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the wasteway from the lake, and in two or three other places. His 

 notes upon the first experiment with the oil treatment are as follows: 



At the wasteway, near the lake dam, where the stream is approximately 5 feet 

 wide, one-third of a gallon of phinotas oil was applied at 4 a. m., June 22. The 

 effect was at once noticeable. At 2 p. m., the same day, most of the larvae were 

 dead, while the remainder were sluggish. On the afternoon of the next day, the 

 conditions were carefully investigated and all the larva? were found to be dead, not 

 only where the oil was applied, but for 10 feet or so ahead as well. 



The oil was applied by simply pouring it over a shingle, thus scattering it some- 

 what. It sinks and rises, and lingers long about the place. Stones in the water 

 picked up forty-eight hours after the application had a thin film of the oil still on them. 



When Mr. Conradi reported the results of his trip it seemed to me 

 that the problem was in part at least solved, the chief perplexing 

 feature being- the possible deleterious effect upon fish life of the appli- 

 cation of the oil in quantity. From the similarity of the breeding- 

 places he found to the one I had been observing, it occurred to me 

 that a little work with stiff brooms in sweeping free the masses of 

 larva? and then catching them downstream on wire netting stretched 

 in the water might be helpful where the oil could not be applied. 

 Accordingly, I sent to Dixville Notch a barrel of phinotas oil and a 

 supply of stiff stable brooms. When these arrived Mr. Conradi was 

 sent again with specific instructions as to the use of the brooms and 

 the application of the oil, especial^ in the latter case as to its effect 

 upon fish life. He found that the sweeping method was entirely prac- 

 ticable and offered in some breeding grounds a simple method of 

 destroying the pests. He also found that in a brook 3 feet wide where 

 in June the flies were breeding in vast quantities in which he had 

 poured one-half gallon of phinotas oil, the } T oung stages of the flies had 

 been killed off for a distance of one-eighth of a mile from the place of 

 application. As regards fish, he found that they swam rapidly dow r n 

 stream as soon as oil w'as applied, and apparently were able to escape 

 without evil results to them. 



Shortly after the treatment the adult black flies became so scarce 

 that the hotel managers discarded the smudges which for the last 

 twelve summers had been in daily use for the protection of the guests. 



I believe that these experiments justify the hope that in the near 

 future the black fly will be more easily controlled in centers of perma- 

 nent or temporaiw population than is the mosquito. 



A vote of thanks was extended to Doctor Fletcher for the efficient 

 and impartial manner in which he had presided over the meeting. It 

 was voted that the meeting adjourn to meet at the same time and 

 place with the American Association for the Advancement of Science 

 when it next assembles. 



The meeting was then declared adjourned. 



A. F. Burgess, Secretary. 



