190
MEDICAL AND SANITARY REPORT OF THE NATIVE ARMY OF BENGAL.
Hospital bed--
ding.
treatment of cases of contagious disease were erected in the hospital grounds on my recom--
mendation. The latter is well situated on a separate spur of the hill to leward of the other
buildings.
A good deal of attention is devoted to the cleanliness and sufficiency of the bedding of
the sick. When it is seen to be manifestly insufficient, an extra blanket or two is obtained
through the Native officer of the man's company from the regimental store.
Visitors.
The institution was visited on 22nd August by the Viceroy and the Chief Commissioner
of Assam, and they both expressed themselves pleased with the building and the neatness
and order of the arrangements.
Sickness, mor--
tality and in-
validing.
XF. Sickness, mortality and invaliding.--Strength of the regiment:—present, 829;
absent 53; total 882.
STATIONS.
PERIOD.
Strength.
TOTAL No. OF Daily
average
No. of
sick.
PER CENT. OF STRENGTH
PER ANNUM.
From
To
Admis-.
sions. Deaths.
Admis-
sions.. Deaths.
Daily
average
sick.
Head-quarters S h i l -
long and Gowhatty 1st January ... 31st December
422.5
778
11
35.4
184.1
2.6
8.3
Depôt Shillong
... 27th November
Ditto
... 232
47
2
32.1
210.6
8.9
13.8
Detch. Gowhiatty ... 3rd January ... 27th March ...
70
7
...
3.1
65.2
...
4.4
„ "on Duffla Expe-
dition
... 18th October ... 31st December...
201
14
...
0.8
33.6
...
0.4
„ "Tejpore
... 1st January ... 27th March ...
114
30
...
4.5
111.6
...
3.9
"Nowgong ...
Ditto
... 27th May
...
86
42
2
3.4
120.3
5.6
3.9
"Gohpore
...
Ditto
... 6th March ...
90
14
...
2'4
8
...
2.6
"Sylhet
Ditto
... 29th September
80
106
2
6.9
171.5
3.2
8.6
"Chargola
...
Ditto
... 30th September
46
31
...
1.2
90.1
...
2.6
„
„ Allynuggur ...
Ditto
... 9th October ...
46
52
...
3.1
146.2
...
6.7
"Jowai
...
Ditto
... 31st December...
53
52
...
3.4
98.1
...
6.4
TOTAL
...
...... ......
829
1,173
17
52.2
141.4
2.0
6.2
Number of deaths in hospital, 17; out of hospital, 10; total 27; per cent. of total strength
... 3.06.
„ invalided, 11
...
...
...
„ „ „
...
1.2.
„ sick leave, 7;
...
... ...
„ „ „
...
0.7.
„
days spent in hospital, 18,872; per admission 16; per man of total strength
... 21.4
„
„
on sick leave 1470; per man 210;
„ „ „
...
1.6
Total temporary loss of service per man of total strength
...
...
... 23.
Unusual mor-
tality.
Effect of
furlough or
health.
Prevalent
diseases.
Deaths.
The mortality is slightly in excess of the average of former years, but this is due to the
great number who died away from the regiment. Six men—a most unusal number—died on
furlough. I attribute this large mortality amongst the absentees to the unusually heavy rainfall
of the year, which no doubt rendered their journey to their homes more toilsome and unhealthy
than usual. About August the men on furlough were recalled on account of the Duffla Expedi-
tion, and a large number of those who returned had to be admitted into hospital immediately,
not because they had overmarched themselves, but simply for diseases induced by toilsome
travelling at an unhealthy season through a malarious country—diseases such as dysentery,
ague, and diarrhœa.
Furlough appears to me to be more of an evil than a good to the men of this regiment, as
a large number of them return from it in worse health than they went. This is owing to the
long marches they have to make to get to and from this remote province. For instance, most of
the Goorkhas have to march from here to Gowhatty, thence to Dhobree by steamer, from where
they strike off towards their homes vid Julpigoree to Darjeeling, Gorruckpore, &c.
For these reasons I seldom find it advisable to grant a man sick leave. Only 0 . 7 per cent.
of the total strength were granted leave last year.
The mortality of the regiment contrasts on the whole favourably with that of the native
population of these hills. The death-rate in the areas of mortuary registration at Cherra--
poonjee and Jowai averaged 29 . 8 per 1,000 in 1874, and it has been probably slightly under-
registered.
XVI. Pr i nc i pa l c a us e s of s i c kne s s . —Ague , d y s e n t e r y , d i a r r h œ a , a n d c h e s t a f f e c t i o n s w e r e
the prevailing diseases. The sickness during the year was very considerable, but I attribute a
large proportion of it simply to the cold of these hills affecting men accustomed to the
warmth of the plains, and coming, most of them, from malarious out-posts and stations in
Assam. Next year (1875), when they have become more acclimatized, I hope there will he
a considerable reduction in the sick-rate.
XVII. Principal causes of mortality.— Of the 17 deaths in hospital, 1 was due to small-
-pox, 4 to enteric fever, 2 to cholera, 2 phthisis, 3 dysentery, 3 diarrhœa, 1 hypertrophy of spleen,
causing intense anæmia, and 1 acute albuminuria. Of these cases 11 occurred in the head--
quarters and 2 in the depôt hospital. In one of the cases of enteric fever death resulted from
perforation of the intestine, and the same lesion was found to have occurred in one of the cases
of dysentery.