340 
JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY 
[Vol. 11 
packing of manure, and continuous spraying with poison bait and con¬ 
tact insecticide. 
Every day the manure and litter from stalls and paddocks was 
swept up and carted to huge trenches previously prepared in the sand- 
dunes. These trenches were dug to a depth of about ten feet, i. e. y 
down to the clay layer sublying the sand. They were often twenty 
feet wide and fifty to seventy long. The carting was done by a special 
staff of sixteen natives under a non-commissioned officer. The average 
amount was approximately 150 to 160 scotch-cart loads per day. This 
was spread out in the huge trench until a depth of about one foot was 
reached when other boys proceeded to cover it with a thin layer (J 
inches) of sand, ashes or earth. It was arranged that, in carting fresh 
material, it was necessary to pass and re-pass over the manure already 
spread so that it became well pressed down and, as new layers were 
added, each day’s deposit received its coat of sand and afterwards its 
rolling or ramming down. When a trench was filled it was covered 
with a layer of a foot or so of earth or sand and then thoroughly rolled 
for two or three days. Disinfectants or lime were not added. This 
method of storing produces a dense peaty mass of manure which analy¬ 
sis shows to be of particularly good quality. One large deposit of the 
manure was purchased recently by an Association and a small trolley¬ 
line laid down for its removal to the railway siding. 
For sweeping manure from the stalls, hard brushes are used; and, 
although the work is thoroughly done, there is always a number of 
flies around. To deal with these four natives under a “conductor” 
are constantly treating them with a contact spray. The mixture used 
consists of: 
Caustic soda. 2 pounds 
Boiling water. 50 gallons 
Paraffin 
Hycol. . 
An attempt is made with this to actually hit the settled flies and it was 
found that a broad-bore garden syringe was more effective than an 
ordinary spray pump. 
Fly bait consisting of: 
5 pounds 1 
5 to 20 pounds 
25 gallons 
Arsenite of soda 
Black sugar 
Boiled in water. 
is distributed on blue-gum branches and pieces of sacking. These are 
1 This seems excessively high in arsenite, being twice the amount usually recom¬ 
mended. It has been reported by some workers that if too much arsenite be used it 
acts as a repellent, defeating the purpose of a bait. C. K. B. 
