12
ANNUAL REPORT ON THE
second-class prostitutes are brought on the register within the area of St. Thomas' Mount,
Guindy, Saidápet, Pallaveram and Poonamallee. No registration fees are exacted. The
prostitutes have been generally regular in attendance on examination days. Fifty-five were
reported to the Magistrate for being absent, of these 41 were warned and 14 punished either by
fine or imprisonment. All prostitutes are required to attend at hospital for examination every
Friday. Those found diseased are admitted into hospital, and those having menses are
detained for examination on cessation. In-patients are examined twice a week by the Medical
Officer, and daily by the Medical Subordinate.
Extracts from the Annual Medical Report of the Lock Hospital at Secunderabad
by Brigade-Surgeon G. S. W. O GG.
There has been no change in the Lock Hospital buildings during the year. As explained
in previous reports the hospital consists of two blocks of buildings affording accommodation to
69 patients. The hospital buildings are well constructed, well ventilated, and, in all respects,
suitable.
During the past year the number of patients has been occasionally in excess of the accom-
modation, and it has been necessary to put some of the women in the hospital verandahs.
In the month of May, and again in June, I brought to the notice of the Cantonment Magis-
trate the urgent need for increased vigilance on the part of the police in arresting absentees
from the examinations, who are, for the most part, diseased, and in detecting clandestine prosti-
tutes. In consequence of these representations the Chief Constable and two Constables were
removed from their duties in connection with the Lock Hospital, and replaced by more efficient
men. The result was an increase in the number of registrations and a diminution in the list
of absentees.
The admissions for venereal in the British Hospitals fell notably in July and August. In
the months of September and October the admissions again rose, for a reason I will indicate, to
fall again in November and December. The cause of the rise in venereal admissions in Septem-
ber and October I believe to have been the following :—In August and September a large sum
of money was paid to time-expired men of the British Infantry Regiments as bounty on
re-enlistment, and I believe that a great deal of this money was spent in drink and debauchery,
the result being an increase of admissions for venereal disease into the British Hospitals and also
into the Lock Hospital.
No special Sub-Committee exists for exercising supervision over the Lock Hospital rules.
All matters affecting the institution and the working of the Contagious Disease Act are
discussed at the monthly meetings of the Cantonment Committee.
The measures adopted for the control of prostitution are the same as those which have been
followed in previous years. One Head Constable with five Constables of the Civil Police Force
are deputed for this work, their sole duty being the detection and apprehension of women who
carry on prostitution with European soldiers. Besides the Civil Police Force, there are a
number of men detached for police duty in each regiment, whose duty it is to patrol night and
day the roads and topes in the vicinity of the barracks, to prevent irregularities and to keep
improper characters out of the barracks. For this work one Serjeant and five Privates are
detailed in the 14th Hussar lines, one Non-Commissioned Officer and four Gunners in the
Artillery lines, and one Serjeant, one Corporal and sixteen men in the lines occupied by the
European Infantry Regiments.
The Medical Officers in charge of Station Hospitals report, with one exception, that in the
performance of this duty the Military Police receive " every assistance" from the Civil Police,
and that the results are satisfactory. Nevertheless, I am inclined to think that if greater
vigilance were shown in the performance of this duty both by the Military and the Civil Police,
there would be less clandestine prostitution and less venereal disease among the European
troops.
I have no doubt that in the town of Secunderabad and in the Cantonment, there are a
number of women not on the register, who consort with European soldiers. It is not to be
expected that in the vicinity of a large town clandestine prostitution can be entirely prevented,
but the Lock Hospital system must prove utterly valueless in protecting the European soldiers
from venereal disease, unless unceasing vigilance is shown by the police in limiting this great
evil as much as possible.
During the latter months of the year the women have been more regular in their attend-
ance at the periodical examinations than they were in the early part of the year, but there is
still room for improvement in this respect.
It will be observed that only 38 were removed from the rolls last year, whereas in the year
1882 there were 134 removals, and as there is reason to believe that in many instances
names were removed from the register on false pretences; such as alleged intention of getting
married or of leaving the station, it is satisfactory to find that so few removals comparatively
have been permitted this year. The fatality of expecting soldiers suffering from venereal
affections to point out the women from whom they have contracted the disease is illustrated by
the following statement, from which it will be seen that in no single instance was assistance