Proceedings of Eighth Annual Meeting 



139 



Why Anti-Mosquito Work Has Not Become County-Wide 

 in All Counties 



By J. G. LiPMAN 



The success of anti-mosquito activities in New Jersey must depend 

 on popular support. In so far as the presence of mosquitoes becomes 

 a source of annoyance or discomfort, or even becomes a direct 

 menace to health, public sentiment will be aroused and a more or 

 less insistent demand made for remedial legislation and activities. 



Under the conditions existing in New Jersey mosquitoes are of 

 secondary importance only as a health factor. To be sure cases of 

 malaria are not uncommon in the state. Indeed, epidemics of the 

 disease occur here and there and there are localities wheie it has 

 been endemic for a long time. But, in spite of the occurrence of 

 malaria in this or that locality, pubHc sentiment has never been 

 aroused, or at least crystallized, to such a point as to result in county- 

 wide anti-mosquito activities. A few years ago there were several 

 hundred cases of malaria in Sussex County. This did not lead, how- 

 ever, to the organization of a mosquito extermination commission in 

 Sussex County. More recently the number of malaria cases in the 

 vicinity of Princeton increased sufficiently to cause rnuch local com- 

 ment. The matter was brought before the board of freeholders, 

 and the mosquito extermination commission of the county, ordin- 

 arily inactive, was for the time being galvanized into Hfe and lent 

 its support and authority to the more or less effective solution of the 

 problem. More recently still a portion of New Brunswick, in Mid- 

 dlesex County, developed a rather large number of cases of malaria. 

 The matter was brought to the attention of the county mosquito 

 extermination commission, but the latter was unable to develop suffi- 

 cient popular support to allow of dealing with the problem in an 

 effective manner. The point I am trying to make, therefore, is that, 

 disturbing as may be the malaria situation now and then and in one 

 locality or another, the public is not aroused sufficiently to bring the 

 necessary pressure to bear on county officials and boards of free- 

 holders in behalf of adequate appropriations for dealing with the 

 problem. 



It is quite different when we consider mosquitoes as a nuisance 

 rather than a carrier of disease. As a nuisance the salt marsh mos- 

 quito attains the role of an important economic factor. The annoy- 

 ance caused by it is sufficiently grave to discourage the influx of 

 home seekers. Much of the suburban territory invaded by flights 



