THE EVI L DEEDS OF BATS
THE rat is not a likeable fellow. Here in Great Britain he wastes at least £50,000,000 a year by eating foodstuffs, damaging merchandise and buildings, killing poultry, and generally exercising his destructive powers. It would be so much in our pockets if we Were rid of him. But he has more unpleasant habits, too. There is a special disease of his, which he kelps to himself for the most part but sometimes lets loose upon mankind, with horrible effects. This disease is the plague, and it can take two forms, bubonic and pneumonic. The first form seems to be contracted from rat to man only ; it can be caught by contact with rats, by handling articles or eating foodstuffs con- taminated by. rats, or by being bitten by the fleas in which rats abound. The second form is more dangerous ; once it has got a start among men it is infectious between man and man, and it will rage like wildfire. Even in England there are still cases of pneumonic plague from time to time; and it is not impossible that Europe should still sec an outbreak of plague in full virulence.
He brings us other gifts : infectious jaundice ; a special kind of ringworm ; at least two species of tapeworm. There are probably other diseases which we catch from him ; even in the matter of cancer he is not beyond suspicion. And of course there are diseases he transmits to our domestic animals, to sheep, horses, cattle, and pigs. Foot-and-mouth disease, for example. Rats breed so prolifically that they are very cheap and useful for scientific experiments ; but it is most extravagant to leave them at large. One pair can easily have a family . of over a thousand in a year's time.
. But the English arc a hospitable race, and we keep among us, at. the lowest estimate, at least one rat for every man, woman, or child in the country. There was a time when we were a little better off : our guest in those days was the black rat, and he was not quite so savage as the brown rat. But as if to show us that it was possible to exterminate rats, the brown rats poured into the country down the ropes and gangways of ships, or jumped down on the docks, or were carried ashore in crates and bales, and drove out the milder race they found in occupation. Boards have passed resolutions condemning rats, Parliament has passed Bills ; but we still allow .them to swarm all over the land. Nobody has a special fondness for them ; they arc ugly brutes, anyhow ; but although some farmers and some firms make heroic efforts to kill these abusers of hospitality, a couple will creep in from a careless neigh- bour's premises, and the whole work is soon to be taken in hand again.
Mr. Mark Hovel, F.R.C.S., has written a masterpiece upon Rats and How to Destroy Them (John Bale, Sons and Danielsson. 10s. 6d. net). He discusses every kind of. trap, snare, poison, virus,- and gas, the use of ferret. - dog and mongoose, blocking, flooding, trailing and varnish. He takes all the places in which rats: may occur, and shows what method is best applied: in, each place. And the book is clearly arranged. so that no one could go wrong. If only there. were some way-of. making people profit by this information, if only there were some efficient means of compelling all. those owners and coddlers of rats to get rid of them, the whole problem would be solved. For rats can be exterminated. well enough if energetic measures- are taken and if. no. one is: keeping a private store of rats to scatter over- the country: as soon as other people have completed their tasks.. Mr. Hovel discusses the alterations which are necessary in our Rats and Mice (Destruction) Act ; but his battle to get people interested enough to demand legislation must seem hopeless to him at times. Voluntary action is certainly not enough ; for there are many people careless of their own losses and quite indifferent to the losses of others.
Of course, one of the first things to be done. is the application in the strictest severity of the regulations of Port Authorities ; but these Authorities are on the whole more zealous than most bodies. It is of utmost import- ance, however, that no rats should be allowed to enter the country from ships ; for it is generally " the old ship's rat " that is the carrier of plague. If one contrives. to swim ashore or to land in some unavoidable way,. he should meet with as warm a reception as we can arrange for him. But already a good deal is done by the fumigation of ships, by payments for each rat killed,. and by the fitting of guards to ropes and mooring, tackle.
It is sad to realize that municipal refuse heaps are. often the feeding-ground and breeding-ground both for rats and for flies. It often happens that our corpora- tions sin as heavily against public health as• any. private individual—pour out smoke. from our. public buildings, for example. But the open rubbish tip is one of their worst crimes. Mr. Hovel suggests that where- it is necessary to have such a tip the outside should always be kept burning. There would always be a sufficient amount of cinders, particles of wood, paper and inflammable material to. ensure the destruction of . the added refuse.
A double-edged weapon to- use. in rat destruction; he informs. us, is virus ; and- its. efficiency is not very- high. A virus is bait- containing' microbes which cause fever in rats ; but. a rat' which catches the fever: and recovers becomes immune. It is asserted. that the- microbes are not harmful to man ; but it should be noted that they are closely related to bacteria causing disease in man and in domestic animals ;- virus has certainly been known to cause fever. in rabbits and in calves ; it is not a perfectly safe thing to have around.
But every type of place where- rats are to be found needs special consideration, and every landowner, farmer, householder or merchant who is overrun by rats should buy the book to read the advice appropriate -to his case. It will suffice here to quote Mr. Hovel's," goldenrules " : (1) Never attempt to clear rats. from infested premises by trapping ; begin by blocking, flooding, ferreting, or poisoning. (2) Keep run-traps set. throughout the year against the outside of every building that rats- are likely to approach. (3) Keep all doors- closed- throughout the night and close all holes as soon as the rats have been killed. (4) Never let a rat that can be killed to-day live till to-morrow. And a word of warning should be given to the inexperienced : Do not set traps by hand ; rats are very clever in avoiding traps that have been in contact with the human body.
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