The admissions were less than last year, the deaths more by one, but the amount of sicknes not so surprising as it was in 1877, for then it was among troops that had been here a year and previously come from Malta.
Whereas last year it was among troops that had in the beginning of year arrived from Singapore, and had been through a campaign in the Tropics. Here also there is considerable increase in the number of cases of venereal disease, but of the 221 cases recorded, only showed constitutional symptoms.
GOVERNMENT CIVIL HOSPITAL.
Orders being given that the cells should only be washed on dry sunny days soon decreased this class of cases to an inconsiderable number. The case of Hernia was an old standing irreducible one. Operation revealed that a piece of omentum twisted round the gut was the cause of the obstruction, the gut was released from the constriction, but the old adhesions prevented its return to the abdomen, and the patient, a poor old debilitated creature, sunk and died soon after the operation. The case of Alco- holia was a poor old Indian named JERRY, who used to get his living by blacking sailors' boots and used to hang round the grog shops in Queen's Road trying for customers. It appears be more often pay in the form of a drink than anything else, and was frequently in Gaol for being drank and incapable. This time he was brought in as usual, he hardly recovered his senses, was unable to take food, and died soon after admission. On enquiry it appeared he had lived on nothing but drink for many days.
got
his
On the 26th of December, the temporary Government Civil Hospital was burnt down. Such notice of its danger was given, owing to the rapidity with which the conflagration of the build below it spread, that there was only time to remove the patients, instruments and records, some which were lost in removal. The furniture, bedding, stores and library of the Hospital war burnt. The attendants also lost most of their things, being engaged in removing the Government perty that I have mentioned as being saved from the fire. No thought of the fire spreading with rapidity to the Hospital had been entertained, and the attendants had been on the alert all night pecting cases of injury might be brought in every moment, but though over 300 houses were pletely destroyed, no case of injury fortunately occurred requiring to be brought to Hospital.
Our troubles concerning the Government Civil Hospital are now worse than ever. One build was destroyed by a typhoon in 1874, and another has been this year destroyed by fire. Both buildings were, as has been frequently reported, inadequate in their accommodation. Now the Hospital, which was well fitted for the work it was built for, is quite inadequate for the use it is to as a temporary Civil Hospital, and the temporary Small Pox Wards are inadequate for the they have been put to as a temporary Lock Hospital. Some rooms in the ruined Hospital dested in 1874, being used as Small Pox Wards are not watertight, but fortunately Small Pox is only pred during the dry season; they could not be used for any purpose during the typhoon season, as
and pulse normal. All these troubles have been fully reported on, and it is to be hoped building would not be safe." the proposed Government Civil Hospital accommodation, which has been so long coming, will among the things that are, having all the requisites necessary for the comfort and well-being of sick as well as the officers and attendants attached to it.
year,
There has been a considerable increase in the number of patients received into the Civil Haq this both medical and surgical cases, and the limited accommodation gave serious inconvenias but the percentage of mortality among the patients received has been less than in any previous except 1876, as shown by Table VI.
Table V shows the type of discase. Fevers and Bowel complaints being predominant, the for being chiefly of the milder forms, only one case of death occurring in over 300 cases of all type Fever admitted. There has been a considerable increase in the number of venereal cases admitted i I am happy to say those contracted in Hongkong have been of the mildest type.
Table VII shows the admissions and deaths in this Hospital for every month in the year. greatest number of admissions took place in the month of August, but from May to November, number averaged over 120 per month, the admissions for the other five months averaging unde per month.
Table VIII shows the number of dead bodies brought to Hospital, which, as usual, were pally Chinese,
The Staff worked well, although the loss of Mr. BOTELHO's services caused considerable ines nience. Mr. SENNA, who acted for him, though painstaking and willing, not having had the amount of experience, could not fill the void left by Mr. A. A. BOTELHO, but for all that deserves and credit for the way in which he has performed his duties.
VICTORIA GAOL.
‚
There was one very curious case of feigned insanity this year in the Gaol. This was the prisoner NEWMAN on remand for murder. For nearly three months, this man never spoke except on one occasion, and so skilfully did he feign chronic dementia that had I not seen him from the first. I should have He was seen by other been very doubtful about his case, as it was, I was quite sure he was sane. Medical men of more experience than myself in psychological cases, and they all had great doubts of his sanity. During his examination before the Magistrate, he kept up the shan most successfully, apparently taking no note of the proceedings. Yet when he suddenly gave it up a few days before bis trial, he showed how attentive he had been by his analysis of the evidence, and how carefully he had noted things during the time he had been feigning by bringing a charge against one of the Warders of unnecessary cruelty, giving dates and naming events that occurred about the same time. All He gave in, remarking "he'd sooner die than live fifteen or twenty years in Gaol after all.” through this case many important symptoms were absent. The temperature uever varied from health, the skin was moist and no particular smell could be detected, the tongue was clean, bowels regular He would not take any solid food for weeks, but he took enough soup and milk
to
When
to keep a man in good condition, he never lost weight and though he would do nothing he was told
do, yet when compulsion was used he was very careful to avoid being hurt in any way. electricity or the cold douche was used, he shouted and struggled, but never uttered a word. He contrived to do with very little sleep, but never slept less than three or four hours in the twenty-four. The symptoms were, his silence, his doing with little sleep, stripping himself naked, obscene and dirty habits, danbing the walls with night soil, and only once his own face and body, singing to himself. and a palsied motion of the head with twitching of the muscles of the face, but this only when he knew he was being watched. Two feigned attempts at suicide also when he knew he was being watched. These were very bungling attempts, very different from the cunning usually shewn in suicidal mania. He at last gave in when confined in a cell, specially prepared, so that he was watched at all times, without his knowledge though he suspected it, the trial was then too great and he gave in all at once.
It was evident that he had at some time or other seen or been attendant on some case of madness, without which I do not think a man of his class could have made such a faithful copy. He was cool and self-possessed in his last moments making a short speech from the scaffold to the by-standers.
per mun;
There is considerable difficulty with the sick in Hospital which is always overcrowded, the Chinese only getting about 200 cubic feet of space per man, and the Europeans about 500 cubic feet is true the cells have large windows and only barred gates opening on to the corridors, but in winter the windows at any rate have to be closed and the ventilation is anything but good, added to which the night soil bucket is in the cell, though the dry earth system in use keeps the smell from becoming overpowering. The other cells of the prison, with the exception of the European and separate cells, are just as much overcrowded. The close atmosphere of the cells and corridors at unlocking time in the morning is very bad, but all these things have been reported on many times by myself and others. Though the number of admissions to the Gaol this year is less than usual, yet the daily average number of prisoners is greatly in excess, and consequently the overcrowding is worse than it ever was.
Total number of prisoners admitted to Gaol,
1873. 1874.
1875. 1876.
4,656
3,645
4,023
4,065
3,964
3,803
Daily average number of prisoners.
388
350.4
374.06
432.60
395.22
.... 519.10
The medical charge of this Establishment is in my hands. There has been a greater nule admissions to Hospital than usual and a greater number of deaths. The number of cases allow leave the Gnol with conditional pardons on account of disease have been fewer, which partly ac for the increased number of deaths, but the main cause was the number of heart complaints: of t 22 were cases of general Anasurca, and the heart disease was first brought to notice by complaine difficulty of breathing, rheumatic pains and swelling of the lower extremities. Ultimately in all; cases general Anasarca occurred, the whole body limbs and face being swollen to an immense Some of the cases that recovered and are still in Gaol appeared worse than others that died. Of cases that died nearly all were examined post-mortem, and in all these so examined the disease" similar, dilated right side of the heart; in some cases the wall so thin as to be almost traus dropsical effusion into the pericardium and abdomen, and general congestion of all the internal
There have been the usual number of opium cases, but with no case has there been trouble All these cases occurred in the beginning of the year in the cold months, a large number of Brone and rheumatic cases occurring at the same time, many more than usual being of a severe type. fficulty; they are not allowed any opium or other narcotics, and seldom require any particular puzzled to account for them; till at last I discovered the cells were being washed by regulate attention. One old woman said she had been an opium smoker for twenty-five years. She was sixty many times a week, weather not being taken into account, so that on dull damp days the cellars old and anemic, was treated for the Anamia and improved very much in general health, but her never dried at all, and the prisoners slept on them damp as they were almost when first as opium sunoking was entirely ignored.
1
or
1877.
1878,.
151