Proceedings of Eighth Annual Meeting 



33 



President 



Vice-President 

 Treasurer . . . 



Henry H. BrinkerhofT 

 . . Charles Lee Meyers 

 . . . . C. Howard Slater 



The next to be heard from is Bergen County, Dr. Lewis Brown, 

 member of the Bergen County Mosquito Extermination Commis- 

 sion. 



Mr. Chairman, Fellow-Members and Friends : 



, As we look back on the work of mosquito control accomplished 

 in Bergen County during 1920 we cannot help but feel that distinct 

 and certain progress was made in all phases of the work. In fact 

 in point of the amount of work done, it stands out as our biggest 

 year and this in spite of the late start we were forced to make and the 

 inferior grade of labor we were compelled to make use of. These 

 factors retarted our outlined schedule materially and caused us to 

 fall behind our original drainage program to a marked extent. What 

 should have been completed in June was still under course of con- 

 struction in August. So that much important ditching was not 

 finished in time to affect mosquito breeding in several large areas and 

 the benefits to be derived from this drainage will be felt far more 

 this summer than they were during that of last year. 



In further development of the general policy which this commis- 

 sion has maintained since its origin, we again chose to emphasize the 

 relative importance of drainage to the ultimate success of mosquito 

 control measures and instructed our superintendent to make the 

 carrying out of an extensive drainage program his paramount duty. 

 In view of the many, many acres of undrained or partially drained 

 mosquito breeding swampland, this appears to us as our only chance 

 of obtaining lasting results and we have decided to build toward the 

 future rather than to devote too much time and money to the elim- 

 ination of artificial or temporary breeding spots. It is our conclusion 

 based on an analysis of several years of experience that in Bergen 

 County the big problem is the eradication of the large swamps and 

 that an intensive campaign of inspection and oiling must necessarily 

 be deferred until such time as our drainage work has reached the 

 point where we feel that the results of such an intensive plan of 

 action will justify the cost. 



Also as usual at the outset of last year, we found the amount 

 V of drainage that should be done far exceeded the amount of appro- 

 priation available. The freeholders, because of post-war conditions, 

 especially asked us not to submit a larger budget and as we have 



