Duty.
Marches
Hospital.
XV. Sickness, mortality, and invaliding.— Strength of the battery:—
Present
1 3 9 · 2 0
Absent
2 7 · 1 1
T o t a l
1 6 6 · 3 1
Sickness,
mortality, and
invaliding.
PUNJAB FRONTIER FORCE.
195
XI. Duty.—Duty was of the ordinary kind, and never arduous in character. Each man
had five nights in bed during the week.
XIII. Marches.—The battery marched from Kohat on the 15th February and arrived at
Abbottabad on the 27th idem.
XIV. Hospital.—One ward of the station hospital at Abbottabad is allotted to the
battery, and is ample for its requirements.
STATION.
PERIOD.
S t r e n g t h .
TOTAL NUMBER OF
D a i l y a v e r a g e n u mb e r o f s i c k .
PER CENT. OF STRENGTH PER ANNUM.
From
To
Admissions. Deaths.
A d mi s s i o n s .
Deat hs.
Dai l y aver age si ck.
Head-quart ers at Kohat and Ab-bot t abad. 1st Jan. 31st Dec.
1 3 9 · 2 0
2 7 6
...
8 · 3 6
1 9 8 · 2 7 ...
6 · 0 0
N u m b e r i n v a l i d e d . . . . . . . . . 4 ; p e r c e n t . o f t o t a l s t r e n g t h
2 · 4 0
" s e n t o n s i c k l e a v e . . . . . . 1 ; " "
· 6 0
" of days spent in hospital 2,954; per admission 10·70; per man of total strength
1 7 · 7 6
" " on sick leave 122; per man 122; " "
· 7 3
T o t a l t e m p o r a r y l o s s o f s e r v i c e p e r m a n o f t o t a l s t r e n g t h
1 8 · 4 9
XVI. Principal causes of sickness. —The following table gives, in order of frequency, the
principal causes of admissions—
Groups of Diseases.
Number of admi ssi on.
Per cent . of t ot al ad- mi ssi ons.
Accidents
65
23·55
Intermittent fevers
54
19·56
Diseases of digestive system
49
17·39
Diseases of respiratory system
29
10·50
Cutaneous diseases
26
9·42
Kheumatic affections
22
7·97
Feet blisters
18
6·52
Principal
causes of
sickness.
Although high, the ratios of admissions and daily average of sick, given in paragraph XV
contrast favorably with those of the preceding year, and show a marked improvement in the
health of the battery at Abbottabad in comparison with what it was at Kohat. A
n admission rate of 23·55 per cent. of the total admissions from accidents at once indi
-cates the chief cause of temporary inefficiency in mountain batteries. In other words, about
47 per cent. of the men present were treated for this single cause during the past year. Load
-ing and unloading mules, and leading these animals daily over hill sides and difficult mountain
paths are occupations involving great risks of sprains, kicks, bruises, and other accidents, which
the returns prove to be very frequent, and due allowance should be made for this circumstance
when comparing the battery sick rates with those of other corps.
XX. Vaccination. —The men are protected either by inoculation or previous attacks of
small-pox. All the children born in the lines are regularly vaccinated.
Cause of tem
-porary in effi
-ciency in
Mountain
Batteries.
Vaccination.
Mr. Banister made his inspection of this battery on the 10th May;
and reports that "the barracks were in admirable order, but space had been
sacrificed for ornamentation; and when the full strength was present, more
or less crowding was unavoidable. The ward in the garrison hospital occupied
by the sick was cold and dingy, but sufficiently spacious. There were no defi-ciencies in the hospital equipment. The three recruits were will developed."
Mr. Banister found the huts occupied by the men of this detachment to be
very indifferently ventilated, and large collections of stable litter were in close
proximity to them. The men had been very healthy, and on the day of his
inspection no one was on the sick list.
Inspection.
Detachment
2nd P. C.