Show miracle insecticide DDT not a panacea I 1 L F 1 I deiy deadly bug killer hai effective use but it also has its limitations and danger when improperly used EDITORS NOTE this is is a guest column written by winfield J dry dryden den staff correspondent and was not prepared by baukhage whose column generally appears in in this space each week DDT much publicized insecticide saved thousands of lives of our fighting men and civilians in countries where our operations were extended but it la is not the panacea that we would like to believe the irony of the story Is that it was discovered nearly seventy years ago by a german chemist named feldler Zeld ler but was almost forgotten until rediscovered during the present war by dr paul muller and dr paul lauger these swiss scientists asserted recently upon their arrival in america that with proper control flies mosquitoes and other harmful insects can be eliminated entirely from the united states but along with these insects would go our pollen carrying insects bees and other beneficial friends of mankind also perhaps our birds and fish gone also would be many plants and trees that depend upon insects for tion As they point out it Is a job tor for entomologists not laymen DDT has been made available to the public in limited amounts there w will H soon oon be a sufficient supply to meet every demand manufacturers of the products whether in liquid or powder form are careful to give complete instructions as to its application which must be follo followed oled scientists tell of effective DDT use despite its inherent toxicity DDT in t the he desired concentrations in air is of such low order that it will not cause injurious effects in humans dr paul A neal chief of the research section of the division of industrial hygiene of the U S public health service has reported it was this knowledge that made it advisable to spray from the air the jones beach area on long island N Y and part of the city of rockford Bock tord illinois in both cases the purpose was to control insects jones beach to kill sand fleas and rockford to kill pollo polio carrying flies files believed to have been the direct cause for the serious infantile I 1 paralysis ara lysis outbreak in many sections lt col AL A L ahnfeldt V U S surgeon generals office after a study of results secured in the army reports in peace time DDT may well change the destiny of the earths eartes population our postwar world will no longer be scourged urged by typhus and malaria malara a and other insect borne diseases DDT is not a cure all but in the perpetual war between humans and aisea disease se DDT Is one of the most effective weapons yet discovered by man DDT will be to preventive medicine what listers disco discovery ery of antiseptic was to surgery and should close the door forever on those diseases which are companions of death dealing insects in the field of agriculture the results have been far from disappointing disapPoint ings remarkable mark abla results have been obtained by some of its application while in others the results were either neg legath atlie e incomplete or its use not recommended due to effect on birds and other insects will prove boon to hard worked farmer while agricultural use of DE DDT it must still be considered in its experimental state reliable and complete tests at various state experiment stations have proved that it Is the best insecticide now on the market for the control of the apples most destructive pest the codling moth it will kill japanese beetle adults while current remedies are based entirely upon their repelling value the grape and other leaf hoppers are highly susceptible to DDT and excellent results have been obtained with it against oriental fruit moth it also has proved effective against apple red bug pear grape berry moth fruit tree leadro lea froller her apple maggot cherry maggot and many others in california it was proved that DDT was effective against codling moths in walnut and other orchards at missouri it was found that a three per cent dust was effective in controlling blister beetle squash bug white fly sow bugs corn earworm colorado potato beetle spotted and striped cucumber beetles northern corn worm pavement ant lace bugs leaf hoppers on grape flea beetles on ess egg plants plant and a ten per cent dust for roaches fleas and squash bugs bug the U S department 0 of agriculture reported that DDT insecticides were found experimentally to be definitely more effective than those currently used for control of some 30 pests that attack field crops man livestock and trees these included codling moth cabbage looper catalpa sphinx cotton bollworm boll worm cotton flea hopper eastern tent caterpillar elm back beetle green striped maple worm gypsy moth horn flies on cattle japanese beetle dygus and tour fou other rother kinds of sucking bugs mimosa webworm pine saw flies pink bollworm spruce budworm velvet bean caterpillar vetch bruch ld white fringed beetles mosquitoes bedbugs three kinds of lice on man and houseflies and fleas in buildings A good insecticide for postwar home brig gen simmons army medical corps has said DDT will exceed even peni penicillin cillia in its ultimate usefulness and will prove to be the outstanding nied medical advance made during the war one of the newest products is a paint containing DDT to be used on walls of kitchens dining rooms and in institutions other industrial uses have been found by dusting with a 10 per cent DDT powder around the sink in kitchen and other places where cockroaches and other insects stay DDT will eliminate the bedbug problem la in hospitals as well as in private dwellings it may be applied as a five per cent spray or as a 10 per cent powder to both sides of the mattress and springs it also provides freedom from flies files and mosquitoes in hospitals the new aerosol bomb which releases the DDT as an aerosol a cross between a fumigating fumi gating gas and an ordinary fly spray Is excellent for this purpose A PO power spray may be used in applying a five per cent daz DD solution just as it Is proving effective on the agricultural and industrial front and as it saved lives on the war fronts DDT has started to cu contribute tribute to ta the health of the home front the story of spraying for mosquitoes against malaria Is well known painting door and window screens with a five per cent solution of DDT in water or kerosene leaves an insects cidad cidai residue that will kill every fly mosquito or other insect lighting there within the next nest several months the U S department of agriculture reports A five per cent solution of DDT la in kerosene sprayed on floors or oi 0 er rugs eliminates the flea nuisance A hand sprayer Is adequate by spraying deep into cracks the DDT will remain toxic to these insects for several weeks A ten per cent powder applied to cracks with a small hand band duster can be depended on to kill any brown dog g ticks that may be hiding there baseboards especially those that 1 have work worked ed loose fro from in the wall afford excellent breeding places for becj bed bu bugs s cockroaches and brown dog ticks DDT is sure death to these pests A hand sprayer held close to the opening will send the insecticide a five per cent solution in kerosene down where the insects are concealed or a large duster of 10 per cent powder may be used |