17
For the past few months reports have been received from time to time from
the Police of the outbreak of small-pox in one or more villages, chiefly below the
ghats, in the Sausar, Mohgaon and Rajnah Circles, and during the year 36 deaths
have been reported.
In November the Native Superintendent was deputed to visit these Circles
and to send in a report. He reported as follows:—" I arrived at Seoni in the
Rajnah circle on the 19th November. I found six children suffering from small-
pox, whose ages varied from 8 to 12 years; of these, 2 were said to have been vac-
cinated in 1867, but I saw no marks on their arms, nor was there any village list;
the other four had not been vaccinated. I had these cases put out in a Chhappar
outside the village. There were 37 cases vaccinated by Roshun Lalla few days
before my visit. I saw these on the 23rd November, and from these as well as
from tubes from Chhindwara, 42 other children were vaccinated. One of the 6
cases of small-pox died.
" In the Mohgaon Circle I saw 3 children suffering from the disease, at
Pendri one was 3 years old, and two under 6 months; one of these was vacci-
nated a few days before my visit (but the parents hid the fact of small-pox being
in the hut next to them, as the 3 cases live near each other), and I found not
only successful vesicles on the child's arm, but a plentiful crop of small-pox
pustules on the body and face.
" In the Sausar Circle at Nimni, I saw a boy of 10 or 12 years with severe
small-pox ; his father stated that he had been vaccinated in 1867, but I saw no
marks of vaccination on his arm, nor was there any village list. I had the case
removed to a hut in a quiet corner of the village. The Vaccinator had pre-
vious to my visit vaccinated 33 cases. I saw 21 of these ; they all had typical
vesicles."
The three cases reported above as having been vaccinated in 1867 were
probably unsuccessful cases, but the parents not knowing the difference between
successful and unsuccessful vaccination. relied merely on the fact of the operation
having been performed, and no doubt now fully believe on the insufficiency of
vaccination to confer immunity from small-pox. In former years vaccination
was almost entirely carried on by crusts and points, by which sometimes, fre-
quently perhaps, a local pustule having nothing in common with a true vaccine
vesicle, except in point of external resemblance, was believed to be a successful
vaccination, but which in reality conferred no protective power whatever ; and
more than this, 1 believe that cicatrices caused by vaccinating from crusts and
points do not retain their permanent characteristics so long as do those from suc-
cessful " arm to arm" vaccination, as may be seen from the results noted in one
of my inspections in the Chaurai Circle on the 13th December last. On this day
I arrived at the village of Sirregaon, and saw a boy of 8 or 9 years of age suffer-
ing from an attack of small-pox, who was vaccinated in 1867 or 1868. Fortunate-
ly the Malguzar had the village list. In it were the names of 50 children vac-
cinated at this time, this boy being one of them, but the results of the operation
were not noted by the Vaccinator. On the day of my visit the following results
were noted by me—
Permanent marks ... ...
Faint
do ... ... ...
No marks whatever ... ...
Dead ... ... ... ...
Left village ... ... ... ...
The same name written twice ... ...
Total ...
16
3
14
8
7
2
50
U. d. 29 242 290