SIND DIVISION OF THE ARMY.
89
during and after the rainy weather. The scorbutic taint that was noticed in several cases
admitted during the last few months, may be attributed to the sepoy's inability to procure
vegetables at a cheap rate. Since the first apprehension of the present Affghan war, cereals
have increased in price. This has no doubt affected, though slightly, the food supply of the
sepoy.
6. The duties were not heavy. They consisted of furnishing guards, garrison and
regimental duties. The exercise consisted of parades, running
drill, and sword exercise. The recruits on joining are put
through a course of gymnasium. This very useful course was
started by the Adjutant of the Regiment about five months ago. Talimkhana sports are
held Weekly; and once a month, and on native festive days particularly, there is a grand
display of native sports, in which all officers take interest. At the garrison sports in Sep
-tember last several sepoys were noticed to have taken a prominent part, and even distin
-guished themselves.
7. Considering the bad state of health in which the Regiment left Sholapore, and the
short time in which the sick list was reduced on arrival at
Kurrachee, the change may be said to have proved highly
beneficial. There are cases, however, wherein the change has not apparently done much
good, for I have found men suffer from ague with the same severity with which I saw them
suffer at Sholapore during the few days that I was there. The health of the Regiment may
be said to have been generally good until the Regiment sent out a detachment to Hydrabad.
At this station, the severity with which the men were attacked may be termed almost
epidemic. It is not possible to determine to what precise cause the unusually large number
of admissions at Hydrabad were due—whether to the tremendous rains and the consequent
accumulation and evaporation of stagnant waters, or to the renovation of the malarial poison
that the men brought with themselves from the famine-stricken camp of Sholapore. The
probability is that there was a combination of both.
8. The hospital is well-built on a high foundation and with paved floors. It has two
well-ventilated roomy wards, on either side a small central
room, which latter was used as a dispensary. There are
besides two rooms at each extremity of the building. Two
of these formed the Hospital Assistant's quarters, one formed a store room, and the
fourth formed a ward for women or for special, cases as occasion required. The hospital
has a large compound with well-grown shady trees around. Occasionally offensive smells
were noticed from the civil quarters, where the lines of the rural police are situated. They
no doubt come from the public latrines, which are by no means scrupulously clean; the
sooner therefore measures are taken to shut them up, the better it will be for the neighbour
-hood, military or civil. The hospital latrines are punctually cleaned twice daily, and the
hospital and the outhouses are in a thorough state of repair, notwithstanding the immense
damage done to the compound wall during the heavy rains, by water accumulating knee
dean and forcing the walls
through.
9. Kurrachee has the advantage of sea air, which I have already said had a very salutary
effect on the general health of the Regiment. Soon after the
rains, which were greater than any known for several years, the
health of the men did not seem to be quite as good as one
might expect. There was an increase in the number of fever cases. The probable reason is,
that the whole town being totally unprovided with a regular drainage system, the water
collected and remained stagnant in several places, rank vegetation increased and in time died
away. All this under the action of a powerful sun could not produce a perfectly healthy
atmosphere. As an example of local circumstances affecting the health of the sepoy, I may
mention the beneficial effect produced by the existence of a lock hospital in Kurrachee. The
number of admissions for venereal diseases has been very small, and placing it side by side
with that of the last year, it compares favourably.
10. There were 1,244 admissions during the year under report, contrasting rather
unfavourably with 1,043 of the previous year. It is necessary
to remark however that 342 of these admissions were among
men of the Hydrabad detachment during a period of 8 weeks, from 10th October to 7th
December; 328 cases being admitted for malarial fevers, mostly of the quotidian type,
and the rest for minor complaints. Of the remaining 902 admissions in the hospital at
head-quarters, the largest number was in the month of November, viz. 136. Considering
that the strength at the head-quarters was at that time only 476, and considering also the
large number of fever cases at Hydrabad, the health of the entire Regiment was during that
month anything but satisfactory. The admissions at the head-quarters for malarial fevers,
chiefly of the quotidian type, were 504. Next to ague, the prevailing diseases were dysen
-tery, diarrhœa, bronchitis, and contusions.
23 m
Duties, exercise, and amuse
-ments, &c.
General health and physique.
Hospital and immediate sur
-roundings.
Influence of climate or local
circumstances on health.
Details of treated.