( 16 )
were comparatively trifling. All the vacancies that have occurred during the season
have, when suitable men were available, been filled up by old Inoculators.
7. These illiterate men have this year worked very fairly, but I am convinced
that their work would have been still greater had not much useful time been taken up
in preparing Dr. Cunningham's forms. These forms, simple as they may appear to us,
give the uneducated Vaccinator a great amount of trouble and act as a drag on his
work. It is much to be regretted that this difficulty will henceforth be increased by
the more complicated modifications of these forms which are now required by the
Government of India ; for the loss entailed in their preparation will by no means be
balanced by any good that can result from the very trivial amount of information
furnished to the statistical and sanitary branches.
8. For facilitating the comparison of the work done during the season under the
report with that of the previous year, the following abstract of the returns is here
introduced :—
TABLE No. II.
Annual Return, Season 1869-70, compared with 1868-69.
Circle.
Benares
Season.
1868-69
1869-70
Number of Vacci¬
nators.
34
34
Successful.
15,367
28,745
Unsuccessful.
2,285
2,934
Doubtful.
856
942
Unknown.
1,273
1,532
Total.
19,781
34,153
Percentage of suc-
cess.
83.02
89.03
Average number
of operations by
each man per
mensem.
116
200
Remarks.
This shews an increase of 13,378 successful cases, or 86 per cent. over the num-
bers of last year. The rise in the percentage of successful cases is mainly due to
the vaccine lymph having been in almost every case taken direct from arm to arm.
The average number of operations performed by each man per mensem has risen from
116 to 200, which, though far behind the monthly numbers attained in the other circles
of these Provinces, shews that the aversion of the Hindoos in this district to vaccination
is gradually giving way, and that the attempt to convert the native Inoculators has not
been altogether unsuccessful. The improvement has been most marked in the districts
of Ghazeepore, Mirzapore and Goruckpore. In the latter district, where all the Vacci¬
nators with but one exception were formerly Inoculators, the work has been nearly
quadrupled during the two past years. In the districts of Bustee and Azimgurh,
though considerable improvement has taken place, the numbers contrast very unfavour-
ably with those of the other districts. In the City of Benares, where formerly the
work used to be so backward, I have this year seen fair work.
9. Next to the introduction of Inoculators into the Department, the special object
of attention this season has been animal vaccination. It has been found that cow-pox
can be produced artificially in animals of the bovine species either by the insertion of
humanized cow lymph, which is termed " retro-vaccination," or by the inoculation of
small-pox matter, which we call " variolation." As the latter mode is practically
more difficult and possesses no advantage over the former, retro-vaccination is the
usual way of producing the disease. The advantages claimed by the supporters of ani-
mal vaccination for that over arm-to-arm vaccination may be shortly stated. The
vesicles produced on the human subject by vaccination from animals are usually larger
and more numerous than those produced by humanized lymph, and the febrile symp¬