522 
Combating Lousiness 
For killing corporis on clothing. The Ivais. Gesundheitsamt states 
that Weyland in the Franco-Prussian war obtained excellent 
results by exposing clothes to vapour in tightly closed boxes for 
2-3 hrs. Busson recommends an exposure of 3-4 hrs in boxes, lice 
being found to recover from shorter exposures. Letulle and Bordas 
advise spraying clothing placed in metal cylinders which are then 
quickly closed. Ragg reckons that 0-5 L. should be sprayed per 
100 L. space. Swellengrebel reckons 1 L. per 1-5 cbm. and advises 
an exposure of 24 hrs, the fluid being atomized into hermetically 
sealed cases through an opening at the top, the vapour gravitating 
downward. Eckert states that the box method is unreliable though 
recommended by authority. In cold weather the clothing must be 
well aired before use so as to evaporate the benzine; this should not 
be done near a fire. Ragg advises dabbing the clothes afterwards 
with | % sublimate solution to kill nits (value doubtful). 
Soaking ragged lousy clothing in benzine is a method employed 
at Kaposi’s Clinic, Vienna (Pinkus); infested Italian soldiers’ 
clothes have been soaked in benzine contained in barrels (Mendes); 
the vessels should actually contain enough fluid to immerse the 
clothing, and, as a large experience has shown, the exposure should 
not last less than 2 hrs (Muto). 
For destroying lice in 1st class railway carriages in France, the 
fluid is evaporated from dishes standing in warm water; exposure 
period 24 hrs. 
For killing lice on men it is applied to the body beneath the 
cloak (Renault), or where the men are wounded and cannot be 
shaved and bathed it is recommended to place 15 drops on com¬ 
presses put on the breast, back, etc., repeating this every 4 days. 
(Letulle and Bordas.) Darier (ii. 1918, p. 224) states that the 
Assistance Publique of Paris recommends an ointment consisting 
of trioxymethylene 1 pt, benzine 10 pts, vaseline 1000 pts, for 
application to the hairy parts of the body; it should serve for 
capitis, corporis and pubis. 
Expts 5-8: nits survived immersion for 1-25 minutes. Expts 
131-137: nits survived 3 hrs exposure to vapour, lice killed in 
12-24 hrs with certainty. Expt 243: sprayed on clothing, lice 
supposedly killed in 15-20 minutes (merely immobilized). Expts 
347-348: pubis killed in 1 minute by immersion and 5 minutes by 
vapour. 
See also Nos. 426, 431. 
