Mexborough & Swinton Times, September 30, 1932
No Admittance
The Fly Pest in America
Darfield Girls Tip
Observations in our Wombwell notes with reference to the fly pest have brought us an interesting letter from Miss E. Rix, a Darfield girl now living at 217E, 20th , Street, New Jersey, USA. Miss Briggs, from whom we have had a number of letters descriptive of conditions in the states, explained very clearly methods employed for mitigating the fly nuisance on the other side of the Atlantic.
She tells us that there is positively no need to have flies in the house and suggests that American anti-fly methods might be adapted here.
Following the example of hundreds of “South Yorkshire Times” readers abroad, Miss Briggs asks to be supplied with a copy of the booklet – “Landmarks of South Yorkshire” published by this office. She encloses a dollar note and asks us to hand the change to the Wombwell Old People’s Treat Movement.
Miss Briggs writes: “In me “Times” this week I saw in Wombwell Notes three articles on the fly pest and I was very interested. If I ever come back to England that is one thing I have to deal with. There is no need to have flies in the home. Here we are with a temperature over 90 but we are minus flies indoors; while outside mosquitos and flies are terrible at times. The reason we have no need to bother about flies indoors is that we put summer screens to the windows and use an outer screen door made of light wood, about two inches wide and fine screen netting . (a sample of which I enclose).
We can sit peace and get all the fresh air we need. I think this idea is splendid as many of the flies are poisonous as well as filthy. I myself have just narrowly missed blood poison from a bite by a big green-headed fly while I was down to bathe. So one learns lessons by experience, and we can help each other by passing it on.
“Once I had soother experience in Canada where flies are terrible too in summer. It is cold up there in winter but their summer is wonderful during the three months it lasts. I worked for a time voluntarily for the Social Service, a band of workers—l am proud to say mostly English pioneers—who give their leisure to finding out the less fortunate who need help. I was asked to visit a certain poor district to see an English emigrant family. My mission was to ask them to get screens for the windows and doors. Someone had reported the house as being infested by flies. I went along with an English friend and never have I seen so many flies in one house. The house was clean, but I’m sorry to say, through misfortune, very poor. Flies were everywhere. Twin babies lay in a baby coach. If they were like I was they must have been miserable. I could not sit still they bit me so, and for long afterwards I felt their sting.
Of course the people were too poor to have screens but when I went the following week there was all the difference in the world. They had mentioned this to the man who owned the property and he had all the doors and windows fixed for them and the flies stayed out of doors. The babies were able to sleep, the mother got more peace and everything was more sanitary. I have never seem a fly-paper here.
“In Canada on the country farms the farmers have bunches of straw like a bottle upside down. The inside is made sticky with molasses or treacle. The files creep into it and when it is full it can he burned.
“I would like you to send me the book of ‘South Yorkshire.’ I enclose one dollar to pay for it and you can give the rest of the money to the Wombwell old Folk’s Treat Fund. I am sure all the Country people out here enjoy their paper being sent to them and it is a splendid idea to exchange views. I enjoy reading all the letters that are sent into the paper and after reading my hometown notes to see local happenings the next place I turn to is ‘Hands Across the Sea’.”
The material sent by Miss Briggs for our inspection is a section of fibre netting the mesh of which is about one-twelfth of an inch. We shall exhibit it with this letter, in the “Times” Office window.