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Dispensary Vaccination.
7. Dispensary vaccination has had a fair trial during the year under report.
There are in all 22 dispensaries. In my last report I
mentioned that almost all the dispensary medical officers
were written to, and encouraged to carry on vaccination, notwithstanding which a glance
at statement No. V. will show that dispensary vaccination has progressed very little as
regards numbers, and as regards quality—as far as my experience has gone—the work
done is far from satisfactory. I am sorry to remark that several of the Dispensary
Hospital Assistants have no practical knowledge of vaccination.
Re-vaccination.
8. Re-vaccinations have been for the first time carried on in this Circle. The
returns show that 11,666 operations have been performed.
With the permission of the Collectors of Surat and Ah-
medabad I got a notice about re-vaccination printed with their signatures to it, and these
were distributed in the whole of the zillas through the Mamlutdars. The Collectors
of Kaira and Broach and the Political Officers of Palhunpoor and Mahee Kanta got the
notices lithographed for themselves and circulated them among the village people. I
directed the vaccinators to read the notices and show it to the people of villages where
the tulatees had failed to do so. During the past few months I inspected many of
these re-vaccinations; some of the vesicles I saw in August last were as good as
primary vesicles, and the marks of re-vaccination cicatrices were also pretty good : in
a few instances these were to be seen side by side with the cicatrices of primary vacci-
nations. The success which attends re-vaccination is a fair index of the necessity for
its introduction.
Animal Vaccination.
9. During the monsoon I spent about three weeks in Bombay with the Local
Superintendent of Vaccination, in studying, practically, the
method of carrying on animal vaccination. On my return
to Surat arrangements were made for a supply of heifers on very reasonable terms.
For a loan of a heifer for 8 or 10 days one rupee was to be paid, and the heifer to be
fed during that time ; if it belonged to a milch cow then the heifer was to be sent to
the owners morning and evening about milking time. The feeding of the heifer for
the week cost about 8 annas, and the shaving on each occasion cost two annas. The
first heifer was inoculated on the 14th September 1870, it turned out a complete
failure. A second heifer was again inoculated on the 26th September which partially
succeeded and from which a third heifer was inoculated on the 30th September
with good results. The lymph used on the 14th and the 26th September was kindly
supplied to me by Dr. Blanc, Superintendent Western Circle. Dr. Gane, the Civil
Surgeon, and Dr. Ticehurst, the Staff Surgeon, attended almost every time to see
the process. Sub-Assistant Surgeon, Mr. Ruttonjee Hormusjee, in charge of the
Bechurdass Ambaidass Dispensary at Ahmedabad who was then on privilege leave
in Surat, and Sub-Assistant Surgeon Mr. Dossabhai Pestonjee in charge of the
Paruck Charitable Dispensary, in Surat, also attended. During October 5 heifers
were inoculated and in all 27 children were vaccinated. More than half of these
were failures; in others only small vesicles were developed on the 8th day, and