EASTERN FRONTIER DISTRICT.
235
rains. Temporary leave for a month or so is often granted to men in the rainy season. Most
of them go to Gauhati. The Terai country between it and Shillong is most unhealthy. It
would seem to have been especially so last year owing to the heavy rains, for nearly every one
of the men who went down in the months of June, July, August and September were
attacked with ague, dysentery, or diarrhœa within a week of their return to Shillong. An
unusually large number of these cases of ague were complicated with affections of the spleen.
Several severe cases of pneumonia came under observation. Of the 13 cases treated, how
- e v e r , o n l y 1 d i e d . B l i s t e r s o f t h e f e e t c a u s e d a l a r g e n u m b e r —v
i z . ,
1 0 8 , o r 9 p e r c e n t . — o f t h e
admissions.
There were 9 cases of cholera admitted during the year,— viz., 6 amongst the recruits at
Gauhati, 1 at Chargola, and 2 at Allynuggur. These latter would appear to have been cases
of diarrhœa rather than of cholera, as all three recovered. No cases occurred at head-quarters.
One case of well-marked enteric fever occurred at Shillong in August. The man recovered after
a long illness.
XVII. Principal causes of mortality. —Of the 11 deaths in hospital, 8 occurred at head
- q u a r t e r s a n d 3 i n t h e q u a r a n t i n e h o s p i t a l a t G a u h a t i . T h r e e d e a t h s w e r e d u e t o r e m i t t e n t
fever, 3 to cholera, 1 to phthisis, 1 to pneumomia, 1 to dysentery, 1 to diarrhœa (chronic), and
1 to hypertrophy of spleen with extreme anæmia. Of the 3 deaths out of hospital, 1 man died
on sick leave, 1 in the 42nd hospital at Gauhati, and 1, a recruit, died of cholera immediately
after landing from the steamer at Gauhati.
XVIII. Epidemics. —With the exception of the cholera which attacked the recruits at Gau
- h a t i , t h e r e w a s n o e p i d e m i c d u r i n g t h e y e a r . T h i s b o d y o f m e n , 5 6 s t r o n g , r e a c h e d G a u h a t i ,
by steamer from Dhubri on 8th March. One man died shortly after landing. The detachment
was immediately put into quarantine. Within the next four days there were 6 admissions for
cholera. Out of this number, 3 died. There were no other cases. The detachment joined head
- q u a r t e r s i n g o o d h e a l t h o n 2 6 t h M a r c h .
XIX. Vaccination.—Five men and between 20 and 30 children were vaccinated in the regi
-ment in 1875. The 5 men were recruits who had not been previously protected by either small
- p o x o r i n o c u l a t i o n . T h e r e g i m e n t i s t h o r o u g h l y p r o t e c t e d a g a i n s t s m a l l - p o x . W h e n r e c r u i t s
are medically examined for enlistment, a note of their state of protection with regard to small
- p o x i s m a d e , a n d a l l d o u b t f u l c a s e s a r e a f t e r w a r d s v a c c i n a t e d a t a c o n v e n i e n t t i m e .
XX. Recommendations.—In April the necessity of enforcing the conservancy of one of the
streams in cantonments, sometimes used for drinking purposes, was brought to notice. Three
running sentries were accordingly placed at intervals along its banks. No other recommenda
- t i o n w a s f o u n d n e c e s s a r y .
XXI. Recruiting. —Seventy-five recruits were examined by me at head-quarters for enlist
-ment during the year. Of these, 23, or 30 per cent., were rejected as unfit. The causes of
rejection were as follows:—
Blisters of
the feet.
Cholera.
Principal
causes of mor
- t a l i t y .
Epidemics.
Vaccination.
Recommenda
- t i o n s .
Recruiting.
Poor physique, below regimental standard
8
Hypertrophy of spleen
3
Anœmia and poor muscular development
3
Bad chest
5
Scrofula
2
D e f e c t i v e v i s i o n
1
Varicose veins
1
Together with these, a batch of 56 Goorkha recruits was enlisted in the Goruckpore district
in January. These men were examined and passed by a medical officer before enlistment. Four
died of cholera on the journey to head-quarters. Out of the remaining 52, I found 12 men at
least whom I would not have passed had they been examined by me originally. As they had
been already passed by a medical officer, and as they had come such a long way from their homes,
it was not considered advisable to discharge them immediately. Four, however, were found to be
quite unfit for service, and had to be discharged after the lapse of a few months.
Inspection.—Inspected by Dr. Bow, Deputy Surgeon-General of the Dacca
Circle, on the 6th March 1876. He reports that the lines are well situated,
being built on two oblong rounded hills free from jungle and trees. The valley
separating the right and left wings forms the parade ground. When the wives
and children of the sepoys are with them, the crowding is excessive. In one
room, probably the most over-crowded, there were no less than nine inhabitants;
but the children looked strong and healthy.
There was one latrine with a corrugated iron roof, but it is not used, as
the men preferred to go over a hill outside of cantonments and down nullahs
for necessary purposes. The hospital is described as "a superior stone build
- i ng, " and was or i gi nal l y i nt ended f or t he Eur as i an Bat t er y f or mer l y s t at i oned
at Shillong. At times, Dr. Bow writes that there is a great want of ventilation
in the hospital, and he had noticed on several occasions, especially late in the
evening, that the atmosphere was anything but pure; he considers roof venti
-lation absolutely necessary.
Inspection.
Latrine.