Nuisance.
Water
-supply.
Diet.
Foot-soreness.
Duty and
exercises.
Exercises.
Epidemic
diseases.
Water
-supply.
Conservancy
of the neigh
-bourhood.
92
MEDICAL AND SANITARY REPORT OF THE NATIVE ARMY OF MADRAS.
Climate of
the station.
Ventilation
and drainage
of the men's
huts, &c.
Clothing.
Climate of the station.— The hot season set in very early and the temperature was unusually
high, while slight rain falling during the hot weather caused a condition of climate and atmosphere
favorable to the occurrence of ague, a considerable number of cases of which disease, but of no
great severity, occurred at that time.
Ventilation and drainage of the men's huts, &c .—The ventilation of the huts is defective.
The barracks are only used as store-houses for arms and accoutrements. The guard-rooms,
cells and other pucka buildings are well ventilated. The situation of the lines on elevated
ground affords good natural drainage, but there is only one pucka drain, which seems to have
been constructed a an experiment which was not carried any farther probably on account of
t h e c o s t .
Nuisance.— Conservancy has been well attended to and there have been no nuisances.
Water-supply.— The water-supply has been good both as to quality and quantity. The
supply has been chiefly from wells.
Diet .—Provisions have been dearer and scarcer than usual owing to extensive exportations
of grain, &c. to the famine districts in the south and west. Owing to the abundant rainfall
vegetables have been plentiful. The troops have received compensation for the dearness of rice,
which is always dearer here than in a rice-growing district.
Clothing.— The clothing has been sufficient and adapted to the climate.
Hospitals.
General
conclusions.
Lines.
Sanitary
condition of
all buildings.
Foot-soreness.— The men have so little walking when in uniform, that though they wear
boots without stockings there has been hardly any foot-soreness among them.
Duty and exercises.— The regiment having been recently recruited nearly up to its full
strength a great deal of drill work has fallen on the Officers in instructing the recruits, but the
duties of the men have not been hard, and they have not proved in any way detrimental to their
health. The average number of nights per week in bed has been 4½.
Exercises.— There is a public gymnasium in Kamptee supported by subscription among the
European Officers of the garrison, and the troopers sometimes take an active part in the sports.
Epidemic diseases.— Small-pox prevailed in the station during the first quarter of the year,
and 27 cases in all occurred among the women and children with 4 deaths; none of the men
were attacked by the disease. In May cholera broke out in the station, but with the exception of
a recruit-boy who did not live in the lines of the regiment, no cases occurred in the corps.
Both of these epidemics were distinctly traceable to importation from the district, where they
had Prevailed for a considerable time before they reached this station.
Hospitals.—T h ev
e n t i l a t i o n o f t h e h o s p i t a l h a s b e e n a l l t h a t c o u l d b e d e s i r e d , a n d i s s e c u r e d
by numerous doors and windows and a "louvre" for each of the two main wards. The hospital
is a lofty roomy building, and there has been no overcrowding during the past year.
General conclusions.— The general health of the regiment may be looked on as satisfactory
during the past year so far as serious illness is concerned and taking into consideration the
occurrence of two outbreaks of epidemic disease, during which the regiment suffered less than
any other corps in the station either European or Native.
Deputy Surgeon-General J. R. Theobalds inspected this corps in November
1878 and reports as follows :—
Lines.— The regiment arrived at Kamptee on the 12th February 1873 from Bellary.
I found the lines very clean, huts in fair order, the ventilation of huts indifferent, but as
each hut is built detached, imperfect as the ventilation is, yet it is better than in the Infantry
lines.
Sanitary condition of all buildings.— I found all the cells and guard-rooms in good order,
clean, and sufficiently ventilated.
The private latrines in each compound were tolerably clean, but the ground is saturated with
urine and latrine washing water, for as a rule there are no drains made leading outside for the
escape of these fluids into the nullahs.
Water-supply—Abundant supply of good drinking water in the lines and outside.
Conservancy of the neighbourhood.— The conservancy of the lines and neighbourhood good.
The sweepings and rubbish of the lines are collected in 22 dust-bins, which are conveniently
placed in different parts of the lines ; the bins are emptied daily, and contents thrown on the
cultivation outside the station.
Hospital.
Hospital.— I found all the buildings, wards, offices, outhouses and latrines in good repair;
very clean; all the surroundings very tidy and in good order.
The drainage is very good from the natural configuration of, the ground on which the
hospital is built.