Present
.
.
.
.
.
.
. .
.
.
. 458.9
Absent
. .
.
. .
.
.
. .
.
. 34. 2
Total . . 493.1
Sickness,
mortality and
invaliding.
XV. Sickness, mortality and invaliding.—Strength of head quarters and right wing:—
26 MEDICAL AND SANITARY REPORT OF THE NATIVE ARMY OF BENGAL,
Marches and
service.
Fever.
Cholera.
Hospital.
XIII. Marches and service.—The only interesting march undertaken was that to Kohima,
which has been selected as the new civil station, instead of Samaguting in the Naga Hills. The
detachment for Kohima, strength 115 men, composed partly of men of right, partly of men of
left wing, embarked in steamer at Gauhati on 21st October ; proceeded thence up the Brahmaputra
to Nigriting, whence it marched viâ Golaghat to Samaguting, the first station in the Hills.
Samaguting is six marches, or 90 miles from the river ; Kohima is two marches inland from
Samaguting. The sickness in this detachment was excessive, yielding an admission rate of
553.83, and a death-rate of 1338 per cent, per annum. Lieutenant C. R. Macgregor, the
officer in command, has furnished me with the following account in explanation of the great
sickness amongst his men :
—
" I send you a few notes in which I have incorporated my ideas as to the cause of the
excessive sickness in the detachment :
"Fever. —Seventy-nine men have been admitted in the hospital, and one man has died
from this disease. Numerous other cases have been noticed by me; but the men only went to
hospital when they could not walk or work, as they considered that they were out on a
'dour.' In my opinion nearly all the fever was contracted in the march through the terai'
between Golaghat and Samaguting. The men had to march often up to their knees in mud
and water, and for two days of the four it rained incessantly. We could not start for Kohima
for a fortnight after our arrival at Samaguting, owing to the state of the rivers and roads,
and in that fortnight the men contracted bad ulcers. A fortnight's delay in one march through
the 'terai' would probably have saved much sickness and the life of one sepoy who died from
jungle fever.
" Cholera. —There were two cases, of which one proved fatal. I think that the disease
was imported by some Goorkha coolies who came to Kohima, and amongst whom it first
appeared. On the road from Samaguting to Golaghat I heard that some sawyers of the Forest
Department had suffered from cholera.
" Diarrhœa.—Four cases, due, I think, to change of climate and of diet (from attah to
rice). For the first week I could not get the rice properly cleaned."
From the above account it would seem to be clear that the excessive sickness was due to
two main causes, viz., first, the early march through a most unhealthy, thickly-wooded " terai."
In 1878 the rains were very late in Assam, being prolonged into the first week of November.
Thus the " terai" was moist and malarious at the time of the march. Secondly, to a scorbutic
state induced by the absence of vegetables, fresh meat, milk, &c. The aggravated ulcers were
probably due to this cause. Potatoes, no doubt, would flourish as well in the Naga as they do
in the Khasi Hills. It would therefore be desirable to make attempts at once to encourage the
growth of this useful vegetable in
t h e N a g a H i l l s .
Hospital.—A good supply of fuel is obtained on quarterly indent from the Com
-missariat Department. Fires are essential in this climate almost all the year round,—in the
winter on account of the severe cold, in the summer on account of the gloom and dampness
of the climate. The pillows and blankets recently sanctioned by Government add much to the
comforts of the sick. A dead-house and a separate ward for contagious diseases are now in
course of construction.
Principal
causes of
sickness.
STATION.
P E R I O D .
Strength.
TOTAL NUMBER
OF
D a i l y
average number of
sick
PER CENT. OF STRENGTH
From
To
Admis- s i o n s . Deaths.
Admis- sions. Deaths. Daily
average sick.
Head-quarters and Right
wing, Shillong.
1st Jan. 1878 31st Dec. 1878 435.3 561
8
19.7 128.87 1.83 4.52
Detachment at Kohima . 21st Oct. 1878
Ditto
. 113.6 124
3
10. 553.33 13.38 8 . 8
TOTAL
.
.
...
...
458.9 685
11
21.7 148.39 2.39 4.72
Number of deaths in hospital 11 ; out of hospital 1 ; total
12; per cent. of total strength . .
2.3
„ invalided . . . . .
. .
18;
„ „.
.
3.65
„ sent on sick leave
. .
. . .
3; „
„
.
.
.60
„ of days spent in hospital 7,934; per admission . 11.6; per man of total strength . . 16.08
„ on sick leave 730; per man
. 243.3; „
„
. .
1.49
Total temporary loss of service per man of total strength . . 17.57
XVI. Principal causes of sickness. —Malarious fevers, as usual, furnished by far the largest
number of admissions, viz., 272 or 40 per cent. of the total. Dysentery was also very prevalent
during the year, yielding 90 or 13.2 per cent. of admissions. Two cases of cholera occurred
amongst the men of the Kohima detachment, none at head-quarters. Chest affections account
for 36 or 5 per cent, of the admissions, affections of the skin for 58, and blisters of the feet