Passing of the Horse and the Automobile Age Are Chief Reasons.
Extermination War Help.
There are fewer houseflies than usual nearly everywhere. It is one of the blessings of a summer in which many pessimists seem to imagine they have nothing to be grateful for. There are several reasons not only explaining this relief from the ancient past, but promising greater immunity hereafter.
About half of it, has come from taking thought, and the other half by taking chance. In the former category may be placed the screening of houses, the liberal use of swatters and the elimination of flies, breeding places-measures of an aggressive war of extermination and prevention. Increasing cleanliness indoors and out-of-doors, as part of a general improvement in sanitation has helped mightily. Possibly too, such ultra-scientific methods as using a shade of blue wall paper that the flies particularly abominate have some effect. So much for the one side, for which mankind, not to mention womenkind, may take credit.
The other side has to do with automobiles. It is one of the unforseen and as yet little-appreciated blessings of the gas engine. The automobile, by displacing the horse has tremendously diminished the number of manure piles and thus deprived the fly of his favorite breeding-places. For another thing, the promiscuous scattering about of oil, which is so often held against the automobile, has furthered the good work by killing billions of eggs or maggots that would have otherwise matured into flies.
This is precisely the sort of service the motor boat has performed on water with respect to the mosquito. Accordingly, mosquitoes are getting scarcer along all navigable streams.
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