RAWAL PINDI DIVISION.
139
at Umballa—where three regiments were on the ground at the same time—the supply was in
-sufficient.
XIV. Hospital.—The hospital is north-east of the lines 600 yards and on a lower
level. The intervening space is occupied by houses and compounds of European Officers.
The situation is well sheltered, which is an advantage in the cold weather, but is objectionable
in being close to the sudder bazar, the main drain of which forms one boundary of the hos
-pital compound. During the year the building has undergone extensive repairs and alterations,
by which it has been considerably improved. Formerly there was only one fire-place, and the
accommodation was divided by low walls into nine apartments, having no communication with
each other, or with the dispensary and bath-room. Alterations were at first sanctioned, designed
to assimilate the building to the standard plan of hospitals for native regiments, by throwing the
whole accommodation into two large wards, communicating with each other by high archways;
but after some correspondence pointing out that the proposed arrangement would, in certain
respects, be the reverse of an improvement, and entail an unnecessarily heavy expenditure for
warming in the cold weather, some modifications were agreed to and carried out. The three
wards into which the accommodation for the sick is divided, afford convenient positions for 48
beds with a space per bed of 56.4 superficial and 1,128.7 cubic feet in the inner rooms, or, includ
- i n g t h e e n c l o s e d v e r a n d a h s , o f 1 1 2 . 2 s u p e r f i c i a l a n d 1 , 9 1 1 c u b i c f e e t . T h e o u t s i d e d o o r s b e i n g
old and badly fitted, purdahs have been supplied for the inner openings. Over the large ward
there are two, and over each of the smaller wards one, ridge ventilator in the roof. The accom
-modation is more than sufficient, and as good as is usually provided for native troops. It is
the custom in the regiment for patients to bring their own bedding to hospital; but this being
considered insufficient, on account of the severity of the cold season at this station, mattresses,
pillows and sheets for 25 beds were applied for, and, pending reference on the subject, 12 of each
article have been provided from regimental funds. The regiment having fortunately been very
healthy since the cold weather fairly set in, this number has hitherto been sufficient.
XV. Sickness, mortality and invaliding.— Strenath of the regiment-
Present
6 3 5 . 2 8
Absent
6 2 . 8 5
Total
698.13
Hospital.
Sickness,
mortality and
invaliding.
STATION.
PERIOD.
Strength.
TOTAL NUMBER
OF
Daily aver -
age num- b e r o f s i c k .
PER CENT. OF STRENGTH
PER ANNUM.
From
To
A d m i s -
sions. Deaths.
Admis- sions. Deaths.
Daily
average Sick.
Head-Quarters Camp of
Exercise at Delhi, and
marching.
1st Jan.
12th Feb.
615.6 89
1 13.74 123. 1.3 2 . 2 3
Head-Quarters at Rawal Pindi 13th Mar.
31st Dec.
540.58 412
4 15.80 73.25 .8 2.92
Detachment marching from
Bareilly to Umballa.
1st Jan.
31st Jan.
187
20
6.32 86.3
3.37
Ditto at Murree
10th April 11th Nov.
58.45 33
1 1.25 125.92 2.88 2 . 1 3
Ditto at Attock
29th Oct.
31st Dec.
175
90
8.02 95.92
4 . 5 8
TOTAL
635.28 644
6 18.19 101.37
. 9 4 2 . 8 6
Number of deaths in hospital 6; out of hospital 1: total 7; per cent. of total strength
1
„ invalided 16; „ „
2.29
„ s e n t o n s i c k l e a v e 9 ; „ „
1.28
„ of days spent in hospital 6,658; per admission 10.3; per man of total strength
9.54
„ „ on sick leave 1527; 169.66; „ „
2.18
Total temporary loss of service per man of total strength
11.72
XVI.Principal causes of sickness.-285 of the 644 admissions have been for fevers of
malarious origin, 279 being of intermittent and 6 of remittent type; 213 of the cases occurred
during September, October and November, and 104 of the whole were accompanied by some
enlargement of the spleen, and 23 by enlargement of the liver also. Epidemic diseases,
which will be referred to below, come next in frequency. Bowel complaints, including 51
of dysentery, 13 of diarrhœa, and 9 of dyspepsia, have been very common, and have, in many
cases, apparently been due to eating gram at Delhi and on the march, and to under-cook
-ing of the food, owing to the dearness of fuel, at Rawal Pindi; 34 admissions have been
for blisters of the feet, which is considerably fewer than in former years, though the same
pattern of boot has been worn. Chest affections, 16 in all, have been less frequent than
might have been expected; 9 of the number occurred at Delhi, and on the march. A
remarkable fact is that ascaris lumbricoides, which was so common at Bareilly, has been
entirely got rid of since arrival here. Up to the 7th of June there were 4 admissions for
these parasites, and they were also passed by 13 patients in hospital for other diseases, but
none have been seen since that date.
XVII.Principal causes of mortality. —Of the six deaths, two, both from cholera, one
at Rawal Pindi and the other at Murree, occurred in August, and the rest during the first
four months of the year. One man died on the march from Delhi of obstruction of the bowels.
The next death occurred shortly after arrival at Rawal Pindi, from gradually increasing anæmia
and debility. The third death took place after a protracted illness, also commencing at Delhi,
Principal
causes of
s i c k n e s s .
Principal
c a u s e s o f
m o r t a l i t y .