io8 Proceedings oe Ninth ANNVAh Mejeting 



parts of the county in first class condition. About 151) miles of 

 ditches were thoroughly cleaned, and after putting in three large 

 sluices with tide gates on the Delaware Bay Meadows, we found 

 we had very little funds left with which to install new ditches. 



The sluices were placed on the Green Creek and Fishing Creek 

 meadows and averaged 200 feet in length with 4 ft. x 6 ft. tide- 

 gates. The total cost was $4,383.07. 



The result of the work in our county has been all that could . 

 be expected. Very little breeding, if any, was found in the 

 drained sections, but the flights O'f mosquitoes from the dis- 

 tricts which had not been drained were so large at times that it 

 was almost impossible to convince the average person that the 

 mosquitoes were not breeding on the drained marshes. 



Our great problem for this year is the South Cape May Dis- 

 trict. This section has been drained for several years and kept 

 free of breeding until about two years ago when the ocean 

 forced its way through the sand dunes, leveling them until they 

 reached that point where all extremely high tides flowed into 

 these marshes. This made it impossible for our ditches to carry 

 off the water fast enough, resulting in a large amount of breed- 

 ing. The only way, within our limited means, that this condi- 

 tion may be overcome is to build up again the sand at this point. 

 With this aim in view, we are now building a sand collector of 

 two rows of alternating piling, set two- feet apart and brushed 

 at certain sections. It is hoped that the complete elimination of 

 breeding in this large section will be the result. 



Another problem: with which Cape May County has to con- 

 tend is the ever-shifting sand on the Delaware Bay shore. It is 

 a physical impossibility to keep any natural outlets open for 

 any length of time in this section. This necessitates placing 

 large culverts at every outlet along the bay. These culverts are 

 a large item in our annual budget and of course greatly reduce 

 the amount of new ditching we are able to place. Still we feel 

 that these culverts are one of the greatest factors in freeing our 

 section of the mosquito pest. 



Cape May County now has about .1,459,173 feet of standard 

 ditches installed on its salt marsh meadows which is about two- 

 thirds of the amount required to complete the salt marsh work. 



During the last two weeks of July, 192 1, we, as well as most 

 other counties, had a large flight of mosquitoes. .The weather 

 conditions, being favorable, the undrained tracts of marsh were 

 breeding mosquitoes in large numbers. 



When we have heavy rains and high tides it is almost impos- 

 sible for any system of drainage, however perfect, to carry off 



