xviii
Bowel com-
plaint.
Anæmnia and
diseases of
the spleen.
pneumonia, as compared with 1875, and that it was less than in any one of the
four preceding years.
Bowel complaints (dysentery and diarrhœa) caused upwards of 7 per cent.
of the total admissions, and the admission-rate from them compares favorably
with those of the four preceding years.
The admi ssi on-rat e from anæmi a and di seases of t he spl een has been l ow,
and shews a decrease as compared with the statistics of the four preceding
years. This is very satisfactory; indeed it is particularly so with such a marked
increase in the admission-rate from malarious fevers, and affords confirmatory
evidence that medical officers (as I have already stated in paragraph 24)
have recognized the necessity for bestowing strict attention to the clothing and
feeding of the sepoys when serving in malarious stations. I mentioned in
my report for 1875, that the effects of a damp and malarious climate, conjoined
with the use of an insufficient or improper dietary, rapidly induce a condition
which some medical officers consider to be true scurvy, while in the opinion
of others it is only malarious cachexia. The reports of regimental medical
officers for 1876 are very free from any notice of the existence of such a
condition.
Principal
causes of
mortality.
Cholera,
STATEMENT No. XI.
DISEASES.
1876.
1875.
1874.
1873.
1872.
Died per
cent. of
admis
-sions.
Di ed per
cent. of
tota
l deat hs.
Died per
cent. of
admis-
sions.
Died per
cent. of
total
deaths.
Died per
cent. of
admis-
sions.
Died per
cent. of
total
deaths.
Died per
cent. of
admis-
sions.
Died per
cent. of
total
deaths.
Died per
cent. of
admis-
sions.
Died per
cent. of
total
deaths.
Small-pox
8.11 .54 20.59 1.04 23.63 2.43 26.92 3.09 7.69 .62
Fevers
.28 28.24 .46 2 3 .
.32 22.02 .49 26.22 .31 17. 26
Cholera
53.92 15.85 43.94 8.61 69.05 5.41 55.88 5.69 59.60 25. 65
Phthisis
25.44 5.23 26.72 4.60 28.56 5.59 31.37 4.71 29.03 4. 44
Scurvy
3.70 .54 2.81 .45
4.51 1.03 4.02 .86
Apoplexy
66.66 .72 57.14 .59 1 0 0 .
.37 66.66 .88 54.54 .74
Bronchitis
.97 3.42 1.02 2.67 1.10 4.48 2.90 7.66 3.19 7. 52
Pneumonia
20.66 15.68 25.25 26.26 20.40 23.71 16.23 12.81 20.60 12.70
Pleurisy
5.26 1.62 5.82 1.63 3.86 1.49 5.46 1.91 6.04 1. 35
Dysentery
.94 6.31 1.03 5.64 1.24 7.09 1.06 5.45 1.17 6.41
Diarrhœa
1.29 4.32 1.67 4.75 1.54 5.22 2.02 5.45 1.24 4.56
Spleen diseases
1.58 1.26 3.82 3.41 1.23 1.49 1.26 1.18 2.23 1.85
Debility
3.38 5.04 2.54 4.15 2.04 3.36 1.75 2.21 2.74 2.71
Poisous
2 2 . 2 2 .18 6.90 .59 12.77 1.12 10.45 1.03 19.61 1.23
Injuries
.18 2.16
.14 1.48
.19 2.43 .11 1.03
.19 1. 48
All other diseases
.48 13.89 .45 11.57 .50 16.98 .76 19.65
.48 10. 60
47. Looking at Statement XI, it is highly gratifying to find that small-
pox has caused such a trifling proportion of the total mortality, and has
also been less than was recorded in any one of the four preceding years.
Although a large proportion of the sepoys have been either inoculated or had
small-pox before enlistment, still I consider that such statistics afford strong
proof that regimental surgeons have not lost sight of the necessary and highly
imperative duty of attending to the vaccination of the men and camp fol-
lowers of their regiments.
48. The principal mortality of the year was caused by fevers, cholera,
pneumonia, bowel complaints, phthisis, debility, bronchitis, &c., &c. It will
be observed that fevers caused 23 per cent. of the total mortality, a proportion
which was higher than that registered in 1875, 1874 or 1872, but was below
that in 1873. Cholera has caused a markedly greater proportion of the total
mortality than in any year since 1872.
49. It will be gathered from the table in the margin, that there were 163
cases of cholera recorded as
having occurred in the
Native Army during 1876.
This number was somewhat
in excess of that shewn for
1875, but was very marked-
ly in excess of the number
of cases registered in 1873
or 1874. For the sake of
comparison, the cases of
cholera which occurred in
every year since 1869 are
shewn in the accompanying table, and it is a remarkable and unexplained fact
YEARS.
Cases.
Deaths.
1869
590
345
1 8 7 0
48
28
1871
49
30
1872
349
208
1 8 7 3
68
28
1874
42
29
1875
132
58
1 8 7 6
163
8 8