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The Plague Committee's camps, excepting the Old Sukkur camps which are mat sheds
and the Cooly and Sweeper camps which were laid out in blocks of 10 sleeper 'units'
each 10 feet square, were laid out in rows of sleeper huts 15 feet long by 10 wide by 8
high with an interval of 25 feet between each hut, and 50 feet between each row. The
huts were protected from the heat of the sun by a thick roof of mud plaster laid over the
sleepers, and Rao Bahadur Showkising provided a layer of grass thatching on the top of this,
so that there was no cause for complaint on account of the heat, the roofs of the huts being
as thick as, if not thicker than, the roofs the inmates were accustomed to; and besides light
and air came in through the clinks between the sleepers. The Plague Committee visited
the camps during the greatest heat of the day, and found them reasonably cool.
Employment of soldiers.
7. On 4th April a detachment of 30 non-commissioned officers and men of the
Wiltshire Regiment, in charge of Lieutenant A. E. Beadon,
was sent from Hyderabad to Sukkur for plague duty.
The chief duty which it was intended that they should perform was house-to-house
visitation. They were employed in this way so long as any people were left in New Sukkur
and Gharibabad, and so long as there was any reason to suppose that there might be con-
cealed cases of plague in Old Sukkur.
They made two searches in Old Sukkur (the first of which was directed by the Com-
missioner in Sind in person), 2 in Gharibabad and 3 in New Sukkur; besides occasional
searches in the European and Railway quarters, in Jan Mahomed's village, in clusters of
huts to the north-west of the Railway Station, occupied by potters, quarry men and others,
and in the scattered habitation between Old and New Sukkur. Cases of plague and corpses
were discovered both in New Sukkur and Gharibabad, but in no other quarters were any
concealed cases found. Searches were also made in the villages of Abad and Arai, but
without result. Other duties on which the soldiers were employed were:—
(a) Guarding the Lansdowne Bridge at night. The bridge was closed from 31st
March so as to prevent all communication between Sukkur and Rohri.
A Non-Commissioned Officer and three men were employed on this duty
from 10th April to 14th June.
(b) Superintending the boiling and disinfection of clothes at the segregation and
health camps.
(c) Superintending steam disinfecting arrangement at Sukkur and Rohri Railway
Stations.
(d) For a short time during April 3 soldiers were attached to each Plague Superin-
tendent to assist in house cleaning, but for several reasons they were found to be
unsuited to this work, and they were therefore taken off it.
(e) After 27th May 12 soldiers were employed every day in New Sukkur and
Gharibabad under the orders of the Plague Superintendents, to accompany search
and medical inspection parties.
(f) After 27th May 2 soldiers were employed at the Gharibabad Health Camp to
superintend the disinfection of fugitives returning to Sukkur.
The detachment of the Wiltshire Regiment returned to Hyderabad on 15th June.
The men behaved extremely well. They kept fit, and seemed to thrive on the work.
They stood the heat wonderfully, and were quite sorry when the time came for them to
go back to Hyderabad.
Lieutenant Beadon had a busy time, for in addition to looking after the detachment he
worked as Plague Superintendent of Old Sukkur.
The Plague Committee are much indebted to him for the valuable assistance he rendered to
them.
Removal of inhabitants of
Gharibabad and Limji's Charhi
into health camps.
8. The construction of health camps for the people of Gharibabad and Limji's Charhi
has already been described. Of the removal of the people from
Gharibabad and the marvellous results obtained by this, Surgeon-
Major Corkery writes as follows:—
'For three weeks prior to the 19th April, when plague was at its height and cases of the most
malignant type were occurring, of a total of 298 cases registered for the three weeks ending
19th April, no less than 106 occurred in the neighbourhood of Gharibabad, when it was resolved that
the whole of the inhabitants should be removed en masse. The day fixed was that of the 17th
April and it was a sight which would have impressed any one to witness, about 600 people
being marched off quietly with all their goods, chattels, poultry and domestic animals, the wives
and children and kit being conveyed in carts supplied at the Municipal expense. Little or no
confusion occurred and by about 11 A.M. these people were comfortably settled in their new
abode. It must now be remembered that no less than 106 cases occurred amongst them within
the past three weeks and a day or two before their compulsory removal; 5 cases and 2 corpses