A century ago, the British countryside, though full of charm, was not without its drawbacks. Immense numbers of insects were thirsting for human blood, or attracted by heated skins, they desired to perambulate hands and faces with feet that irritated out of all proportion to their size. The bitter cry of two tormented correspondents reached the diary from Stockport and Chester.
Tormented Correspondents Seek Relief
The first correspondent loved the country but suffered so much from gnat bites that for two or three days after he had no peace; he asked for advice. The diary noted that probably midges, of the family Chironomidae, were the insects annoying him. Lavender oil was said to keep them at a distance, and phenate of soda or ammonia would soothe the bitten parts.
Chester's Mangled Victims
The Chester correspondent sent two “mangled victims” which, with their “persistent and penetrating hum,” woke him at early dawn. He asked if they were related to the mosquito and reported that last year and this they appeared with a south wind. The warm weather came with the south wind, but the insects were not tropical mosquitoes but true British gnats – Culex annulatus – so far as the diary could make out from their poor remains.
Mosquitoes and Gnats: One Family
Mosquitoes and British gnats belong to one family – Culicidae – and the females of most species bite and suck blood. The banded gnat, the species sent, is often found in houses; it is the largest of British gnats, and the most bloodthirsty. If, as the diary had done, one allows it to settle on the hand and work its will, its thread-like, banded abdomen may be seen visibly swelling and growing redder, until, when replete, it is round as a pea. The impression left by such an experiment lasts vividly for some days.
