THE HOUSE-FLY MENACE. A fly's feet are covered with small pads, so small, in fact, as to be invisible to the naked eye. These pads he uses to affix himself to the surface of any unstable object, to walk on the celling or to promenade on the wall. Moreover, these pads are covered with a sticky substance that adheres to whatever they touch. When the fly moves, he carries with him a small part of any soft surface on which he has been standing. This he deposits on the next surface he touches. If, for instance, he has been feasting in the garbage bin and then flies into the pantry, he will carry on his feet the germs from the refuse and will deposit them on the food which Is exposed on the shelves

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLVIII, Issue 7, 14 August 1912, Page 3

THE HOUSE-FLY MENACE. A fly's feet are covered with small pads, so small, in fact, as to be invisible to the naked eye. These pads he uses to affix himself to the surface of any unstable object, to walk on the celling or to promenade on the wall. Moreover, these pads are covered with a sticky substance that adheres to whatever they touch. When the fly moves, he carries with him a small part of any soft surface on which he has been standing. This he deposits on the next surface he touches. If, for instance, he has been feasting in the garbage bin and then flies into the pantry, he will carry on his feet the germs from the refuse and will deposit them on the food which Is exposed on the shelves