2
credit is due to the Civil Surgeons of these districts for their successful management
of vaccination work. The increase of 5,633 in the Manipur State, which has at times
suffered severely from visitations of small-pox, is highly satisfactory. The results in
Darrang showed an improvement, as compared with the results of the previous year,
but the figures are still far below those reported in 1892-93. Statement No. IV in the
Appendix to the Report furnishes an interesting retrospect of the progress of vaccination
in Assam by all agencies during the past decade. From this statement it will be seen
that in 1886-87 there were 128,262 primary vaccinations, of which 117,310 were
successful. In 1891-92 the figures were 197,572 and 184,225, respectively. In 1894-95,
195,703 primary vaccinations were recorded, of which 169,971, or 86.9 per cent.,
were successful, while during the year under review there were 253,641 vaccinations, of
which 245,839, or 96.9, were successful. The high percentage obtained in the year under
review is an indication of the great improvement in the quality of the lymph supplied
from the Shillong Bovine Lymph Depôt, and the results reflect great credit on
Surgeon-Captain Carroll, who was in charge of the depôt throughout the year.
Details of the work done at the depôt are given in Appendix A to the Report. The
Chief Commissioner approves of the proposal made by Dr. Stephen in paragraph
28 of the Report, that experiments should be made next cold weather, with a view
to testing the efficacy of lanoline paste as a means of preserving the lymph, this
paste being considerably cheaper than glycerine, which is at present used for the purpose.
In paragraph 29 of the Report, the Principal Medical Officer has pointed out the neces-
sity of having an independent source of lymph supply, and he has referred to the arrange-
ments which have recently been sanctioned by the Chief Commissioner for vaccinating
with fresh calf lymph at the headquarters of districts. No reference is made in the
Report to the method of vaccinating with human lymph ; the Report for 1896-97 may
usefully notice to what extent arm-to-arm vaccination is still practised, and compare
the results of the same with those obtained where animal vaccine is used.
4. The inspection work done by Civil Surgeons and Native inspectors is summarised
in Statement No. V of the Appendix. Of the total number of 244,268 persons vaccinated,
29,886 were inspected by Civil Surgeons and 159,915 by Native inspectors, the corre-
sponding figures for the previous year being 193,779, 13,541, and 120,796, respectively.
These figures show a marked improvement. Of the total number of cases inspected,
97.19 per cent. were found by Civil Surgeons, and 97.95 per cent. by Native inspectors,
to be successful.
5. The Compulsory Vaccination Act, V (B.C.) of 1880, was extended during the
year to the station of Shillong, and Act XIII of 1880 was at the same time brought
into force in the Shillong Cantonment. The total number of deaths from small-pox in
towns in which Compulsory Vaccination Acts are in force, was 132, against 49 registered
in the previous year, the death-rate in the ten towns to which one or other of the Acts
has been extended, having been 1.92 per 1,000, compared with a provincial death-rate
of 0.77 per 1,000. Of the 132 deaths, 115 were registered in Dibrugarh alone. The
number of persons successfully vaccinated in towns rose from 2,523 in 1894-95 to 3,828
in 1895-96. No generalisations can be made in comparing areas under compulsory
vaccination with the rest of the Province ; the total population in the areas where vacci-
nation is compulsory is rather less than 69,000, and local conditions differ greatly between
the towns in which this population is found and the rural areas where vaccination is not
enforced by law.
By order of the Chief Commissioner of Assam,
E. A. GAIT,
Offg. Secretary to the Chief Commissioner of Assam.