5
4. In the table below are collected the statistics given above for each month :—
Month.
October 1901
November 1901...
...
...
December 1901...
...
...
January 1902 ...
February 1502 ...
...
...
March 1503
...
...
April 1902
May 1902
...
•••
June 1902
...
...
July 1902
...
...
August 1902 ...
...
...
September 1902
...
...
Infected
Districts.
6
8
9
10
11
15
14
15
13
10
10
10
Intected
Native
States.
2
a
3
5
7
8
9
7
5
3
2
2
DURING THE MONTH.
Cases.
3,392
8,278
14,135
21,373
42,816
94,842
86,431
41,328
4,476
536
494
832
Deaths.
1,448
4,349
8,935
13,439
29,610
68,434
62,606
27,030
3,447
368
460
FROM OCTOBER 1ST, 1901,
TO END OP MONTH.
Cases.
3,392
11,670
25,805
47,178
89,994
184,836
271,267
312,595
317,071
317,607
318,101
318,933
Deaths.
1,448
5,797
14,732
28,171
57,781
126,215
188,821
215,851
219,298
219 666
219,929
220,389
On reference to Table No. 2 at page 12 it will be seen that 6 districts lost over [0,000
of their inhabitants from plague. The Ludhiana District suffered most severely : there
were outbreaks of plague in 665 of the 869 villages of the district, and nearly 50,000
persons, rather over 7 per cent. of its population, died of plague alone.
Sialkot came next, with over 900 infected villages and 34,000 deaths from plague ;
after these the Ambala, jullundur, Gurdaspur and Hoshiarpur Districts were most severely
affected in the order named.
Bearing of the people in the presence of plague. In-
fluence of the epidemic upon agriculture, trade, etc.
5. The people of the Punjab have a reputation for sturdy independence, which
was fully supported by the bearing of the
inhabitants of districts infected with
plague during the year under report.
Even in districts which suffered most severely from the ravages of plague, the people
were not easily aroused from their fatalistic attitude. In most places the disease was looked
upon as a visitation of Providence, to which human resistance was considered to be use-
less, and in some cases—especially by Muhammadans—as impious. An increased devotion
to religious exercises was observed among some communities, and in many instances
villages trusted to the charms and incantations of their spiritual advisers in preference to
the counsel of Government officials, often with disastrous results to themselves.
In only a few instances did anything of the nature of a panic occur, and only among
Hindus. The contrast between Hindus and Muhammadans in this respect has been noticed
by several district officers, it having been mentioned that while the Hindus in some in-
stances fled, leaving their sick unattended and their dead to be disposed of by others, the
Muhammadans prided themselves on their devotion to their plague-stricken brethren, and
made it a paint of honour to attend the funerals of those who died of plague.
Agriculture.
In no district did the epidemic cause any noticeable interference with agricultural
operations, though, in some instances in which
entire households had been swept away by
plague, or only orphan children survived, helds would have been left untitled and crops
unreaped but for the kindly help of friends and neighbours.
. Trade.
In some places in which outbreaks of plague were severe and led to the flight of
a considerable population of the trading com-
munity, trade was temporarily disorganised, but
only for a short time.
Litigation.
Litigation in some districts was in abeyance or greatly diminished during the height
of the epidemic, this being due in many in-
stances to one or both parties of suits having
succumbed to plague.