274
EPIDEMIC CHOLERA OF INDIA OF 1875 AND 1876.
[ Section IV
.
which is almost certain to occur should the epidemic advance be arrested anywhere in the con-
tinent of India."
This deduction, which was again borne out in the epidemic history of 1875 and 1876,
The minimum which was reached
in 1874.
as will be subsequently shown, was verified ; and the mini-
mum reached in 1873 dwindled in nearly every district of
the epidemic area to nothing, so that the registration of cholera
deaths in 1874 was, from north to south and from east to west, almost a blank throughout the
three Presidencies of India.
The Bombay Presidency registered 37 cholera deaths in all.
In Ganjam, which gets its cholera in common with Orissa, 243 deaths were registered.
Leaving out this tract, the whole area of the Madras Presidency gave 70 deaths, of which the
greater number were probably erroneously returned.
In the Berars two deaths only were returned out of the entire population.
In the Central Provinces two deaths were recorded. I except twelve, which occurred in Sum-
bulpore, a district associated as regards its cholera with Bengal Proper and Orissa.
The Punjab shows a total of 79 cholera deaths.
Rajpootana reported four deaths only.
Oudh, one of the worst cholera fields in India, had but 68 deaths.
Goruckpore and the districts adjoining suffered from epidemic cholera, and had upwards of
5,000 deaths. But leaving out these, the mortality for the whole of the remaining area of the
North-Western Provinces was under 1,100.
The following statement shows how the cholera of 1872 ran down throughout 1873 and
1874 in the epidemic area of India.:
—
T o t a l d e a t h s f r o m c h o l e r a r e g i s t e r e d a m o n g t h e p o p u l a t i o n o f H i n d o s t a n i n 1 8 7 2 , 1 8 7 3 a n d 1 8 7 4
Bengal Presidency,
(excluding the endemic area.)
Bombay Presidency.
Madras Presidency.
1872
1873
1874
1872
1873
1874
1872
1873
1874
89,028 19,519 6,558
15,642
284
37
13,215
840
313
Distributed by provincial areas, the phenomenon shows itself even more remarkably. The
areas of Bengal gave these results—
NORTH-WESTERN PROVINCES.
East of 80° E. Long.
West of
80° E. Long.
South of the Jumna.
1872
35,319
13,419
1,797
1873
8,275
5,979
940
1874
953*
462
27
OUDH.
CENTRAL PROVINCES
(excluding Sumbulpore).
BERARS.
1872
26,566
1,592
1 , 5 7 8
1873
3,732
35
None
1874
68
2
2 †
PUNJAB.
1872
8,727
1873
149
1 8 7 4
78
Many of these deaths we know to be erroneously registered under the head of cholera, a
The minimum recognised in every
presidency and province of India.
Provinces of Bengal.
V
furnished deaths in every month since registration was introduced, and such deaths, which are
fortunately very few in number, necessarily blemish any system of statistics which is calculated
to show the absolute localisation of cholera to natural areas.
Leaving then out of consideration these trifling errors, which do not affect the general
results, in 1873, the cholera deaths of the Punjab had declined to 149 for the province.
The adjoining districts of the North-Western Pr ovinces showed a similar decrease.
Bareilly gave in 1873, 123 deaths ; Shahjehanpore 80 ; Bolundshahr 43; Meerut 53 ; Mo-
zuffernuggur 5 ; Saharunpore 45 ; and Bijnour 63.
In 1874, the Punjab registered 78 deaths, and the same districts of the North-Western
Provinces gave 178 deaths in the aggregate.
In geographical continuation towards the east, Oudh afforded 68 deaths in all, out of the
entire population of the province.
The tabulated statement above given shows how little even in the Gangetic districts of
the North-Western Provinces, the population was affected by cholera in 1874. In the first
half of 1874, Goruckpore and Busti, lying towards the hills, had no cholera ; five deaths being
* E x c l u d i n g 5 , 0 0 0 d e a t h s i n G o r u c k p o r e a n d B u s t i . I n t h e s e d i s t r i c t s c h o l e r a a p p e a r e d i n S e p t e m b e r 1 8 7 4 , a n d i n
this tract the cholera of 1874 was absolutely localised. None of the adjoining districts suffered ; and in the last si
x m o n t h s o f 1 8 7 4 , t h e w h o l e o f t h e p r o v i n c e o f O u d h , i m m e d i a t e l y t o t h e w e s t , g a v e o n l y 1 9 c h o l e r a d e a t h s .
† St at ed t o be er r oneousl y r egi st er ed.
circumstance to be taken into account in estimating the actual
minimum reached. Certain districts, in which there is no
ground for supposing cholera to be constantly present, have