26
METROPOLITAN CIRCLES.
Baraset, Dum-Dum, and Ooriaparah. In the first week of January I again proceeded to
Coomercolly, as my first visit to that thana had been very short and hurried. After returning
to Calcutta I went down again to thanas Oolaberiah and Shampore, and inspected the vaccine
operations there; came back and started on a long tour, beginning with thana Culna, passed
on to thana Selimabad. Leaving Selimabad I proceeded to thanas Dhunniakhally and
Hurripaul, in the Hooghly district; crossed the Damoodur, and went over to the southern
portion of thana Jehanabad, in the Burdwan district. From thana Jehanabad came back to
Hurripal, and thence to Buddybatee and Chunditollah. After resting for two or three days,
started again for the Burdwan district. This time I inspected in thanas Gangoor and
Montessur. From Montessur I returned to Calcutta at the end of March, when the season
expired. I regret I had no time left to go to the extreme north and east of the 24-Pergunnahs,
but Deputy Superintendent Ramsoonder Ghose has thoroughly inspected all the thanas in
that portion of the district. With the exception of the gang deputed to Beerbhoom, I visited
every gang twice, and some three times, during the season. The Beerbhoom gang was
inspected by Deputy Superintendent Jadub Chunder Ghose.
Number inspected
by superintendent.
The number inspected by me during the season is 47,165, against 51,368 in the previous
season, showing a decrease of 4,203. There are several causes for this falling off, the
first and principal being that the three circles were scattered in three. districts, whereas in
the previous season the first and second circles worked near each other in Nuddea. Then,
again, in season 1872-73 the first two circles got virgin soil, as it were, where vaccination had
never been done before, and consequently the numbers vaccinated, as well as inspected, were
larger. I lost much time in travelling from one circle to another, as the details given above
will show. I inspected 614 villages, situated in twenty-five different thanas, exclusive of the
Dacca circle. The result of my inspection is shown in the following table:—
Seen after 16th day ... ...
„ 13th to l6th „ ... ... ...
„ 9th to 12th „ ... ... ...
„ 5th to 8th „ ... ... ...
„ 1st to 4th „ ... ... ...
Vaccinated in four points, of
which there were successful
4
8,621
27,588
4,269
3,955
906
45,339
3
148
507
81
128
7
871
2
47
151
21
61
2
282
1
10
49
12
74
...
85
Failed
10
36
6
12
...
64
Vaccinated
in
two points, of
which there were
successful
2
83
271
41
47
5
447
1
1
20
1
6
...
28
Failed
1
2
1
...
...
4
Doubtful.
5
17
7
1
...
30
Sore arms.
6
8
...
1
...
15
Compared with
register.
8,932
28,649
4,439
4,225
920
47,165
Total.
8,932
28,649
4,439
4,225
920
47,165
Absent.
907
3,323
156
186
40
4,612
Grand total.
9,839
31,972
4,595
4,411
960
51,777
It will be observed that the greatest number was inspected between the 13th and 16th day.
I endeavoured to see as many fresh cases as possible; and even when the cases inspected were
old, minute and careful inquiries were made before entering them as successful in my
inspection memos.
Excluding the 920 cases seen from 1st to 4th day, we have, number vaccinated, 46,245;
number of points, 182,145; cases successful, 46,132; points successful, 181,881; percentage
of successful cases, 99.75 ; percentage of successful points, 99.85.
Amount of
inspection.
14. Amount of inspection.—The three deputy superintendents inspected 222,876, so
between us we have inspected 270,041 out of 306,676, which gives 88.05 per cent of cases
inspected. This ought to be a sure and certain guarantee of the correctness of the figures.
If any doubt is entertained, our registers for the last six years are open to inspection and
for comparison with the actual number of persons vaccinated. Let the registers be taken
to villages and compared by anybody with the number of people vaccinated, and then let
the results be put down and the percentage struck out.
Attitude of the
people
15. Attitude of the people.—After another year's experience I can affirm that vaccin-
ation has made no inconsiderable progress. Many houses and families that had formerly
refused to take it have come round; but the people have some peculiar notions regarding
the proper age when children ought to be vaccinated. They judge of vaccination by their
experience of inoculation. As inoculation is seldom practised on children under five years,
on account of its risk and danger, so they conclude that very young children should not be
vaccinated. Then, again, there are many circumstances which prohibit the practice of inocu-
lation, such as births, deaths, pregnancy, &c., and they think vaccination should not also be
done under such circumstances. If these objections are successfully removed, and the parents
allow their young children to be vaccinated, another and a still greater difficulty presents itself.
To supply virus vaccinated children are taken from one village to another; and if the children
are of tender age, say one, two, or three years, their parents are very unwilling to allow them
to be taken for the purpose of giving virus. This difficulty was most felt in those thanas that
were vaccinated a second time, and it was sometimes so great that the work was at a stand-
still. It was principally for this reason that thanas Oolaberiah and Shampore could not
be finished.