Insects and Diseases: A Popular Account of the Way in Which Insects may Spread or Cause some of our Common DiseasesDoane, Rennie Wilbur
Science
Insects and Diseases: A Popular Account of the Way in Which Insects may Spread or Cause some of our Common Diseases
Doane, Rennie Wilbur
Insect pests; Insects as carriers of disease
"I am afraid we cannot furnish specimens of _Stegomyia_, in spite
of the fact that Louisiana is _supposed_ to be the most favorable
home of this species in the South. Since the light occurrence of
yellow fever in this State in 1905, a very vigorous war has been
kept up against _Stegomyia_, and the ordinances of all Louisiana
cities and principal towns require the draining of all breeding
places of this mosquito and the constant oiling or screening of all
cisterns or other water containers. The result is this species is
very rare. Here in Baton Rouge I only see one once in a great
while, and it would require perhaps a good many days' work at the
present season to get as good specimens and as many of them as you
require."
IN THE PANAMA CANAL ZONE
Yellow fever was one of the worst obstacles that confronted the French
when they were attempting to build the Panama Canal. The story of the
suffering and death from this dread disease there is most pathetic.
Ship-load after ship-load of laborers were sent over, as those who had
gone earlier succumbed to the fever. The contractors were responsible
for their men while they were sick and in order to avoid having to pay
hospital expenses the men were often discharged as soon as they showed
signs of sickness. Many of them died along the roadside while
endeavoring to reach some place where they could obtain aid. The
hospitals were usually filled with yellow fever patients, a very large
percentage of whom died.
Not only the day laborers suffered but many of the engineers, doctors,
nurses and others sickened and died of the disease. It is reported that
eighteen young French engineers came over on one vessel and in a month
after their arrival all but one had died of the yellow fever. Out of
thirty-six nurses brought over at one time, twenty-four died of the
fever, and during one month nine members of the medical staff of one of
the hospitals succumbed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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