POONA DIVISION OF THE ARMY.
Marches.
11. There have been none during the year.
12. The only addition made to the hospital during the year has been a bath-room.
A ward for contagious diseases and a dead-house are required.
Owing to the diminished number of sick, as compared with
previous years, the accommodation has been ample.
Hospital.
Over-crowding.
13. There has been none at any time during the year.
14. The additions alluded to in Section 12 are all that are now required to render the
hospital in every way suitable for the wants of a native
regiment.
Accommodation.
Water-supply.
15. There is no special water-supply for the hospital, its
wants being supplied from the line wells and tanks.
16. The improvement in the health of the regiment, which was so marked in 1875 as
compared with the two previous years, has, I am glad to say,
continued during the year just past, in which the sickness has
been less than for some years previously. This will be shown at once by a glance at the
following table, which gives the rates of sickness for the three years during which the regi
-ment has been stationed at Sholápur :—
1874.
1875.
1 8 7 6 .
Admissions...
...
...
...
...
...
950
625
326
Total treated
...
...
...
...
...
975
646
338
Percentage of treated to strength...
...
...
149.5
97
52
Average daily sick ...
...
...
27
14
10.7
This decrease has been very marked in the case of ague, the numbers of treated for that
disease having been less than a third of the number treated in 1875, and only a little more
than a sixth of those in 1874 ; but it is by no means confined to that disease, being more or
less marked in almost every class, thus showing a decided improvement in the health of the
corps.
Three deaths have occurred during the year, showing a percentage of deaths to strength
of 0.47, and of deaths to treated of 0.88. These are in excess
of those in the previous year.
One native officer, 4 [non-commissioned officers, and 6 privates were sent before the
general invaliding committee on 1st November, the whole of
whom were passed. The majority of them were old, worn-out
men, and one, who was discharged with a gratuity, suffered from ocular tumour, which in
-capacitated him for the duties of a soldier.
17. The most prevalent disease was, as usual, ague, though very much less so than in
previous years, the cases constituting, instead of more than
half the total sickness, rather less than a third. The total
numbers treated was 103, against 345 in 1875, and 597 in 1874, and only 1 case remained
on the sick list at the close of the year. I attribute this immunity from fever chiefly to the
scanty rainfall and consequent dryness of atmosphere, but believe that something is also due
to the generally improved state of health of the men rendering them less susceptible to the
effects of malaria, or whatever the real cause of intermittent fever may be. The cases that
occurred were mostly of a very mild type.
Sickness.
Mortality.
Invaliding.
Principal causes of sickness.
General diseases—A.
The remaining cases under this heading comprise 1 case
of remittent fever, and 3 of malignant cholera, of which one
proved fatal.
This class comprises in all 40 cases, of which 7 were due to chronic rheumatism, 5 to
primary, and 13 to secondary syphilis, 1 to diabetes mellitus
(which ended fatally after a very long illness), 1 to scurvy,
and 13 to lumbago. Most of these show a decided decrease as compared with the previous
years, and the decrease is specially marked in the case of primary syphilis, though there was
General diseases—B.