ALLAHABAD DIVISION.23
XVI. Principal causes of sickness .—Ague, as usual, gives the greater number of admis
-sions for one disease, viz., 196; but only 49 cases occurred at Benares; the remainder being
returned from the several detachments, viz., 46 at Chunar, 12 at Patna, 17 at Mozufferpore,
and 72 at Berhampore.
Dysentery gave 25 and diarrhœa 24 admissions, but half the cases of each disease occurred
at Berhampore.
Principal
causes of
sickness.
Surgeon-Major Verchere draws attention to the very large number of
venereal cases there were under treatment during the year, viz., 166, and
which kept the daily number of sick at a high rate throughout the year. Of
these, 118 cases treated in head-quarters' hospital were contracted in Benares
city, the bazaars, and suburbs of the cantonment.
In the Report of the Native Army for 1873, Deputy Surgeon General, Walker, M. D.,
remarks that the sepoys of the 13th Native Infantry appear to have a special proneness to
become infected. This is certainly true, as the venereal sick list of the regiment has been high
for years.
Venereal
disease.
Thus in
1870, at Barrackpoor, we had . . . 47 admissions.
1871, at Fort William . . . 45 "
1872, Fort William (10 months), Benares (2 months) . . . 34 "
1873, Benares and Chunar . . . 84 "
1874, Benares, Chunar, Patna, Mozufferpore and Berham-
pore
.
.
. 166 "
The regular prostitutes are registered in cantonments, but not in the city, from which
most of our cases came. The sepoys (and the soldiers also) go prowling in out-of-the-way
bazars, in villages, and in little frequented localities to meet coolie women, domins, and street
-walkers.
It is from the half-starved women of the lowest and poorest class, women who are not
regular registered prostitutes, that the greatest amount of disease is contracted. The present
police arrangements connected with lock hospitals are altogether inadequate to reach that
class. A considerable establishment of detectives and watchers would be necessary to bring
it under surveillance. The amount of occasional prostitution of the women of the lowest
classes varies probably with the amount of poverty in various years. I have not got data to
show, but I believe that it could be proved that the proportion of venereal complaints in troops
varies with the price of the cheaper kind of food used by the poorer class of the population.
Unregistered
prostitutes.
As it is very desirable to put a neck on the proneness or our sepoys to disease themselves,
some punishment should be inflicted in the shape of hospital-stoppages while the men are in
hospital for fresh infectious, or for secondary diseases if they have not been under treatment
for the primary disease.
I have already repeatedly stated in previous reports, either regimental or of lock hos
-pitals, that the present system of working the Act for the suppression of contagious diseases is
insufficient to repress disease even among the professional prostitutes. The whole subject of the
protection of troops from venereal disease requires fresh investigation; the present rules were
made when very little was known of the subject of special contagion. A great deal of expe
-rience has been acquired by officers who have to deal with lock hospitals, and it appears to
me that the time has come when that experience should be collected by calling for suggestions
from all the police, magisterial and medical officers who have had much to do with lock
hospitals, and to submit them to a board of experienced men to re-examine the whole subject
and propose a new system for the protection of our troops, white and black, from venereal
diseases, and thus save Government from an enormous loss of service and of money by
invaliding.
XVII. Causes of mortality.—There were 12 deaths in the 13th Native Infantry
in 1874.
3 were violent deaths, viz., one murder, and two by drowning; 3 were from cholera at
Mozufferpore and Bankipore; 3 were from phthisis—2 at head-quarters and 1 on sick leave;
1 from anæmia at Mozufferpore; 1 from the sequelæ of measles at Mozufferpore; 1 from
general debility; the disease began at Chunar and the man died at head-quarters.
This list of deaths calls for no remarks.
XIX. Vaccination .—All the children of sepoys and camp-followers (31 in number) who
were unvaccinated were vaccinated in 1874. The regiment is well protected either by vacci
-nation or previous small-pox. There has been no case of small-pox among the men since
1866.
Suggestions
for the
repression of
venereal
disease.
Causes of
mortality.
Vaccination.
XX. Recommendations .—Minor recommendations made from time to time as required
were always most willingly carried out by the military authorities.
A requisition for a new hospital was again entered in the return submitted to the Quarter
Master General of the Army. The necessary reports on site and the estimates have been sub
-mitted to Government.
Recommenda
-tions.