Gr. H. F. Nuttall 
>73 
V. General Summary and Practical Recommendations. 
As a first step in combating lousiness it is essential to teach men what 
lice are, and to tell them of the harm that lice may do. Having impressed 
this upon them, they should learn about the simple ways of mitigating 
the scourge which any intelligent person may employ. The words of an 
unknown Englishman, written 450 years ago, still hold true for combating 
the evil: 
“ The best is for to wasshe the oftetimes, and to chaunge oftentymes 
clene lynen V’ ' 
This one sentence might be regarded as a summary and practical con¬ 
clusion to all that the foregoing pages contain but for the circumstance 
that many persons are so placed that they do not wash frequently or do 
not change their undergarments as often as they should, because of 
circumstances over which they may have no control. 
Unremitting attention is required in the care of the body, head and 
clothing (pp. 418-420). Infestation may be prevented by protective 
clothing, by avoiding contact with the verminous and overcrowding of 
individuals some of whom may be unclean, by good ventilation in 
buildings, by frequent inspection whereby the evil, if discovered, may be 
checked at the start (pp. 420-423). 
The plan of procedure to be pursued in combating lousiness among 
troops and others is fully dealt with on pp. 559-565 and need not be 
recapitulated here. Suffice it to say that failing any other means, man 
may rid himself of vermin by the simple mechanical methods that 
animals and primitive peoples employ, and it is expedient that he should 
learn this if his defensive instinct is dead or dormant. Better placed than 
the animal, he can use razor and fine comb (in dialect “Scotch louse- 
trap”) and can temporarily or otherwise discard the clothing that corre¬ 
sponds to the infested fur of which animals cannot divest themselves. 
When seeking to destroy lice one should not be deceived by the 
feigned appearances of death that they may assume temporarily (p. 428). 
Both lice and nits are readily killed by a moderate degree of dry heat, by 
55° C. in 5 minutes, or by 65-70° C. in 1 minute, but in the practice of 
disinfestation by hot air the exposure period should be lengthened say 
to 15 minutes at 60-65° C. to allow for the penetration of the heat into 
the infested clothing. When immersed in water at 70° C., they are killed 
in 5 seconds, but in practice infested articles should be immersed a 
1 gee reference, p. 417. 
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