may be noted that 

 all articles sold publicly were required to be covered to protect them 

 from flies. In the book of health instructions issued to soldiers 

 occurred the paragraph, "Malaria is spread by mosquitoes; therefore 

 protect yourself from them as much as possible." The soldiers had 

 their camp kettles with them, they were furnished with water boilers, 

 and all water had to be boiled before being drunk. They were fur- 

 nished with mosquito bars, and every man was enveloped in a bar 

 during the mosquito season. The result of 1,257 cases of malaria out 

 of an army 600,000 strong must be contrasted with a telegram Bent 

 from General Shafter at Santiago on August S during the Spanish- 



