CO129-018 - Others - 1846 — Page 475

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KEPORT ON

to attend parade; out of 100 men there are sometimes not more than 15 or 16 men fit for active duty. The Royal Artillery (the finest military corps in the world), out of 135 men and officers, lost in two years 51 by death (of whom 35 died at Hong Kong during the last six months of 1843) and 45 by invaliding. That Hong Kong was the cause of their death will be seen from the fact, that Colonel Knowles' detachment of Royal Artillery went through the whole of the war at Canton and in the Yang-tze-kiang river; the detachment was out here three years, it never landed at Hong Kong; one man was killed, another died of dropsy, but the whole of the remainder of the detach- ment returned to England, except the commanding officer, Lieut.-Colonel Knowles, who landed at Hong Kong, and died of fever.

The officers of the Royal Artillery died in the same proportion as the men: out of nine officers who came out with the original detach- ment, but one escaped disease or death. Last year there were several losses in the ships of war. Her Majesty's ship "Agincourt" lost dur- ing the sickly season of 1843 60 men, of whom 20 were marines; 40 men were invalided home, of whom few would recover. Since leaving England in May, 1842, the "Agincourt" has been obliged to enter 160 seamen from merchant ships. The cause assigned for the severe ill- ness of the marines and scamen of last year was the being obliged to land guards to protect stores at West Point. This year the "Agin- court sends no men on shore or on night duty; and out of 600 men, there are only 23, including slight hurts, on the sick list-a fact which tests the insalubrity of the shore.

STATIONS.

Fevers.

ABSTRACT, &c.-(continued).

Deaths per Annum.

Pulmonie Affections.

Total Deaths per

Other Diseases.

Dysentery.

Cholera.

| Dropsical ditto.

Diarrhoea.

Rheumatism.

Hepatites.

ann.

Discharged per ann.

Transferred per ann. On Sick Leave per

ann.

1843. Received 31st Dec.,

Rates per ann, of Sick to Strength.

Rates per ann. of

Deaths to Strength.

Hong Kong - 155 30137 0 5 1319 427 140

Chusan

-

Koolungsoo

ོ་ =

11 22

341

6969,32

23382 016 67 4165 0

418 0 2 2016 4

80 2699 6

72 380 5.1|

(1 in 3} nearly. 36 133 2:22 1 in 9}

0 94 2.91 in 12}

TOTAL 200106143 21 82323 459 587 13,833 38 108 6073-42

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Mr. Keith Stewart Mackensie, Military Secretary to the Commander-in-chief, says in his "Narrative of the Second Campaign in China," published in London, April, 1842, that when he was at Hong Kong, "there were as many as 1100 men in hospital; and in the 37th Madras Regiment of 560 men, only 50 were fit for duty. Many men and officers were obliged to be invalided."

HONG KONG,

9

The deaths in the naval force at Hong Kong and Whampoa for the 468

six sickly months ending October, 1843, were four per cent., while for the same period on shore the deaths among the troops averaged twenty-four per cent.; and even among the European civilians the estimate was ten

per cent.*

In May, 1843, the left wing of Her Majesty's 55th Regiment had 16 officers and 490 men in Hong Kong; from thence to November, 2 officers and 218 men died, and the lives of the remainder were only saved by the prompt, judicious, and humane conduct of General D'Aguilar in immediately embarking the men for England.

The mortality as yet (July 17) during the present year has not been so great, but the sickness is equally destructive of the efficiency of the troops. Chue Chew, on the south side of Hong Kong, it was hoped would be a healthy station. On the 30th June, 1844, out of 400 men of Her Majesty's 98th Regiment at Chuc Chew, there were 109 in hospital; out of 80 lascars at the same station, there were 30 in hospitalt.

It was supposed that Saiwan, on the south-east side of Hong Kong, would afford a healthy station for the troops: Government expended about 30,000 dollars in preparing and building a fine set of barracks, of two stories, with every view to comfort and health. The officer of the Royal Engineers having reported the barracks habitable, the General Commanding sent a medical board to examine the building and station. The board reported that the station at Saiwan appeared healthy, that there was no apparent cause for disease, and that it was eligible for troops. The General resolved to begin with a small detachment, and twenty Europeans were sent to Saiwan. No sentry was to be mounted during the day, and but one at night. In five weeks five of the soldiers were dead, three more were in a dangerous state, and four were conval- escent; one European woman and child were also dangerously ill.

*

Captain White, of the Omega," enumerated to me the following, anong his own acquaintance in a brief period :-Captain McCarthy, æt. 36. Never pre- viously ill. Sailor; Captain of ship,--Captain Morgan, Captain of ship.-Mr. Hy. Pybus, æt. 32. Strong healthy man.-Messrs. Elsworthy, Dyer, and Scott, at. about 24. Healthy men.--Mr. Mercer, merchant. Mr. Langer, architect. -Two Mr. Hights, brothers. One Captain of ship, and the other merchant. Both young men. Mr. Cropper, merchant.-Mr. Stevenson, builder. Had been five years resi- dent in Sierra Leone, and three years in New Orleans. Mr. McEwen, general dealer.-Mr. Disant, æt. 37. Long resident in India.-Fully one-third of those he knew in Hong Kong, intimately, during the first eighteen months, died in Hong Kong.

During the year 1845, Chuc Chew-which is almost entirely composed of rotten granite-proved as unhealthy as Victoria. By the last accounts Her Majesty's 18th were dying there rapidly; but every effort is made to suppress such information by those who wish to maintain the delusion at home. The Overland "Friend of China" of the 31st December, 1845, states, that the mortality of the 18th Royal Irish, from the 1st March to December, 1845, at Chuc Cliew, has been "nearly twenty-three per cent. The whole of the Europeans have now been removed from this wretched and useless spot, and placed on board the ship 'Sir R. Sale,' in the harbour of Hong Kong, on the Chinese shore; but," adds the jour- nal, "there has been no improvement from the change, and it is probable they will sail for England." This very regiment did not lose three per cent. per annum last year at Chusan; now they are almost entirely unfit for immediate active service.