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the scarcity which has prevailed in the district, large numbers of starving women were
driven to practise unlicensed prostitution, and the soldiers contracted disease from these
women.
The medical officer thinks the discontinuance during the year of the previously
existing practice of detaining women in hospital during their periods of menstruation
may account for some cases of gonorrhœa, and therefore he has reverted to the practice.
But he is decidedly of opinion that the prevalence of venereal disease in 1877 was due
to the action of unregistered prostitutes, who are able to tempt the soldiers to greater
advantage than registered women. An unregistered woman can be obtained at a less
cost ; she can publicly solicit the soldier ; connection with her is more acceptable to
the soldier than connection with a registered woman already visited by numbers of
his comrades.
The medical officer recommends the employment of a lock-hospital police for the
prevention of illicit prostitution, and the punishment by stoppage of pay of a soldier
when in hospital suffering from primary venereal disease. At present the soldier
while laid up in hospital accumulates money wherewith to begin a fresh debauch.
Frequent reports have been made to the medical officer to the effect that disease
has been contracted from registered women, but upon examination the women accused
have almost invariably been found healthy.
At Agra it is attempted to control both the cantonment and city prostitutes as at
Cawnpore. A monthly average of 89 women remained on the cantonment register,
a monthly average of 49 on the city register. At Agra it does not appear that the
city has been placed out of bounds to the soldier.
10. The magistrate thinks the excessive disease shown to have prevailed amongst
the soldiers was due partly to illicit prostitution of village women driven by want to
prostitute themselves for almost nothing, and partly to the lax working of the regi-
mental police (five men are so employed). The magistrate complains that the medical
officer formerly in charge of the lock-hospital called the special committee together
only when special circumstances arose. Apparently the prevalence of disease was not
considered a special circumstance, and the magistrate learns of its existence for the first
time in perusing the medical officer's annual report.
The magistrate thinks the regimental police should be old hands, and not liable to
change when the regiments change. Yet he would not employ native policemen in this
work, because they become contaminated before they have been employed a month.
As the disease arises from illicit prostitution, it can be controlled only by efficient police
arrangements.
11. The commissioner forwards the report with the remark that the result of the
year's working has been unfavourable.
BAREILLY.
12. During the year 1877 a monthly average of 95 women remained on the
register against 93 in 1876. The result of the management was satisfactory. For
the six years 1872 to 1877 the ratios of venereal cases per 1,000 of the European garri-
son at Bareilly have been 228, 99, 165, 140, 89, and 142 respectively.
From these figures it may be seen that the result does not compare favourably
with results for the two previous years at Bareilly, but as compared with results for
lock-hospital working generally the ratio of 1877 at Bareilly still remains very
favourable.
13. The medical officer reports that the comparative increase of disease during
the past year amongst the soldiers was due to six causes :
—
The prevalence of distress causing a large flow through the cantonments of village
women who eked out a miserable existence by prostitution ; illicit prostitution of
the ayahs of soldiers' wives ; the sexual intercourse of the registered women with
natives; the prostitution of certain Kunjar married women who lived in the khalasi lines ;