100 Years Ago: Community interest urged in campaign to end housefly menace

100 Years Ago

July 21, 1924: The importance of concerted, organized efforts to get rid of flies on the part of whole communities, not only cities, but suburban and rural neighborhoods as well, can not be overemphasized, according to the Bureau of Entomology, United States Department of Agriculture. By the most painstaking care, one may prevent all fly breeding on his premises, but it will avail him little if his neighbors are not equally careful. Some sort of cooperation is necessary. One of the first and most important elements in any antifly crusade is a vigorous and continued educational campaign. It has been the experience of those who have undertaken such crusades that people generally regard the fly as a somewhat harmless nuisance and that the first work of the campaign was to bring the people to a realization of the dangers from flies and the possibility of getting rid of them. The antifly crusade is a matter of public interest and should be supported by the community as a whole and engineered by the health officers. But health officers can do little toward the necessary work of inspection and elimination without funds, and therefore the support of the campaign must manifest itself in increased appropriations for public-health work. Very often it is lack of funds which prevents the health officers from taking the initiative in the antifly crusades, and there must necessarily be much agitation and education before they can profitably take up the work. Here lies a field for the best energy, initiative, and leadership of civic associations, women’s club, boards of trade, and other community organizations.