NORTHERN DIVISION OF THE ARMY.
25
the cubic capacity of the married and single men's quarters, which ought to be great, is very
small, if, indeed, there be any; and if the single men complain of want of sufficient ground
space, the married men must feel the want threefold, and so they do, even though no distant
relations or dependants are now allowed to live in the lines.
3. The same as reported last year. The permanent latrines are very far from the lines
both at Mhow and Neemuch. At the latter station the latrine
has no roof, and this circumstance,I believe, adds to the
general dislike of the men and their wives to use them. It would be a very inconvenient
arrangement during the rains, and I have no doubt the women and children would use their
own huts for the purpose rather than be drenched in the rain, especially during the night.
I repeat my conviction, which I mentioned in my last report, of the necessity of urinals for
the men and women, of some sort or other, near the lines, if hut and its surroundings'
contamination is to be prevented.
4. At Mhow the supply was abundant, the water being of good quality in every way.
The well which was reported by me last time as being near the
latrines of the 13th Regiment N. I. has not been in use
during the year, and has been abandoned. At Neemuch there are eight wells at the
disposal of the regiment. None of them has any source of contamination near it. The water
supply, though at present plentiful, threatens to fall short of the demand in the ensuing hot
weather, for some of the wells are already beginning to dry up.
5. At Mhow food was on the whole dear during the year. Rice was 9 seers the rupee,
dal 10 seers, ghee 1¼ seers, wheat 10 seers, salt 9 seers,
bajree 12 seers, potatoes 16 seers. At Neemuch the food is
dearer still, and vegetables are still more scarce, potatoes particularly so. On
inquiry I found that a single sepoy cannot live on less than from 5 to 7 rupees a month
with grain compensation, which on an average for the year comes to about Rs. 2-12-6
per head, his pay comes to about Rs. 10-12-6, so that he has a balance of Rs. 3 per month for
his clothing, for providing for his old age, and for saving for marches, &c. As, however,
most of the men are married, at this rate the men are very badly fed, and their wives and
children still more so. A sepoy when not wearing his uniform is very insufficiently and
badly clothed for this climate. Used to the mild climate of the Deccan and Conkan, from
which most of them come, he does not understand the necessity of warm clothing for
himself or his . wife and children. Hence he suffers in health, and his children especially
suffer from the effects of vicissitudes of temperature. Just as there is a judicious order to
adapt the quality and colour of the uniform to the necessities of the weather, so there ought
to be for the sepoy's plain clothes.
6. Duties were not bard and not injurious to health. A gymnasium was started
during the year at Mhow, and all recruits had to go through
a course of gymnastics for several months. This was much
liked and had a decidedly beneficial effect on the health.
Average number of consecutive nights in bed for the different ranks during the year:—
Native officers 9, havildars 8½, naiks 7¾, drummers 8¾, privates 5.
7. No alteration since last report. The accommodation was ample, the ventilation
sufficient, and the sanitary condition very good. The Hospital
Assistants' quarters have the same defect as mentioned before,
viz. insufficient ventilation. The hospital latrine was kept
clean and disinfected, and very carefully and often inspected.
The servants' quarters were not allowed to be overcrowded with a lot of relations and
dependants. The supply of water for the patients was drawn from a well in the compound
of the 13th Regiment hospital, the water was good and abundant. The hospital buildings
at Neemüch are satisfactory in every way. There is no table and no necessary appliances in
the building which is intended for a dead-house.
8. The recruits selected from Punderpoor, Sholapoor, Jamkhundi, Kulladghee, Beeja-
pore, Bombay, Nassick, Mahad, and Chiploon, and sent to the
Regiment to Mhow, were not very good specimens of physique.
These, together with those picked up at Mhow, were induced to feed themselves up, practice
gymnastics, and avoid all debilitating influences, and they improved considerably; but still
coming from the abovementioned places, where the effects of the late famine had not yet quite
died out, they preserved the tendency to succumb easily to the influence of disease; shoe-
bites and slight sores festered in them more than they would in healthy persons, and they
caught malarious fevers much more readily than up-country men. The health of the privates
was much more satisfactory during this year than it was the year before, though there is still
much room for improvement. Several men who were reported as bad shots were found on
careful examination to be so, not on account of any defect or anomaly of vision, but because
G
Conservancy.
Water-supply.
Food and clothing.
Duties, exercise, and amuse-
ments; their effect on health.
Hospital and its immediate
surroundings; present condition,
hygienic and otherwise.
General health and physique.