MILITARY
(Contd.)
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ten-inch guns should be placed on board her, with a company of the 59th Regiment, who were to be trained daily in necessary exercises.
The journal's comment on these preparations was: "Red hot shot, well delivered, will be ample defence against any Russian squadron that may assail us, we take it, but there must be a better look-out on the other side of the island, if we are to guard against surprise, and a better look-out on this side too, if the reported virtues of Russian gold are to be guarded against."
Concluding, the paper remarked that Stonecutter's Island was the ideal place for a battery. It expressed the hope that the French ships, Constantine and Colbert, were keeping a sharp look-out for the Russians.
The appalling mortality among troops stationed in Hong Kong during the first twenty years of British occupation has been referred to in previous articles. The soldier in Hong Kong those days, had to contend not only with the troops of the Viceroy at Canton, but with a far more powerful enemy - malaria.
Little was known of tropical diseases then, as the dozens of lonely graves at Stanley and Happy Valley testify. It remained for Manson and Ross, pioneers in tropical medicine, to make this Colony safe for civilian and soldier alike.
A correspondent has sent me some interesting extracts from the Friend of China, dealing with the sickness among the soldiers in 1850. These extracts are taken from old files dated July 10 to August 21.
According to this journal, on July 10 there were 135 cases in the Military Hospital. The majority of the patients were suffering from fever and an average of six deaths in every 24 hours was reported.
For some weeks prior to this date, the Engineer Corps was being called upon to do sentry duty, because the 59th Regiment, with one-third of its personnel on the sick list, was incapable of fulfilling routine duties.
The hospital accommodation at the time was disgraceful. The invalids were huddled together like sheep, in an unstable matshed, receiving poor attention and medicine which did little to ease their suffering.
"It is for the Government," said the Friend of China, "to consider the proposal of renting houses in different parts of the town and removing convalescents there. The long wards could then be partitioned off so that it might not be necessary for the men, sick in mind and body, to watch their comrades die."
On August 10, 1850, the following information appeared in the Friend of China:
We can hardly bring ourselves to make an apology to our readers for filling our columns, week after week, with remarks upon the sickness in garrison. It is the topic of the day, and suffering humanity demands the exclusion of every other subject until all is done to relieve so much misery. But we feel assured that the hearts of the bulk of our readers, (be they countrymen or otherwise), beat in sympathy with our own in this matter. We have every reason to anticipate, however, a speedy change in the measures propounded for relief; and ours shall be the task, whilst blessed with the health and energy, to keep Government from overlooking matters until there has been, if we may be allowed so to express it, a full hecatomb of victims to neglect.
In our last issue, it was stated that Government, by some kind of notice, had informed a section of the shipping interest in China...
MILITARY
(Contd.)
20-667
ten-inch guns should be placed on board her, with a company of the 59th Regiment, who were to be trained daily in necessary exercises.
The journal's comment on these preparations was: "Red hot shot, well delivered, will be ample defence against any Russian squadron that may assail us, we take it, but there must be a better look-out on the other side of the island, if we are to guard against surprise, and a better look-out on this side too, if the reported virtues of Russian gold are to be guarded against."
Concluding, the paper remarked that Stonecutter's Island was the ideal place for a battery. It expressed the hope that the French ships, Constantine and Colbert, were keeping a sharp look- out for the Russians.
The appalling mortality among troops stationed in Hong Kong during the first twenty years of British occupation has been referred to in previous articles. The soldie in Hong Kong those days, had to contend not only with the troops of the Viceroy at Canton, but with a far more powerful enemy malaria.
C
Little was known of tropical diseases then, as the dozens of lonely graves at Stanley and Happy Valley testify. It remained for Manson and Ross, pioneers in tropical medicine, to make this Colony safe for civilian and soldier alike.
A correspondent has sent me some interesting extracts from the Friend of China, dealing with the sickness among the soldiers in 1850. These extracts are taken from old files dated July 10 to August 21.
According to this journal, on July 10 there were 135 cases in the Military Hospital. The majority of the patients were suffering from fever and an average of six deaths in every 24 hours was reported.
For some weeks prior to this date, the Engineer Corps was being called upon to do sentry duty, because the 59th Regiment, with one- third of its personnel on the sick list, was incapable of fulfill- ing routine duties.
་
The hospital accommodation at the time was disgraceful. The invalids were huddled together like sheep, in an unstable matshed, receiving poor attention and medicine which did little to ease their suffering.
"It is for the Government" said the Friend of China, "to consider the proposal of renting houses in different parts of the town and removing convalescents there. The long wards could then be partitioned off so that it might not be necessary for the men,
sick in mind and body, to watch their comrades die."
*
*
On August 10, 1850, the following information appeared in the Friend of China:
We can hardly bring ourselves to make an apology to our readers for filling our columns, week after week, with remarks upon the sickness in garrison. It is the topic of the day, and suffering humanity demands the exclusion of every other subject until all is done to relieve so much misery. But we feel assured tha the hearts of the bulk of our readers, (be they countrymen or other- wise), beat in sympathy with our own in this matter. We have every reason to anticipate, however, a speedy change in the measures propounded for relier; and ours shall be the task, whilst blessed with the health and energy, to keep Government from overlooking matters until there has been if we may be allowed so to express it a full hetacomb of victims to neglect In our last issue it was stated that Government, by some kind of notice, had informed a section of the shipping interest in China
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