(2)
extension of vaccination in Sibságar is due to the exertions of Dr. Atkins, who has
unfortunately been transferred from the province since the close of the year. In
Nowgong, the reason alleged for the decrease is that the ground open to vaccination has
been, worked out, and only the exclusive castes remain, who obey the dictates of their
Gohains in refusing vaccination; but it is too early yet to fall back upon an excuse of
this kind. It may possibly have some force in the Gáro Hills, with their small population,
where the protection afforded is already so effective that there were no deaths from small-
pox in 1885-86, and only one outbreak, which was stopped at once by a vaccinator
going out and vaccinating the whole village. The decrease in Goálpára is not
explained.
If following the statistics of the Census Report of 1881 we assume that population
increases yearly at the rate of 3 per cent. in Cachar and Lakhimpur, at the rate of 2 per
cent. in Sibságar and Nowgong, and at 1½ per cent. elsewhere, then the following table
shows in round numbers the number of vaccinations necessary in order to keep pace with
the growth of population:—
Sylhet..............
Cachar..............
Goálpára..............
Kámrúp..............
30,000
9,000
7,000
10,000
Darrang..............
Nowgong..............
Sibságar..............
Lakhimpur..............
4,100
6,200
7,400
5,700
Sylhet, therefore, appears as the only district in which vaccination still fails to over-
take the annual increment of the population. In Goálpára the area of protection has been
rapidly widening during the last three years; but Darrang is the district in which vaccina-
tion has been steadly gaining on population for the greatest length of time. Cachar
has hitherto been miserably behindhand in this respect.
Primary vaccinations.
4. Out of the total number of vaccinations effected in 1885-86 (excluding work
done by garden doctors), 114,925 were primary vacci-
nations, and 103,789 of these were reported as successful.
The ratio is 90.31 per cent., last year it was 89.58 per cent., the year before 86.66 per
cent. Dr. Eteson points out that the extraordinarily favourable ratio of 1885-86 is due
in some measure to the preponderance of Sylhet, where a very high percentage is in
fashion. Omitting Sylhet, the percentage for the rest of the province is 88.5. In
Lakhimpur and Darrang it is only 82 and 83; in Kámrúp 87½; in Sylhet the success-
percentage is 94.4.
If the primary vaccinations of the whole province be divided into (1) vaccinations
on tea-gardens, and (2) vaccinations among the rest of the population, the success-
percentage in the former class in 1885-86 was 80, and of the latter class 90.3. The
inferior measure of success attained on tea-gardens among an adult population, has often
been noticed in previous years. The results are invariably less encouraging for tea-garden
agency than for departmental vaccinators. There were 5,293 operations by the latter,
with a success-percentage of 88, and 6,249 operations reported by garden doctors, with
a percentage of 73.3. The statistics for garden doctors, however, unquestionably fall far
short of representing the total sum "of work actually done by their agency in 1885-86.
Vaccination returns are not among the forms which garden-managers are required by
law to keep, and the majority of gardens do not voluntarily furnish any statistics what-
ever. Of the 6,249 vaccinations reported in 1885-86, 5,260 were in the Surma Valley,
while only 437 were reported by the two districts of Sibságar and Lakhimpur, with
their enormous garden population. The 5,293 vaccinations on tea-gardens by depart-
mental vaccinators occurred chiefly in Cachar (3,780 cases), Lakhimpur (750), and
Darrang (618); the large number in Cachar is due to the abnormal proportion of tea-
coolies in the population of that small district.
Of the total number of successful primary vaccinations in the year under review,
82,642 were performed on children under six years of age. There were only 717 cases
of re-vaccination in the whole province among patients of all ages.
Inspection.
5. The area of inspection was widely extended in 1885-86. Out of a total of 115,642
vaccinations by departmental agency, 59,044, or 51 per cent.,
were inspected, against 41 per cent. last year. Civil Sur-
geons inspected 15,486 cases (including 150 cases inspected by the Assistant-Surgeon at
Sibságar) and native inspectors inspected 43,558 cases. A considerable difference appears,
as usual, between the average success-percentages in cases tested by Civil Surgeons and
by inspectors the former finding 89.3 per cent. of the cases successful, the latter 91.5 per
cent. This difference, however, doest not present itself in every district. In Goálpára,
Sylhet, and Sibságar the percentages of Civil Surgeons' and inspectors' cases are almost
exactly the same; in Kámrúp and Cachar the latter percentage is actually lower than former.
It is Sylhet, with its large number of inspectors' cases (16,866), and its high success