This shows a reduction in the sickness at many of the stations, and, with the exception of Lullutpore, where a small force only was quartered, at none has the amount been equal to that at Raj Ghat, Benares, in 1860. There has, however, been a considerable increase at others, principally those in the Lahore Division, and at Agra, Saugor, Morar, Meerut, Umballa, and Peshawur. In the mortality there has also been generally a reduction, but to this there are some very marked exceptions, as Meean Meer (Lahore), Morar, Delhi, Meerut, and Umballa. The high mortality at these stations was due to the prevalence of cholera as an epidemic.

The returns unfortunately do not furnish the means of separating the admissions into hospital by each disease or class of diseases at the different stations, we are therefore restricted, in the following Table, to those which proved fatal, and, as in the previous Report, have grouped them together into the different military divisions. The deaths on the march, and at the convalescent stations and Detachment and Depôt Hospitals are not included in it.

* The troops which were encamped during the prevalence of cholera, as a sanitary measure, are not included under this head, but under the stations where they were quartered when the disease broke out among them.

..

1

:

1 4

1

1

1

The rate of mortality has been extremely high in the Lahore, Gwalior, and Bengal. Meerut Divisions, chiefly from cholera; and it has also been high in the Presidency, Gwalior, and Meerut Divisions from dysentery and diarrhoea. In the Presidency Division these two diseases were most fatal at Barrackpore; in the Gwalior, at Morar; and in the Meerut, at Delhi. In the Peshawur Division, the mortality was under 1 per cent.; in the Benares, Saugor, and Rohilcund Divisions, under 2 per cent.; and, if cholera be deducted, it was under 2 per cent. also in the Oude Division.

The information afforded by the quarterly returns respecting the outbreak of cholera is very defective, but this is of less consequence as a Special Board was appointed by the Governor-General to examine into all the circumstances connected with the epidemic, and it is probable that their Report, when completed, will be published by the Indian Government. In the meantime, the following information, gleaned from the quarterly returns and from the correspondence of the Inspector-Genera!, Dr. Linton, C.B., may prove interesting.

During the first five months of the year, although several cases of cholera proved fatal at Calcutta and Dum Dum, the disease did not prevail as an epidemic. Towards the end of May it broke out in the 54th Regiment at Cawnpore, the first fatal case occurring on the 25th, and between that date and the 15th of June, twelve deaths were caused by it. The disease then appeared to cease.

In the beginning of July there was a fatal case in the 82nd Regiment at Delhi, and a few days later two in the 8th IIussars at Meerut. The disease then appeared in succession at Agra, where the first fatal case occurred on the 14th; at Allahabad, on the 18th; Morar, Gwalior, on the 24th; Cawnpore, on the 29th; Umballa, on the 30th; and Meean Meer, the European cantonment of Lahore, on the 7th of September. These are the dates of the first deaths reported, as the returns do not enable us to state those of the occurrence of the first cases if they recovered. The disease continued to prevail at some of the stations till the end of September. Dr. Linton reported that, during the epidemic, from its commencement at Cawnpore in May till its cessation in December, there were 1,303 admissions and 837 deaths among the men, showing a mortality of 10 in every 15'6 cases. The following return, forwarded by Dr. Linton, shows the admissions and deaths in each regiment, and we have added to it the strength of the corps as stated in the return for the week preceding that in which the first fatal case occurred.

This shows that nearly one-third of the right wing of the 94th Regiment, and upwards of one-fourth of the 51st Regiment, both stationed at Meean Meer (Lahore), were cut off by this disease in the course of a few weeks. The 27th, at Morar, Gwalior, lost upwards of one-seventh of its numbers, and the mortality was also very high in the E Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, at Meean Meer, and the left wing of the 94th Regiment at Umritsir. This epidemic in one quarter caused upwards of half the deaths which occurred among the European troops during the whole of the year, and was so virulent that two out of every three cases terminated fatally.

At most of the stations, when the disease became epidemic, the troops were moved out of their cantonments and encamped. As the returns, however, do not enable us to trace correctly and minutely these changes, we have included the cases and deaths in each corps as having occurred at the station where it was quartered when attacked.

The sickness and mortality in each corps serving in Bengal during 1861 is shown in the following Table. The necessary correction to show the average annual strength has been made in those corps which were in the country during only a art of the year.