106
MEDICAL AND SANITARY REPORT OF THE NATIVE ARMY OF BENGAL,
Meteorology
and climate.
Diet and
food-supply
Clothing.
from there marched to Kohat, arriving on the 22nd of October ; again marching on the 2nd of
November arrived at Thull on the 20th of that month ; crossed the frontier into the Koorum
valley on the 21st with the field force, and was on service in the Koorum and Harriah valleys
to the 31st of December.
IV. Meteorology and climate. —Rain was met with each month for the first nine months
of the year ; the first two months at Umritsur, the next seven at Simla. From the time the
regiment left Simla at the end of September, no rain was experienced, either on the march,
or in the Koorum valley. The greatest fall was in the months of July and August at Simla,
rain falling on 21 days in the former month and 29 in the latter. On the march between
Simla and Thull the weather was very hot. In the Koorum valley and amongst the hills,
the cold experienced was very great, 24½° of frost were registered.
IX. Diet and food-supply.—Provisions have been dear throughout the year, but as the men
received compensation for dearness of food, and as they have also received some working pay,
though not near so much as in the previous year, they have always been able to live fairly well.
Since crossing the frontier on the 21st of November, they received Government rations on a
fairly liberal scale ; these rations they always supplemented by fowls, eggs, goats, &c., and
vegetables when procurable.
X. Clothing. —The clothing of the men has been described in previous reports. When
the regiment left Kohat on service, all baggage in excess of ten seers in weight was left be-
hind; this principally affected bedding, one razai and one durree was all that could be carried.
Fortunately the great-coats and capes of the men are exceptionally good, otherwise they must
have suffered much from the intense cold experienced north-west of Koorum. The want of
gloves was most complained of to me. Since the 1st of January warm under-clothing, blankets,
gloves and socks have been received. Both officers and men give the preference to ammuni-
tion boots over native shoes, the former are not always procurable, and the men now wear
whatever can be got for them.
Sickness,
mortality and
invaliding.
XV. Sickness, mortality and invaliding. —Strength of the regiment :—
Present .
.
.
. .
.
.
.
.
. . 659.84
Absent . .
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
. 39.19
Total
.
. 699.03
STATION.
PERIOD.
Strength.
TOTAL NUMBER
OF
Daily
average
number of
s i c k.
PER CENT. OF STRENGTH
PER ANNUM.
From
To
Admis-
sions. Deaths.
Admis-
sions. Deaths. Daily
average
sick.
Head-quarters at Umritsur 1st Jan. 1878 24th Feb. 1878 629.38
65
. . .
14.40 10.32. ...
2.28
„
on march
from Umritsur to Simla.
25th Feb. „ 19th Mar. „ 500.56
30 ...
8.78 95.06
1.75
Head-quarters at Simla . 20th Mar. „ 29th Sep. „ 572.67 336
2 10.07 110.36 .64 1.75
„
On march from 30th Sep. „ 31st Dec. „ 615.76 352
3 27.34 226.30 18.84 4.44
Simla and with Koorum
Field Force.
Detachment at Simla
. 1st Jan. „ 19th Mar. „
71.00
16 ...
2.44 105.42 ...
3.43
,,
at Umritsur . 25th Feb. „ 31st Dec. „
67.67 129
1 5.98 224.45 1.72 8.83
TOTAL
.
...
...
659.84 928
6 24.54 140.64
. 9 0 3.71
I
Number of deaths in hospital 6; out of hospital 3; total .
9; per cent. of total strength . .
1.28
„ invalided . . . . . . . . .
15; „
„
. .
2.16
„ sent on sick leave . . . . . . .
5; ,,
„
. .
. 7 1
„ of days spent in hospital
8,969 ; per admission . 9.66; per man of total strength . . 12.83
,;
on sick leave 909; per man .
. 181.80; „
. .
1.30
Total temporary loss of service per man of total strength
. . 14.13
Principal
causes of
sickness.
XVI. Principal causes of sickness. —The number treated in 1878 was greater than in
1877, but less than in 1876. In 1876 the total number treated was 1,060 ; in 1877, 715 ;
in 1878, 951. Malarious fevers as usual gave the greatest number of admissions, 426 cases
being treated for ague and other forms of malarious fevers ; 133 cases of injuries were treated,
of those 6 were gunshot wounds received in action at Peiwar ; most of the other cases were
contusions received when the men were working; 99 cases of dysentery were treated ; 51 cases
of blisters of feet came into hospital. Of venereal cases there were 59, including syphilis and
gonorrhœa ; this number is greatly in excess of that of the previous year. The men have
been during the year at Simla and Umritsur—places where there is much disease. They have
been almost entirely separated from their wives for the last two years, and continence is not one
of their virtues. On the march between Jhelum and Kohat prostitutes were found in all the
serais, and from these several men contracted syphilis. These women are said to take to the
serais to escape from the lock hospitals at Rawal Pindi and Sialkot. The state of the serais
between lawal Pindi and Jhelum was brought to the notice of the Major-General Command-
ing the Rawal Pindi Division, and to the Commissioner, by the Jhelum station committee in