344
40. SMALL-POX.-There were thirteen cases under treatment with 2 deaths.
41. VACCINATIONS.-Two hundred and seventeen (217) vaccinations were performed during the year with the following result :-
Primary cases, Re-vaccinations,
Successful.
...76
Unsuccessful. 8
.96
37
= 84 =133
217
Since October we have been supplied with calf lymph from the local Vaccine Institute, and have found it very satisfactory.
42. LUNATIC ASYLUMS.--There were 51 cases under treatment during the year with 4 deaths. The nationality of these cases is given in Table Vlib.
43. POST MORTEM EXAMINATIONS.-35 were performed during the year.
44. In an Appendix are the notes of some cases of medical and surgical interest.
45. The fees received from the patients in the Government Civil Hospital during the year amounted to $12,269.10; of this the Board of Trade paid $3,100.92, and the police $883.75. Those received from the Lunatic Asylums amounted to $1,017.92 and those from the Small-pox patients $338.66 giving a total of $13,625.68.
Before concluding I wish to thank the Naval and Military Surgeons who are, and have been, on this Station, and the Civil Doctors for their valuable assistance, frequently rendered, especially at operations.
GIFTS OF FLOWERS, NEWSPAPERS, &C.-The patients have been much indebted to several ladies of the Colony for frequent gifts of flowers, newspapers, &c.
I have the honour to be,
Sir,
Your obedient Servant,
Dr. PH. B. C. AYRES,
Colonial Surgeon.
J. M. ATKINSON, M.B., (London),
Superintendent.
Appendix A.
GUN-SHOT WOUNDS.
The gun-shot wounds during the year were various. The most interesting case was that of the Chinese boy, age 13, who was shot at Kowloon during the manoeuvring of a squad of blue-jackets from H.M.S. Impérieuse. The boy was running about in front of the squad probably seeing how close to the rifles he could go when he was observed to full. Surgeon HUGHES, R.N., was close by and found him suffering from a wound in the left groin from which there was considerable hemorrhage. He at once applied a firm pad to the wound and brought him to Hospital about 12 a.m. Dr. ATKINSON found him suffering from a wound in the groin just below Poupart's ligament, about the size of a shilling, over the course of the femoral artery which had been shot through. He was blanched from the serious hæmorrhage. The two ends of the artery were tied, no bullet could be found at the time of operation. When I saw him late in the afternoon he had rallied to some extent and could tell his name. About 7 p.m., however, he again became unconscious and although transfusion was attempted, he rapidly sank and died. At the post mortem examination it was found that about an inch of the femoral artery had been shot away. The wound passed down through the muscles on the inside of the neck of the femur and there ended blankly, no bullet or any other foreign body being found. There was very little charring about the wound, which would point to the rifle being some distance off when fired. The suggestion that possibly a stone had been either put in the rifle or knocked up off the ground and then hit the boy was negatived by the fact that really nothing was found in the wound.
The boy's clothing was carefully examined and there were simply the small round holes in his garments corresponding to the place of the wound no charring or burning about them. The same afternoon Fleet Surgeon MAHON and Lieut. HALL and self made various experiments with blank cartridge and found that, if the muzzle of the rifle was held within a couple of inches of the clothing simply a hole was made without any charring. At a distance of about six inches a considerable and scattered charring took place. On shooting into a turnip at a distance of one to three inches a condition of affairs was found closely simulating the wound in the boy euding blankly at about a