?(   135   )
wards to the North-Western Provinces during the second week of the month.
The rainfall over the whole of Bengal was slightly below the average. The
rains practically terminated in Kuch Bihar at the end of September, and
about the 15th October over the remainder of the province. The amount of
the rainfall was excessive in the districts of Eastern Bengal, * * * It was
fairly up to the average and well distributed in Bengal and Chota Nagpore.
In Bihar, the districts of Gya, Shahabad, Sarun, and Champaran suffered from
a defective supply. Orissa also, during the whole of the rainy seasons,
experienced a diminished rainfall. This was most marked along the coast of
Puri.
The following tabular statement shows at a glance the chief meteorological conditions of the year, and the mortality from cholera compared with
the other principal death-causes:-
METEOROLOGY.
January.
February. 
March. 
April.
May.
June.
July.
August.
September.
October.
November.
December.
Year 1877.
Atmospheric pressure
29.434
29.372
29.252
29.206
29.081
28.961
28.949
28.955
29.115
29.209
29.202
29.308
29.188
Mean   temperature   of air
64·1
63·3
75·5
78·2
83·1
83.9
82·2
82·0
82·3
78·6
73·5
65·7
75·7
Mean range      
19·6
19·8
21·6
21·0
19·1
14·9
11·2
10·9
11·8
15·3
20·2
20·8
17·3
Humidity          
72
69
63
65
70
71
84
84
81
75
69
69
73
Rainfall  
1·81
2·23
1·23
2·66
5·01
7·64
13·61
12·69
8·72
2·71
.10
.46
58·871
Mortality.













Cholera   
38,142
18,216
11,872
17,187
12,140
5,478
4,943
4,759
5,280
5,933
13,713
17,592
155,305
Small-pox         
424
633
1,196
1,518
1,292
963
574
350
194
205
261
478
8,088
Fevers      
48,400
41,623
45,785
53,458
51,941
45,483
47,116
52,605
58,667
68,013
92,403
105,543
711,037
Bowel-complaints
4,620
4,393
4,729
5,160
4,775
3,849
4,221
4,590
4,887
5,448
5,837
6,453
58,962
All causes
101,796
74,124
73,824
88,689
81,470
67,308
69,440
76,020
82,746
93,209
125,081
143,894
1,077,601
In considering the influence of atmospheric  changes on  sickness and
mortality,  it  must be borne  in mind that  in this province many sources of
disease are always present,  such as soil  saturated with  sewage matter  and
water polluted by  all  sorts  of impurities, while the population is poor and
ignorant, and bad-clothed, housed, and fed.    The  mortality in January  and
February is not usually higher than  that in November and December, but in
1877 it was very considerably so owing to severe epidemics of fever and cholera
following  the  cyclone  of   October  1876,  continuing   operative   during  the
earlier  months of  1877 in  considerable  portions  of the eastern districts of
Bengal.    It is consequently difficult to determine to what extent the increased
mortality was influenced by the climatic conditions of the period in the  areas
so exceptionally affected, though in the districts not  affected  by the cyclone
the increased  atmospheric   pressure  and  unusually   low   temperature    of
January and February were coincident  with  a  slight increase in  the total
number  of deaths   registered   during  these   months.     As regards  cholera
mortality in its relation to the meteorology, it was severe from March to May
when the atmospheric  pressure and the temperature were high;  the mortality
declined from June to September when the moisture in the air was great, and
the rainfall was constant and  abundant;  and   it  again became  very  severe
from October when the rains ceased, and  during November and December,
when the humidity of the air had decreased and evaporation had become very
rapid.  In other words, cholera was widespread and severe when the atmospheric
pressure was high, the humidity of the air least, and the rainfall at its minimum
or almost absent;  and it declined  in prevalence when the  proportion of
moisture in the air was great and the rainfall heavy.
Food-supply.-On the whole the year 1877 was a year of average plenty.
In the majority of the districts the outturn of the crops was more or less
above, or equal to, the average yield. In 12 districts it was below average,
and in 7, viz. Bakirganj, Mymensingh, Chittagong, Noakhalli, Naddia, Balasur,
and Puri it was very bad.
Although the harvest of the year was on the whole good, the prices of food-
grains had risen very considerably as compared with the average prices of the
three years which preceded 1877, excluding 1874, the famine year. This great
rise in prices was partly due to drought having reduced the quantity of grain