36
EASTERN BENGAL CIRCLE.
left behind, of which 25,349 were seen successful and 47 unsuccessful, including eight doubtful
cases. The percentage of successful cases inspected is 99.81, and that in the general
return 99.73.
Attitude of the peo-
ple
13. Attitude of the people.—Vaccination was not known to the generality of the
people of this district, and they looked on it with suspicion when it was offered to them for
the first time in October last. There was more or less opposition from every class of people ;
those who have received a liberal English education, formed an exception to this rule.
Opposition offered
by different classes.
The middling class of Hindoos and those Mahomedans who are known by the name
of Ferazees stood first, and the labouring class (both Hindoos and Mahomedans) the last
in the list; the middling class of Mahomedans midway between the two. The generality
of the people are very much inclined towards inoculation, and it is the belief of almost all,
that the protective influence of vaccination is far inferior to that of inoculation.
There are many influential Hindoos who tried to keep vaccination in the background
and made the people believe that it does not possess, in the least degree, the power of giving
protection from small-pox, and the following case will serve as an example; while I was
inspecting Dhooloogram and the villages in the neighbourhood, one of "the vaccinators came
and informed me that vaccination is at a stand-still; the people of Bhoogday were the first to
refuse the prophylactic, and the inhabitants of the neighbouring villages had followed their
example. I lost no time in paying a visit to that village, and on enquiry it was found out
that the talookdar of that village is a staunch advocate of inoculation, and he has been
exerting his influence in favor of it.
He was called on by me; I gave him a short account of vaccination and contrasted it
with inoculation; after three hours' discussion I succeeded in inducing him and his ryots
to accept the prophylactic. Thirty children were vaccinated in my presence and within a
week, the people of the adjoining villages allowed the vaccinators to operate on their
children.
There can be no doubt, that the simplicity of the vaccine operation, the mild character
of the fever which attends it, and the absence of all danger and restraint, have made a favor-
able impression on the minds of the people, but it seems inconsistent to them, that teka
(meaning vaccination) without giving birth to any eruption, can give protection from small-
pox. The people of every village which I inspected put me questions on this subject, and
the answers which I gave satisfied them.
Fears
entertained
by the people.
They cannot conceive why Government is expending so much money for vaccination;
they fear that in time it will lead to some new impost.
Wherever I went, the first question which they asked me was this, are we to pay
anything for vaccination, we are very poor and cannot afford to pay for it; but I removed
their fears by assuring them that no such thing is ever contemplated by Government and
they were very glad on hearing this piece of news.
Small-pox.
14. Small-pox.—Reports of three outbreaks of small-pox reached me, one in the month
of December 1872, and two in the month of March 1873 ; in each case, the spread of the
disease was arrested by vaccinating all unprotected persons around the infected localities.
In two, it originated from the practice of inoculation, and the cause which gave rise to the
third could not be ascertained. The villages in which the disease made its appearance are
Nainna, Punchumsar and Tewota. The number of persons affected, amounted to 29, and all
of them recovered.
Inoculation.
15. Inoculation.—From October 1872 to January 1873 vaccination made a fair
progress; the people did not offer much opposition. In the beginning of February 1873,
inoculators appeared in the field and tried to put vaccination into the shade. They moved
from village to village, and gave out that those who have been vaccinated will get small-
pox within a year or two; the people believed them and did not give a patient hearing to
what the vaccinators said. Vaccination thus brought into disrepute, was refused by the
majority of the people; the number of vaccine operations began to fall off every day, and, by
the middle of March 1873, it was reduced to one-eighth.
Inoculation was extensively practised in this district, more so in some places than in
others. It often happened that while vaccinators were working in a village, inoculators
stepped in, and persuaded the inhabitants to get their children inoculated : thus, vaccination
brought into contact with inoculation, was put into great disadvantage.