283
Annexe A.
REPORT OF THE MEDICAL OFFICER OF HEALTH ON PLAGUE IN 1905.
In my 1904 Report on Plague I went somewhat fully into the questions of the channels of infection and the relation of rat plague to human plague. Experience of the 1905 epi- demic does not suggest any alteration in my previously expressed opinions and I therefore present merely statistics in my Report herewith appended.
It is well known that a new Commission has lately been working in India on Plague and it is to be hoped that when the Report of the Commission is published much light may be thrown on the problems which the study of this disease presents.
The total number of cases of plague in 1905 was 304. The monthly distribution of the cases is shewn by the following Table which also similarly distributes the cases of pre- vious epidemics since 1895.
MONTH.
YEAR.
1895. 1896. 1897. 1898. 1899. 1900. | 1901. | 1902. | 1903. 1904. 1905.
January,
49
9
February,
125
67
2
March......
168
137
25
00 00 1.0
7
1
12
14
1
29
9
54
2
115
3
April,
316
468
101
94
160
27
272
40
7
May,
2
344
534
421
326
701
157
515
135
78
June,
113
92 514
325 551
194 343
194
87
July,
ст
52
7
263
209
109
131
85
96
76
August,
25
心
86
80
27
50
19
17
September,
57
16
24
2
9
2
October, November, December,
2
4
12
1
2
5
12
:།།
2
2
11
2
1
6
44 1,204 21 1,320 1,486 | 1,087 1,651
572 1,415 510 304
My previous Reports on Plague Epidemics in the Colony have been written on the number of cases occurring from January to July inclusive. In orde, therefore, to make figures in this report comparable with those for previous epidemics I have taken a similar period here for the basis of the following statistics.
The total number of cases from January to July was 272 as compared with 472 during the corresponding period of 1904.
These 272 cases were made up as follows:
NATIONALITY AND SEX.
No. of Cases.
181
Nationality.
Chinese,
87
Sex. Males, Females,
% for Sex.
Total.
67.53 1
268
32.47
??
Indian,
Males,
100-0
2
0
Females,
"
1
Malay,
Males,
100.0
1
0
Females,
1
Portuguese,
Males, Females,
100.0
1
,,
272
272
In 1904 out of the total British and Foreign population, two Indians only were attacked. The above Table is therefore very similar to its corresponding one for the 1904 epidemic.
34.7.
In 1904 the Chinese cases gave a case percentage for males of 653 and for females of