Duty.
Amusements.
Marches.
Hospital.
XV. Sickness. mortality and invaliding..—Strength of the regiment
Present
627.20
Absent
76.41
Total 703.61
Sickness,
mortality and
invaliding.
152
MEDICAL AND SANITARY REPORT OF THE NATIVE ARMY OF BENGAL.
garment, and I quite concur with my predecessors in thinking that its use saves many men
from chest and bowel complaints. Ammunition boots. are worn on duty, and, as usual, when
worn without socks, produce a considerable number of blisters of the feet. Stout chogahs are worn
instead of great-coats.
XI. Duty .—The duty as compared with that of Peshawar has been extremely light.
While at Peshawar the nights in bed in.1875 were only 2 . 72. At Talagang they have never
been less than 6.80 and have been as high as 16.50.
XII Anusements.—The men are fond of athletic sports and of gymnastic exercises. The
Pathans appear specially attracted by the former and the Sikhs by the latter. Although musketry
can hardly be called an amusement, a very large proportion of the men take much interest in it;
the result of which is seen in the position held by the regiment as the best shooting corps in
the service, and by the very exceptionally large number of "marksmen."
Marches.—The head-quarters marched only from Peshawar. to Talagang, as men-
tioned in paragraph II; a detachment marched to Attock in April and returned in November.
XIV. Hospital.—The hospital is called a temporary one, though it is now nearly seven years
old. It is built of mud-bricks, with a timber roofing which is covered with coarse reeds;
over which 12 inches of mud is placed. The verandah is also mud-brick built with a roof like
the main building, but only 8 feet high, while the wards are 14 feet high. There are a bath-room
and a godown at the west end, each 12 x 10, and a dispensary 14 x 10. There is a small ward
30 x 24 with no fire-place, and a large ward of Which one-half is 120 x 12 and the other half
104 x 12. Both wards are intersected by a centre wall with arched openings (three in the small
and ten in the large ward). There is one door to the north and one to the south of the small
ward, and four on each side on the large ward which has two good fire-places. The small ward
has six windows and the large one twenty—half on each side north and south. There is a
room at the east end 16 x 12 (or rather a godown) which cuts 16 x 12 off the large ward and is
called the station staff office. This appears sufficient for all ordinary wants of a regiment of
native infantry at this station. There are six out-houses, each 12 x 10 x 9. Two are cook-
houses and four are for servants' quarters. The quarters for hospital. assistants are very bad,
being only temporary huts built under regimental arrangements; and there are no quarters
for a native medical pupil at all. The hospital latrine is 27½ feet long and 5½ broad, with a
screen wall 35 feet long enclosing a 3 feet wide passage which opens into its seven compact-
ments. Chicks for the doors have , been provided regimentally. Firewood is supplied for four
months in the year and was commenced on 15th November. The quantity allowed is ample
and the comfort of fires is very great. The place is in good repair and has wanted very
little expended on it during. the year.
STATION.
PERIOD.
Strength.
TOTAL NUMBER
OF
Daily
average
number of
si ck.
PER CENT. OF STRENGTH PER
ANNUM.
From
To
A d m i s - s i o n s
. Deaths.
Admi s-
sions. Deaths.
D a i l y a v e r a g e
sick.
Head-quarters at Peshawar
1st Jan.
27th Feb.
689.50 190
24.32 173.8
3.52
„ on march
28th Feb.
17th March . 684.00 65
29.76 183.04
4.36
at Talagang 18th March. 31st Dec.
491.02 459
1 12.09 118.35 .25 2.46
Detachment at Attock
8th April
7th Nov
157.40 80
2.47 86.9
1.56
TOTAL
627.20 794
1
16.54 126.59 .15 2.63
Number of deaths in hospital 1; out of hospital 6; total
7; per cent. of total strength
.99
„ invalided
17; „ „
2.41
„ sent on sick leave
40; „ „ 5.23
„ of days spent in hospital 6,055; per admission
7.62; per man of total strength
8.60
„ „ „ on sick leave 2,797; per man
69.42; „ „ 3.97
-
Total temporary loss of service per man of total strength
12.57
Principal
causes o
f sickness.
XVI. Principal causes of sickness .—Ague stands at the head of the admissions. There
were 338 cases, of which 315 were ague, and these cases amount to just over 43 per cent, of
the whole, against 75 last year, the total admissions of this year being barely one-third of those
of last year. The only other diseases which gave rise to many admissions were:—
Blisters of feet
47
D y s e n t e r y
44
Bronchial Catarrh
36
Chronic Rheumatism
30
Diarrhœa
2 7 s s