No. 1.—Nature and extent of hospital
accommodation.
No. 2.—Any change in the Medical
charge during the year.
23
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE LOCK HOSPITAL, JUBBULPORE,
FOR THE YEAR 1886.
From Lieut.-Colonel H. H. H. Hallett, Cantonment Magistrate, Jubbulpore, to
the Secretary to the Chief Commissioner, Central Provinces, Nagpur,—No. 212,
dated Jubbulpore, 28th February 1887.
I have the honour to forward the Report on the working of the Lock
Hospital at this station for the past year, with a minute recorded thereon by
the Deputy Commissioner and. Senior Medical Officer, British Troops, and
copy of a Resolution passed thereon by the Cantonment Committee.
ANNUAL REPORT OF THE LOCK HOSPITAL, JUBBULPORE, FOR THE YEAR 1886.
The accommodation is similar to former
years and suits the requirements of the station.
No change.
During the year the garrison was augmented by the arrival. in March of
a Battery of Royal Artillery, raising the average
annual strength to 760, as compared with 610—the
average for the previous year. There has neces
sarily been a corresponding increase in the admissions for venereal among the
Troops, but apart from this, venereal disease has been more prevalent than in
the previous year, the total number of admissions being 366 or 481 per . 1,000
against 264 or 432 . 8 per 1,000 in 1885. 107. of these admissions were for gonor
rhœa, 113 for: primary syphilis, 43 for secondary syphilis, and 103 for ulcer of
the penis. From this number cases must be deducted, the disease having
been contracted elsewhere, thus leaving the large balance of 321 cases actually. con
tracted in Jubbulpore.
I consider this amount of venereal is excessive, and due in great measure to
the causes I will mention further on. In the first place I must re-iterate what
I stated in last year's report, viz . that the majority of these cases are contracted
in promiscuous intercourse with unregistered prostitutes and that the registered
women are responsible for comparatively few admissions. These women are
remarkably free from disease, and, without one exception this year, when a soldier
has identified a registered woman said to have diseased him, she has been found
not only on one but on subsequent examinations absolutely free from anything
likely to produce infection, and the admissions for venereal disease among the
women shows a most satisfactory decrease this year. To minimise, as far as pos
sible, the chance of these women spreading disease among the Troops, I have
lately had two inspections a week instead of one as heretofore, but without any
effect in reducing the admissions for venereal among the men, and I think that
this is a clear proof that what I have stated above is the true reason for the pre
valence of venereal in this station.
That there are numbers of unregistered prostitutes continually haunting
Cantonments and its , environs is well known, and on several occasions I have
d r a wn a t t e n t i o n t o t h e f a c t o f t h e s e wo me n f r e q u e n t i n g c e r t a i n l o c a l i t i e s a n d
urged the necessity of action on the part of the Police to put a stop to this
illicit prostitution which they could hardly fail to be aware of; but as yet, as far
as I know, no steps have been taken to remedy this state of affairs. The Police
authorities are apparently .passive in the matter, and I have never known one'
instance where the Police have apprehended and brought , for examination
an unregistered woman. The prevention of venereal disease among the Troops
— a d i s e a s e w h i c h
. c a u s e s m o r e i m m e d i a t e a n d r e m o t e i n e f f i c i e n c y t h a n . p r o b a b l y
any . other—is such an important subject, that I venture to urge the necessity
No. 3.—The extent of venereal disease
among European Troops.