FOR THE YEAR 1875-76.
13
Supervision by the
Superintendent
52. Mr. Lyons travelled a good deal, and carefully supervised the work in the
Furreedpore district. He visited 245 villages, and inspected upwards of 13,000 cases.
His inspection verified a success of 99.64 per cent. The operations in the Dacca dis-
trict were supervised by the Deputy Superintendent. Mr. Lyons complains that he
experienced many inconveniences and difficulties in the course of his inspection. As he
received no travelling allowance, he had to walk from village to village. I would suggest
that he should receive something in the shape of travelling allowance, viz. Rs. 50 a month,
which will enable him to keep a pair of riding ponies like the Civil Surgeons of Midnapore
and Bankoora, who are allowed Rs. 50 for six months annually for inspecting vaccine
operations in their respective districts
Attitude of the
people.
53. Regarding the attitude of the people, Mr. Lyons says the masses receive vaccin-
ation without much persuasion. The Hindoos are more amenable to argument than Mussul-
mans, who, as a rule, give considerable trouble.
Census in the
Dacca district.
54. A census was taken in the Dacca district. 306,337 persons, belonging to 1,506
villages, were examined with the following result:— 67.72 per cent were inoculated, 5.97
per cent were vaccinated, 2 09 had had small-pox, and only 5 37 were found unprotected.
This is very satisfactory if the figures are correct and reliable.
Conduct of
establishment.
55. The conduct of the establishment is reported on unfavourably by the Superintend-
ent; but why so many men should desert shortly after he had taken charge I cannot
understand. The late Baboo Bhoobun Mohun Mitter managed his duties remarkably well,
as could be seen from the previous reports. Mr. Lyons is perfectly right in exercising
discipline, but at the same time he should use greater tact and skill in making his subordinates
work more smoothly under him. He deserves credit for the energy and zeal he showed in
the discharge of his duties; and after full examination of the complaints of the establishment,
I am satisfied of their having exaggerated in the statements they made of Mr. Lyons'
treatment of them; but he nevertheless has been recommended to refrain from ironical bitter-
ness of speech, and to utter his censure, when such is necessary, with due deliberation, and
under proper control of temper.
ORISSA CIRCLE.
56. Orissa Circle.—This circle was sanctioned in the month of December 1875, i e. about
the middle of the vaccine season. The establishment sanctioned for it was one Superintendent,
five head-vaccinators and thirty vaccinators. Assistant Surgeon Tariney Churn Dutt
was appointed Superintendent. He tried to get trained vaccinators to organize the circle;
only one head and ten vaccinators could be found ready to go to Orissa. Nine apprentices
were also entertained with a view of being trained up as future vaccinators. The Superin-
tendent lost much time in making preliminary arrangements, such as appointing vaccinators,
and indenting for maps, books, forms, lancets, and medicines. The Superintendent and his
men arrived in Cuttack in January 1876, and afterwards he did not exert himself as he
ought to have done: in fact, displayed such a want of energy and restiveness under control
by the Civil Surgeon that his removal was called for, and happily has been effected.
Mode of
commencing
operations
57. The district of Cuttack was selected for commencing opperations. After two
unsuccessful attempts, vaccine virus was at last established in Cuttack, from lymph tubes
received from Calcutta, and from this supplies were sent to the mofussil. The northern
part of the sudder thana was taken up, and ten vaccinators under one head man began
work. As might be expected, the people at first offered great resistance; and though a few
children were vaccinated, their parents would not allow any lymph to be taken from their
arms Virus was thus lost and had again to be brought from Cuttack. A system of small
rewards or backshish (which always works wonders,) to the parents afterwards enabled the
Superintendent to get virus regularly for propagating the vaccine disease from arm-to-arm.
As the work progressed, the vaccinators and apprentices were subdivided into parties of
two or three men, and separate villages were assigned to each party. Operations were done in
parts of Sudder thana, Dhurmsala, and Salipore; 86 villages were touched and 1,273
person vaccinated, with 94.55 per cent of success. The average number performed by each
vaccinator was 136, and the cost of each successful case Re 1-5-10. The Superintendent
inspected 918 cases. The civil authorities afforded every assistance.
Report of the
outbreak of
cholera
58. Only one report of the outbreak of small-pox in the subdivisional town of
Kendraparah was received by the Superintendent. Three vaccinators were promptly sent
armed with tubes of lymph; they succeeded in arresting the disease by the end of March.
In Kendraparah 46 cases occurred with 18 deaths; and in Patamundy only one case, which
proved fatal. Sporadic cases were also met with in other thanas.
Inspection
59. The Superintendent states that he travelled over 455 miles and visited 60 villages.
The Civil Surgeon of Cuttack, Dr. Stewart, reports unfavourably of Baboo Tariney Churn
Dutt, who, according to him, did not show any personal interest and zeal in his work,
as otherwise he might have achieved better results. Dr. Stewart does not approve of the
importation of Bengali vaccinators into Orissa to the exclusion of the indigenous race—a view
in which I entirely coincide; but at first it is necessary to employ a certain number of trained
vaccinators to teach the Ooriahs. Baboo Tariney Churn Dutt was a novice in the Vaccine
Department, and every consideration would have been freely extended to him had his