No. 2642—418, dated Rangoon, the 4th November 1876.
From—E. DARLINGTON, Esq., Junior Secretary to the Chief Commissioner
of British Burma.
To—The Offg. Secretary to the Government of India, Home Department.
WITH reference to your endorsement No. 144, dated the 5th
March 1875, forwarding a copy of Home Department Resolution
No. 1—136 of the same date, on the subject of the distribution and
causation of leprosy, I am directed to forward, for the information of
the Government of India, extracts, paragraphs 57, et seq., from the
sanitary report of British Burma for the year 1875, containing the
report called for in paragraph 8 of the above resolution.
Extracts, paragraphs 57, et seq., from the Sanitary Report of British Burma for
the year 1875.
Leprosy.
PARAGRAPH 57. The result of an enquiry into the distribution and causation of
leprosy in this Province, ordered in paragraph 8 of
Home Department Resolution of the Government
of India, may be given here as the reports called for have only recently been received
from civil medical officers.
58. When the resolution was received in the Office of the Sanitary Commis-
sioner it seems to have have been overlooked, ultimately printed copies of paragraphs 5
and 8 of the resolution were circulated to civil medical officers, who were requested by
the Officiating Sanitary Commissioner to favour him with concise reports on the
points regarding which information was required. The reports received are not
at all satisfactory; most medical officers confine themselves to saying that they
have had no opportunities of observing the disease, and others have sent in long
detailed cases descriptive of individual cases of the disease, aad the result of
the treatment of it by gurjun oil, without paying any attention to the points
to which their attention was directed, although not a word was said in the circular
forwarding copies of the resolution indicating that a report was required
regarding treatment of any kind. The following statement shews that when
the last census was taken there were 3,203 lepers in Burma, thus 1·20
per 1,000 of the population were lepers. The returns do not shew the nation-
alities of those affected ; but from personal observation it may be stated that by
far the greater proportion of leprosy occurs amongst immigrants, natives of India.
Civil medical officers confined their enquiries entirely to the inmates of civil
hospitals who had come there for treatment and to lepers amongst prisoners in
jails, the number of these has been very limited owing to many causes. The objects
which the Government had in view would have been attained more satisfactorily
by enquiries instituted amongst lepers throughout the country by distrct officers :
Name of places.
Akyab
Kyouk Phyoo
...
Sandoway
Rangoon
Rangoon Town
Bassein
Henzada and Myanoung
Prome
Thayetmyo
Moulmein
..,
Moulmein Town
Tavoy
Mergui
Shwe-gyeen
Tounghoo
Total
Population.
282,231
144,177
53,790
337,756
91,579
290,261
440,349
249,766
143,321
217,713
63,841
75,413
49,049
136,186
86,166
2,661,598
Number of
lepers.
104
58
23
569
104
398
565
266
170
288
57
54
46
229
272
3,203
Ratio of lepers
per 1,000 of
population.
0·36
0·40
0·42
1·68
1·13
1·36
1·28
1·06
1·18
1·32
0·89
0·71
0·93
1·68
3·15
1·20