Mosquitoes Cost Professor
Blood, Tears For Research
THE BATTALION
Tuesday, February 6, 1968 College Station, Texas
Page 3
PHONE I
822-«i;l
utes
Eat-In
HUT
r^e.
:ant
i
ow
EAK YOU!
advantage
Ice now.
\NY
One night
transferable
$50.00
ly 50.00
50.00
iv 55.00
50.00
50.00
50.00
lay 50.00
lay 50.00
50.00
rniation dl|
1-0066.
'OUR
ftLD
emce
Bryan
M. Schulif
THE ;
"V/Uv
m,
When Dr. Darryl Sanders hears
a hungry buzz, he knows he’s
about to lose a little more blood
in the cause of science. He doesn’t
even say “Ouch!” anymore.
The Texas A&M professor
regularly rolls up his sleeve and
offers a succulent forearm to the
eight different kinds of mos
quitoes which inhabit Gulf Coast
salt marshes from Louisiana to
below Corpus Christi, Texas.
Vacationers and campers know
how fierce the mosquito hordes
can be. And so do cattlemen who
must move their herds out of the
■Ha
,rf.
GROWING STRONG
The Agricultural and Mechanical College of Texas began in 1871, six miles from the
nearest settlement, with a donation of 2,400 acres from the citizens of Brazos County.
Today, the Texas A&M University physical plant exceeds $100 million and 5,200 acres.
Brazos County Citizens
Figure In A&M’s Origin
Eleven Caught
* 1 Smuggling Pot
EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the
first in a three-part series de
scribing the influence of Texas
A&M on the Bryan-College Sta
tion community. Its influence will
be surveyed in three ways: First,
the establishment of the school
and its history through the pres
ent will be discussed. Second, the
university’s economic impact on
community businesses will be de
scribed. The current image of
Texas A&M and its administra
tive policies will form the con
clusion.
By MIKE PLAKE
Battalion Feature Editor
President Abraham Lincoln set
the stage for A&M’s beginning
by signing the Morrill Land
Grant College Act in 1862.
In 1871, the Texas Legislature
appropriated $75,000 to construct
the main building on the newly-
formed Agricultural and Mechan
ical College of Texas campus.
Proceeds from land donations un
der the Morrill Act, the legisla
ture appropriation, and 2,416
acres of lands donated by citi
zens of Brazos County, finally es
tablished Texas A&M College in
practicality.
Two buildings and three cot
tages housed the first classes in
1867. Forty students studied un
der six professors and the first
President, Thomas Gathright, in
that term.
A&M’s HISTORY since that
time has been predominantly mili
tary-oriented. Six Texas Aggies
received the Congressional Medal
of Honor. During World War II,
the school received widespread
recognition by supplying more
officers to the Armed Services
than any other U. S. institution!
The area surrounding the
school has grown with it. From
forty students in 1876, the stu
dent population has increased to
more than twelve thousand in
1968.
The Bryan-College Station com
munity, six miles from the origi
nal buildings, now lies next door.
Its population has grown from
less than a thousand in widely-
scattered areas in 1870 to more
than 51,000 in 1967.
LAND AND property ownings
of the university have increased
from the original 2,400 acre do
nation from the citizens of Brazos
County to more than 12,000 acres.
An especially important histori-
SfAWETY PROSRAi
»*«>»>» i
A TOWN HALL EXTRA
On
TUESDAY, FEB. 6, 1968
G. ROLLIE WHITE COLISEUM
8:00 P. M.
TICKET PRICES:
A&M Student & Date
$1.50
Public School General Admission $2.00
Reserved Seats
$2.50, $3.00
Tickets On Sale At
University National Bank
Bank of A&M
City National Bank
First National Bank
First Bank & Trust
Bryan Building & Loan
Gibsons
Tip Top Record Shop
MSC Student Program Office
cal change took place on August
23, 1963, when the name of the
school was changed from Texas
Agricultural and Mechanical Col
lege to Texas A&M University.
This change, “emphasizing the
stature the institution has
achieved in its 90 years,” accord
ing to a university bulletin, has
indirectly affected other changes
in its make-up.
One such change occurred in
1965, when membership in the
Corps of Cadets was made non-
compulsory. This change made an
already increasing number of ci
vilians on campus expand even
more. With a greater number of
civilians came the problem of rep
resentation, and the problem of
adjusting the attitudes of the
school to include civilian opinions.
The history of Texas A&M
gives an inkling to the future.
Since World War II, the policies
and attitudes of the institution
have changed to fit the times.
In addition to performing admir
ably the task of training an in
creasing number of R.O.T.C. ca
dets, the university has adapted
itself to the growing number of
civilians. It will change from
what began as a small school for
specialized technological training
to one offering substantial pro
grams in business, pure sciences,
and social sciences.
GREAT
SOUND
/yore/co 9
CARRY-CORDER
'150’ *
TAPE RECORDER
Tho Portable Fun Machine! Up
to l>/ 2 hours record playback per
cassette. Cordless. Dynamic
microphone. Patch cord. Weighs
3 lbs. Carrying case. Versatile.
WHITER AUTO
Bryan & College Station
822-3867 — 846-5626
LAREDO, Tex. <A>> —U. S.
Customs officers arrested 11 per
sons, including students from
Oklahoma and Florida schools
during the past weekend on
charges of smuggling marijuana,
the Webb County sheriff’s office
said Monday.
Six of those arrested were
identified as students at St.
Gregory’s College, Shawnee,
Okla.; four were from Florida
State University, and one was a
soldier stationed at Ft. Hood,
Tex.
Only the soldier remained in
custody Monday night, a deputy
said.
Arrested at the International
Bridge spanning the Rio Grande
between Nuevo Laredo and La
redo were six students from the
Oklahoma school. They were
Gabriel Alonzo Rivero, 17, Mexico
City; Thomas C. Joseph, 19,
Clinton, N. Y.; Thomas M. Dowd,
19, and Marc L. Noel, 19, both
of Buffalo, N. Y.; and Thomas E.
McGuirk, 18, Salisbury, Md.
They were released Monday
after posting $2,500 bond each.
U. S. commissioner Lawrence
Mann said the students had four
and a half ounces of refined
marijuana in their car at the time
they were arrested.
Arrested at a Laredo motel
after allegedly picking up a pack
age containing eight and a half
pounds of crude marijuana at a
Laredo bus station were Douglas
Hassing, 20, Peru, Ind.; James L.
Roberts, Jacksonville, Fla.; Gail
I. Gour, 23, a co-ed from Opa-
loska, Fla.; Robert Carnley, 23,
and Keith Komyakovsky, 23, both
of Tallahassee, Fla. All were
identified as Florida State Uni
versity students and were re
leased Monday after posting
$5,000 bond each.
David Gerstein, 22, Howard
Beach, N. Y., arrested with the
FSU students, was being held for
military authorities from Ft.
Hood Monday night, a deputy
said.
A Webb County deputy said
the recent arrests brought to 106
the number of persons arrested
at Laredo so far this year on
charges of smuggling marijuana
into the United States from
Mexico.
Ski Buffs do it!
English feather®
For men who want to be where the
action is. Very schussy. Very mas
culine. ALL-PURPOSE LOTION.
$2.50, $4.00, $6.50. From the com
plete array of ENGLISH LEATHER
men’s toiletries.
A PRODUCT OF MEM COMPANY. INC.. NORIMVALE. N. J 07t>47
rich grasslands every summer or
see them become gaunt and die.
The loss of thousands of acres
of coastal pasture during the
summer is the motivation behind
a substantial interdepartmental
research effort now under way at
A&M.
Entomologist Sanders said
“We’re looking for weak links in
the life cycle where the mos
quitoes might be susceptible to
some cultural practice.” By this,
he means something like drainage
of breeding areas.
“We know we can kill them
with insecticides. The question is
whether we can afford to,” Dr.
Sanders continued.
Not only the Department of
Entomology, but the Wildlife
Science and Animal Science de
partments are collaborating.
Some experiments with insecti
cides will be carried out in the
spring. The wildlife researchers
will determine the effect on small
animals while the animal scien
tists and agronomists at the re
search substation near Angleton
will be studying a small herd of
cattle pastured on the coast in
Brazoria County between Angle-
ton and Galveston.
It is near here that Dr. Sanders
has set up several “Malaise” traps
for mosquitoes and where he
takes samples of larvae from the
standing water.
And, as a standard method of
counting the populations and
species present, he bares an arm
and counts the number of land
ings per minute. Or, he simply
counts the number which land on
the front of his shirt.
“They can really smell you,”
Dr. Sanders said. Counts up to
200 landings per minute have
been made after hurricanes.
“After these storms, they’ll
move out of the marshes—maybe
20 miles into populated areas. It’s
then that the mosquito control
districts have to create some sort
of barrier strip with insecticides,”
he went on.
Included in the eight species
found on the Texas coast is the
“Southern House” mosquito which
is the primary carrier of encepha
litis. It prefers humans, birds
and horses to cattle, however.
The primary coastal mosquito
pest is one called Aedes sollicitans
which lays eggs on the ground
where they wait for high tides or
heavy rains to hatch. Biologically
clever, the eggs, like some cold
capsules today, have built-in re
lease times so all don’t hatch in
a given flooding to fall prey to
another natural disturbance.
Not only mosquitoes, but other
blood-sucking insects must be
considered in the five-year proj
ect.
“Horse flies also have a big in
fluence on blood loss from cattle,”
Dr. Sanders noted.
So far, the study has been
aimed at establishing the normal
biological conditions. The experi
mentation will begin this spring.
If the researchers are able to
find the mosquito’s Achilles Heel,
the economic impact on the cattle
Military News
MAJOR PROMOTION
Maj. Homer J. Gibbs (right) of Texas A&M was presented
his promotion papers by Col. Jim H. McCoy, commandant,
Tuesday. The Aggie-ex teaches in the Military Science
Department.
Auditions Slated
ForSinging Cadets
Auditions will begin this week
to fill vacancies in the Singing
Cadets due to graduation, an
nounced Robert L. Boone, direc
tor of the choral group.
Tryouts will be held in the
practice room in G. Rollie White
Coliseum all week. The auditions
will be held from 2 to 4 each
afternoon, Boone said.
Those who wish to bring their
own music are welcome, Boone
continued.
Three Officers Get
Awards, Oath Here
Two Air Force officers were
awarded the Commendation Med
al and another was sworn into
the Regular Air Force at Texas
A&M Wednesday.
Capt. John A. Zingg, an Air
Force Institute of Technology
student studying for a master of
computer science, took the oath
from Col. Vernon L. Head, pro
fessor of aerospace studies.
Capt. Charles C. LaSalle of
Springfield, Mo., and Capt. Ron
ald L. Hurst of La Junta, Colo.,
were pinned with the medals.
Zingg, 31, served on a B-52
combat crew as electronic war
fare officer before enrolling at
A&M. He was commissioned in
the reserve at the navigator
school in Harlingen in 1961 and
has 1,900 hours flying time as
navigator. He received the bach
elor degree at Omaha University
in 1965. The officer, his wife
JoAnn and two children reside at
512 Gilchrist.
A 5,000-hour pilot, Captain
Hurst was cited for instructor
pilot service with the 3535th
Navigator Training Wing at
Mather AFB, Calif. He flew the
C-123 in Vietnam and also wears
the Air Medal. The 1959 Colo
rado State Graduate is also in
the Industrial Engineering De
partment computer science mas
ter’s degree program as an AFIT
student. Hurst, his wife Mar
garet and three children reside at
1110 Marsteller.
Captain LaSalle served with
the Space Systems Subdivision,
Systems Command three years
and was cited for service as engi
neering division project officer,
working in the Atlas space boost
er program.
The Galveston Ball High gradu
ate spent eight years in the spe
cial weapons career field, re
ceived a degree in aeronautical
engineering at the University of
Wyoming through the AFIT
program and is studying for a
masters in mechanical engineer
ing at A&M. LaSalle’s home is
at 1303 Village Drive. He and
his wife, Mary Katherine, have
three children.
Grads Attending
Squadron School
Two 1962 Texas A&M gradu
ates from Bryan are attending
Squadron Officer School at Max
well, AFB, Ala.
Air Force Capt. Charles M.
Cole Jr. and Capt. Sam Piccolo
will receive 14 weeks instruction
in international relations, com
mand-staff team duties and aero
space doctrine at the Air Univer
sity school.
Piccolo graduated from S. F.
Austin High in 1958. He studied
accounting and was commissioned
at A&M. The son of Mr. and
Mrs. Anthony S Piccolo, 605
Berka Lane, has since taken a
master’s degree at Michigan
State.
Son of Dr. and Mrs. Charles M.
Cole, 507 E. 24th, Captain Cole
completed SFA in 1957 and re
ceived a degree in history at
A&M.
’62 Grad Receives
Vietnamese Cross
Army Capt. Raleigh E. Cop-
pedge of Cuero, a 1962 Texas
A&M graduate, has received the
Vietnamese Gallantry Cross with
silver leaf for service in Vietnam.
Captain Coppedge was cited for
his role with the Viet Cong near
Loc Ninh. South Vietnam Vice
President Nguyen Cao Ky spoke
at the ceremony near Lai Khe.
“It is fitting this nation hon
ors the heroes who came to help
defend its territory against ag
gression, but it is even more
important for us to bear in mind
that the pages of glory which
you have written here do not be
long to any one nation alone —r
they belong to the entire family
of ‘free men’,” Ky said.
Coppedge is on assignment as
intelligence officer of the Second
Battalion, 28th Infantry, First
Division.
The officer studied marketing
at A&M and was commissioned
through A&M’s ROTC program.
Read Battalion Classifieds
“A PLACE FOR YOU AT J&L”
Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation
Will Be Interviewing Candidates
For Career Opportunity
On
February 20, 1968
For Further Details Check
With Your Placement Office
en equal opportunity employer
AIRLINE
Reservations and Tickets At No Extra Cost
.... 30 Day Charge Account . . . Bonded ASIA Agent
Call Beverley Braley ... Tours ... Travel
bryAn —
823-8188
MEMORIAL STUDENT
CENTER, A&M —
11
II
i
II ,
I!
il
y^y.^V.r.y.v^
L . .. -
. •