( 37 )
mended, but not agreed to by the military authorities. In Agra, the vaccinator was
much assisted by Dr. Godwin, the Staff Surgeon, and although inexperienced, did a fair
amount of very good work. In his reply to Dr. Pringle, the Brigade-Major of Meerut
informed him that there was "no need whatever of a special Native vaccinator for can-
tonments." As this was the decision arrived at by the "Major-General Commanding,
in consultation with the Deputy Inspector-General of Hospitals, I. F.," it must of course
be right; but yet small-pox did not fail to appear in a fatal form within cantonments.
The Meerut sudder bazaar contains a Native population of, I am told, about 16,000
persons ; but except that a Government vaccinator was employed in it under my direc-
tions, when I had ascertained that small-pox was prevalent in the neighbouring city
of Meerut, I am not aware that anything was done by the military authorities to pro-
tect those by means of vaccination.
9. During the year 1872 small-pox did not prevail in an epidemic form in any
district of this circle except Saharunpore. The total number of deaths recorded from
this disease was 10,336, and of these upwards of one-half occurred in the single district
of Saharunpore. Until the present season, I doubt if vaccination was sufficiently gene-
ral in that district to greatly influence the progress of the epidemic. The total number
of vaccinated last year was only 8,189 out of a population of more than three-quarters
of a million ; this year the vaccine establishment has been more than trebled, and the
numbers vaccinated have risen to 24,217. This is at the rate of one person of every
36 of the population, and were the whole of the people willing to accept of vaccination,
it could now, with the present establishment, be offered to every individual in the district
in need of it. In Dehra Doon the population was considered to be nearly as perfectly
protected against outbreaks of small-pox as in Kumaon or Gurhwal; but I fear this is
still far from being the case. During the past year no fewer than 51 deaths are recorded
from this cause, and the disease still lingers in some of the villages. In the town of Dehra
itself, I believe few, if any, remain unprotected ; a result mainly due to the exertions of
the Civil Surgeon. The spread of tea-planting in the Doon, and the proximity of a
large hill station, create an annual influx of numbers of coolies and workmen from other
districts less protected by vaccination, which will continue to render the eradication of
small-pox from the Doon no easy task. Comparing it with previous seasons, 1872 has
not been remarkable in this circle for the special prevalence of small-pox; but the pre-
sent year promises very differently. Already, during the first two months, half the
death-rate of last year has been exceeded, and the months most favourable to the spread of
the disease have not yet arrived. The districts of Boolundshuhur and Etah have suffered
most, and in neither has vaccination reached a point greatly to influence the spread of
small-pox.
10. Since the commencement of my tour I have met with cases of this disease in
every district visited by me ; but the first opportunity I had of witnessing it in an
epidemic form was on my arrival at Moozuffernuggur on the 1st of December, and as I
made careful enquiry into the circumstances of this outbreak, I will briefly describe
them. One of the vaccinators told me that in the village of Canoonee, about four miles
to the westward of Moozuffernuggur, he had seen several children suffering from
small-pox, but that only a few of the people would allow him to vaccinate those yet
unaffected. Shortly after day-break on the 2nd I reached the village, and having
found the putwaree and the three chowkeedars, made enquiry as to the number of
persons lately attacked by small-pox, as well as the number of those who had died.
The three chowkeedars agreed that about ten had been attacked and that one had died.
One of the chowkeedars told me that he had reported the death at the Thanah. As
in the course of less than an hour it struck me I had seen more than ten children
in various stages of small-pox, I resolved to make a thorough inquiry at every house
in the village. The result was, that instead of finding that ten children had been
attacked and that one had died, I found that forty-one had been attacked and
that eleven had died. The chowkeedars admitted the correctness of this, but
said, what was quite true, that only one Jât had died, and that the others were
v
10