Water.
Food.
Tea.
Clothing.
Boots.
Hospitals.
Sickness, mor-
-tality and invaliding.
EASTERN FRONTIER DISTRICT.
1 9 5
VIII. Water supply is drawn from pucca wells situated in the lines, and also for
five months in the year from the river Dibroo, which runs in front of cantonments. The well
water is of excellent potable quality, but insufficient for ablution purposes.
During the few months the river is open there is abundance of water for all purposes.
XI. Food.—The staple articles of the sepoys' diet, i. e., attah, dhall, ghee, and salt, are Food.
supplied by the Commissariat Department at a fixed charge. All have been of excellent quality
throughout the year. In addition to such supplies the men purchase vegetables (chiefly
potatoes) largely, fish, goat's flesh, ducks, &c. A good many of the men are now procuring
milch cows.
The supply of all those necessaries in the local markets is abundant, but excessively
expensive compared with other stations. No under-feeding or improper feeding to any extent exists.
Tea has become an article of almost daily consumption with the men of this regiment,
and very few are spirit drinkers.
The clothing, both dress and undress, is reported to be suitable. The boots
in use are English made of the regulation ammunition pattern, but supplied
by private contractors. They are excellent, and blistered feet or boot-galls are
of rare occurrence.
XI. The duties performed by the corps during the year have been usually onerous and
harassing, three-fourths of the entire strength of the corps having been actually in the field
for seven months out of the twelve, and in addition to the ordinary Out-posts held by the
regiment garrisoning Upper Assam, occupied some six posts in a pestilential terai,
what was termed the Duffla, blockade. The average number of nights in bed were:—Native
officers, 5; havildars 3.19; naicks, 2-95; bugler, 1; sepoys, 3.26.
XII. Exercise, &c.—As may be inferred from the foregoing paragraph, the corps did not
lack exercise during the year; but amusements and occupation other than duty were a dead
letter, as they had not leisure time sufficient to repair their huts.
Duties.
Exercise.
XIII. Marches and service. —The head-quarters with 484 men of all ranks were employed
in the field on the Duffla Frontier from January 1st to April 11th. Although no actual advance
was made into the hills, the men were kept constantly in the move, reconnoitering, &c. Sub
-sequently, at the close of the year, when a regular expedition was decided upon, 250 of the
regiment were detailed for it, and took the field on the 1st of November advance, and in a
great measure acting as pioneers to the main body of the force, which did not arrive at the base
of operations until a month later. The camps and incidents of this service will be described in
the special report of the expedition. An officer and 70 men were also on field service in the
Naga Hills, acting as escort to the survey exploring party; they were twice engaged with the
tribes of the country through which they passed, but no medical officer accompanied them,
and I can find no record of their proceedings. There were also the marches performed in the
course of the relief in April; the dates and other particulars connected with which will be
found in the tabular statement given in paragraph XV.
XIV. Hospital.—The hospitals, both at head-quarters and detachments, have been fully
described by me in the reports of the 42nd Assam Light Infantry for previous years; they have all
been maintained in excellent repair, and I find no record of any over-crowding during the year.
XV. Sickness, mortality and invaliding.—Strength of the regiment:—. present, 853.83;
absent, 16..83; total, 870.75.
Service.
PERIOD.
St r engt h.
TOTAL
NUMBER OF
D a i l y A v e r a g e n u m b e r o f s i c k .
PER CENT. OF
STRENGTH PER
ANNUM.
From
To
Ad mi s s i o n s . Deaths.
A d m i s s i o n s .
Deaths.
Da i l y a v e r a g e s i c k .
Head-quarters Duffla Frontier
1st January 11th April
484
162
1 20.50 121.1 .72
4.23
„
at Debrooghur ... 12th April
31st December 393
859
6 30.14 302.2 2.1 7.66
„
„ Sadiya
... 17th April
Ditto
151
268
1 9.91 250.1
.93 6.56
„
„ Golaghat ... 29th March
Ditto
55
82
1 3.04 195.8 2.4
5.52
„
„ Jaipore
... 17th April
Ditto
34
80 ...
1.99 331.6 ...
5.85
Detachment at Demapur ... 1st January
3rd April
70
7
1 1.27 39.2 5.5
1.81
,, Duffla Frontier ... 8th April
31st December 167
264
1 7.00 215.3
.81 4.18
„
Shillong
... 1st January 16th January 215
8
... 15.00 84.4 ...
6.97
„
Gowhatty
... 17th Ditto
3rd April
221
62
7 6.15 132.7 15
2.78
.
853.83 1,792
18 46.1 209 . 9 2.1
5.4
Number of deaths in hospital, 18; out of hospital, 7; total, 25 per cent. of total strength
... 2.87
,, invalided, 19;
...
...
... ,,
,,
„
... 2.18
,,
sent on sick leave, 14;
...
... ,,
,,
,,
... 1.60
,, of days spent in hospital, 16,845; per admission 9.40 per man of total strength
... 19.36
,,
,,
on sick leave 3,148; per man 224.85;
,,
,,
,,
3.61
Total temporary loss of service per man of total strength
...
...
... 22.96