(42)
military prison. D. and E. are syce lines containing perhaps 200
children, from 40 to 60 per cent, of whom have malaria parasites in
their blood. F. is the hospital followers' quarters, containing per-
haps 40 or 50 children, 60 per cent. of whom have malaria parasites in
their blood. G. is the regimental bazaar containing numerous child-
ren, the majority of whom are infected with malaria parasites. All
these children form a constant and abundant source from which the
numerous anopheles mosquitoes which breed in the irrigation water-
course (H.) and in many other watercourses near, become infected.
It will be readily seen that under these conditions the men in
the barracks must suffer severely from malaria. They are in fact
in the midst of an area of infected anopheles mosquitoes and it is
difficult to understand how, under the circumstances, any of them
can escape getting malarial fever.
If we consider in such a case only the soldiers themselves in our
system of prophylaxis, it is evident that we shall probably attain
most success in prophylaxis by an extension of the principles already
indicated for the individual.
Our first aim would be to thoroughly cure all men who had
previously suffered from malaria and who would therefore be liable
to relapses. This would be done by the method described on
page 45 for the disinfection of infected individuals. At the same
time we should set about protecting the soldiers from being bitten
by mosquitoes, by covering all doors and windows of the barracks
with mosquito-proof netting, and as a further safeguard by giving
each man a mosquito curtain. In most Indian stations this plan
of protecting the men against mosquito bites would be impracti-
cable, owing to the fact that the intense heat during the summer
nights would render it quite impossible for men to sleep under
mosquito curtains in mosquito-proof barrack rooms. In such sta-
tions therefore the best plan would be to adopt, in a modified form,
the method of segregation already described; that is to remove the
native lines and the bazaar to a greater distance from the barracks,
so that the men may be if possible half a mile from any source of
infection.
If neither of these methods could be carried out we should
have to fall back upon prophylactic doses of quinine.