64 



ing. Ditching was corrected and such other work was done that 

 we did not at that time keep separate the actual cost of cleaning,, 

 as we will try to do this year, so that some information can be 

 given the State as to just what it cost to maintain the systems. 

 This, of course, includes 190,000 feet that was dug by the State 

 in the last part of 191 5. Of course, those ditches need very 

 little cleaning. 



This year we have dug 190,000 feet more of 10 x 25-inch ditch 

 and 35,000, feet of /x 18-inch ditch, or nearly 40^ miles more. 

 Considerable of this work was done by piece work. We equip- 

 ped three men with one of the patent spades, laid out a ditch 

 and started them to work. When they got through, or got 

 tired, the ditch was measured up and they were paid for it at 

 .the rate of one cent per foot. They made good money for it^ 

 and, of course, the county got absolutely what it paid for. 



We have been obliged to do very little oiling this year. Our 

 oil bill was only about $40, and we have on hand, I guess, nearly 

 half of that yet. 



We have not tackled the fresh-water problem, because the 

 salt-marsh problem, as I shall show you on the map, is so much 

 more important to Ocean County. This year, however, we hope 

 to take up that problem and interest the local communities in the 

 work, so that they will help us out, and, naturally, become mos- 

 quito enthusiasts the same as the rest of us. 



For our new work we asked for bids in June, but it came at 

 a time when labor was pretty scarce and high and uncertain, 

 and we had two bids of 2.46 cents, about two and a half cents 

 a foot, and one of 1.98. They seemed to us -entirely too high. 

 We thought we were smart enough to do our ditching for a 

 cent a foot, and thought some contractor could be found to do 

 it too. We were under the belief a little later that we could get 

 it done for a cent a foot, or somewhere thereabouts, if we would 

 wait a little bit. We waited until September and asked for bids 

 again. The result was we got exactly the same bids from, the 

 same people. Then we determined to do it ourselves, but by the 

 time we got ready to do it we realized we could not get labor 

 enough during the fall months to cut the requisite number of 



