( 27 )
The medical officer appears to have reported what he believed to be true, but in
language too forcible for official correspondence when opinions not supportable by
evidence are recorded. That soldiers do sometimes resist the arrest of women with
whom they are in company is shown by many statements to be found in different por-
tions of the series of reports on lock hospitals, which I have received during the past
five years. At Sitapur itself, in 1877, it was reported by an experienced medical officer
that the arrest of vagrant women, who prostitute themselves in groves near canton-
ments, is often impossible, owing to the reluctance or inability of the men to assist the
police.
That soldiers do occasionally leave their barracks at night-time without permis-
sion has been recorded also on a previous occasion. That they did so once or twice
at Sitapur in 1878 seems likely, by the report of the commanding officer of the 92nd
that check roll-calls were ordered at all hours of the night, and on one or two occasions
men were found absent and afterwards discovered in the sudder bazaar.
13. The opinion, that the disease complained of was contracted principally from
the registered women, is upheld chiefly by the Deputy Surgeon-General, Indian Medical
Department, and the Officer Commanding Her Majesty's 92nd Regiment.
The Deputy Surgeon-General founds his opinion upon the fact that the ratio of
disease amongst the registered women was very high. This is very true. But it
must be explained that many of .the admissions to lock hospitals are cases of women
admitted to be cured of disease prior to registration, and this particularly in regard
to cases of syphilis and very severe forms of disease generally.
In all years, the ratio of' admissions to strength of registered women is extremely
high. In 1877, at Fyzabad, where good results were obtained as regards the soldiers,
the admissions from syphilis were 849.4
and of gonorrhœa 1451.6 per 1,000. Whilst at Agra, where the results were unsatis-
factory as regards the soldiers, the admissions amongst the registered women were
for syphilis 224.6, and for gonorrhœa 311.6 per 1,000 of the women. In fact, it seems
pretty well established, as the result of experience, that a high ratio of admissions to
the lock hospital which means the discovery and cure of much disease amongst
women, registered and unregistered, with whom the soldiers have intercourse, points to
active management likely to provide good results.
The Officer Commanding Her Majesty's 92nd Regiment appears to have recorded
two opinions. On August the 31st, 1878, at Sitapur, he was of opinion that the
increase of disease was due to the intercourse of the soldiers with unlicensed women.
On April the 28th, 1879, at Ali Kheyl, he was of opinion that the greater part of the
disease was due to intercourse with diseased registered women.
14. The Medical Officer, the Cantonment Committee, the Deputy Surgeon-
General, A.M.D. and the Deputy Commissioner, are of opinion that the disease
Prevalence was probably due to the intercourse of soldiers with unlicensed women.
15. There is much in these papers to support the opinion that the British
soldier cannot be controlled in regard to his movements as seems requisite for the
full success of lock hospital management. All authorities agree that sexual inter-
course in groves about cantonments was possible to the soldiers, and the Deputy
Commissioner is of opinion that the soldiers, in their country walks, make a point of
meeting unregistered women. Yet he would not have the soldiers' movements cur-
tailed in this respect, as the walks are healthful, except in regard to venereal pre-
valence, and the good would suffer with the bad by loss of this liberty. He
adds that while these excursions are permitted it is impossible to control venereal
disease.