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SOME EXPERIENCE WITH MOSQUITOES. 
By Howard Evarts Weed, Agricultural College, Miss. 
While it has been known for some time that a small amount of kero- 
sene placed upon water containing the larvae of the mosquito will kill 
the larvae and thus to some extent lessen the number of mosquitoes in 
a locality, it was not until Mr. Howard gave his experience with the 
remedy that we realized how easy it was to rid a locality of the mos- 
quito pest. In the French quarter of New Orleans it has been a com- 
mon practice for many years to place kerosene in the water tanks to 
lessen the number of mosquitoes in that locality; but I know of nothing 
that has been written showing that such is the case, and in this age 
of advancement we can no longer go by hearsay evidence. Every- 
thing must be founded upon known facts, and these facts can only be 
ascertained by experiment. Thinking that some experience with the 
kerosene remedy for mosquitoes which I have had this season might be 
of interest, I wish to state the following as corroborative of what Mr. 
Howard has shown in regard to the simplicity of the remedy. 
On the college campus are eleven large water tanks, two of which 
are used for drinking water and the others for irrigation and fire pro- 
tection Not far from the limits of the campus are also four pools of 
standing water, three of which are used for watering stock and the 
other for irrigation in the horticultural department. These pools, how- 
ever, are well stocked with fish, and as I have never fouiid any mos- 
quito larvae in the pools, I am under the impression that the fish keep 
the pools clear of them. 
Before the water tanks were built the college campus had been quite 
free from mosquitoes, but the evil has been constantly upon the increase, 
reaching its climax early the present season. I have often advised 
that a small amount of kerosene be placed in each of the water tanks, 
and the college proctor several times informed me that he "had a nig- 
ger put kerosene in the tanks every week, but it did no good." The 
college physician also stated that he had placed some kerosene in ajar 
of water containing some of the wiggletails, but that the kerosene 
had not killed them, thus regarding the remedy recommended as inef- 
fective. 
By the 20th of June of the present year mosquitoes had become so 
numerous on the college campus as to make life a burden, and sleeping 
without a mosquito bar was out of the question. Wishing to demon- 
strate the effectiveness of the remedy which I had recommended, I took 
a large glass jar and filled it nearly full with water from one of the 
tanks, which was fairly alive with the mosquito larvae. The jar con- 
tained several hundred of the larvae and I took it to the college physi 
cian, poured a little kerosene in the jar, and asked him to please watch 
the effect. This was as expected, for within fifteen minutes all the larvae 
