Statistical reports on the sickness, mortality, & invaliding, among the troops in Western Africa, St. Helena, the Cape of Good Hope, and the Mauritius; : prepared from the records of the Army Medical Department and War-Office returns [by A.M. Tulloch, H. Marshall and T.G. Balfour]. / Presented to both Houses of Parliament by command of Her Majesty.
- Great Britain. Army Medical Services
- Date:
- 1840
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Statistical reports on the sickness, mortality, & invaliding, among the troops in Western Africa, St. Helena, the Cape of Good Hope, and the Mauritius; : prepared from the records of the Army Medical Department and War-Office returns [by A.M. Tulloch, H. Marshall and T.G. Balfour]. / Presented to both Houses of Parliament by command of Her Majesty. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service. The original may be consulted at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service.
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![According to tliis estinnate the annual mortality, has averaged 1 in 48^, even including St. Helena. the class termed strangers, many of whom were seamen landed from vessels in the last stage of disease; in the United Kingdom it averages about 1 in 47^ of the population; consequently St. Helena must be healthier than Britain. This is the more remarkable as a large proportion of the population are of the Negro race, who in general suffer to a great extent when transported from their native country; here, however, they are found to keep up, and even to add to their numbers, for though no importation has been permitted since 1792, they increased within the fol]o%ying 13 years, from 1512 to 1560, a feature which has never been observed in any other British Colony.^ This island has seldom been visited by any severe or fatal epidemics since its first coloni- zation. One occurred in 1718, which cut off about 6 j)er cent, of the white, and a somewhat larger proportion of the black population ; its precise nature cannot now be ascertained, but it is said to have occurred during a very dry season and after the continuance of north- west winds for three weeks, an unusual circumstance in an island where the wind blows almost invariably from the opposite quarter. Measles also became epidemic in 1807, and cut off about 3 per cent, of the white, and nearly double that proportion of the black population. These ai-e the only two instances we can trace of any considerable mortality, and the care with which they have been recorded, shows that such events must have been of very unusual occurrence. Prior to 1815, when this island was selected for the residence of the Ex-Emperor Napo- Troops employed. Icon, the garrison consisted of four companies of Artillery, and a corps of Infantry, raised expressly for the purpose, with two companies of invalids, all white troops, in the pay of the East India Company. A reinforcement of regular troops arrived with Napoleon, which was withdrawn shortly after his decease, and the island was again garrisoned solely by those of the East India Company till 1836, when, having been ceded to the Crown, the Colonial force was disbanded and replaced by troops of the line. As no returns are transmitted to the Army Medical Department from any of the East India Company's troops, M'e are unable to supply the usual details in regard to that portion of the force. Some documents recently forwarded from the island, however, afford the following information in regard to the extent of mortality among them, during the 20 years antecedent to October 1835:— Y t Of ear ending 14 Oct. 1816 1817 1818 1819 1820 1821 1822 1823 1824 1825 182G 1827 1828 1829 1830 1831 1832 1833 1834 1835 Total. lied of Non Com.1 fleers & Privates J 27 16 28 17 19 18 18 14 12 18 12 22 16 9 14 10 11 5 8 1 1 305 The force during this period appears to have averaged about 800, exclusive of officers, while the deaths averaged from 15 to 16 annuallj^, consequently the mortality must have been under 2 per cent., even including that of the invalid establishment, consisting of about 100 soldiers advanced in life; it is probable, therefore, that the mortality of the effective part of the force did not exceed the usual ratio in the United Kingdom. During the same period 25 military officers died; the average number of that class in the island appears to have been about 50, but as civil officers are also entitled to medical attendance, and we cannot state their numbers or learn whether their deaths have been included with the military, it is impossible to compare the mortality of these ranks with that of the soldiers. So far as regards the Company's troops, therefore, as well as the civil population, the climate of this island has unquestionably proved healthy; we next come to consider more minutely its effects upon the troops of the line when employed there. Till the year of Napoleon's decease, the British force consisted of two battalions of In- fantry, a company of Artillery, and another of Sappers and Miners, with a few Dragoons; and since the island was given up to the Crown in 1836, the 91st regiment*, and a company of Artillery, have composed the garrison. So far as regards the present force, the duty and employment in no respect differs from that in other garrisons, only one subaltern's guard mounts daily throughout the island, but, during the residence of the Ex-Emperor, guard and sentinel duties were much more fi'equent; fatigue parties too were often required for improving the roads and different localities in the island, and many of the soldiers worked as labourers on the buildings at Longwood. None of these causes, how^ever, are alleged to have contributed to the sickness or mortality which prevailed among them; on the contrary, most of the medical officers state, that the troops were never so healthy as when thus actively emjoloyed. The permanent barracks being insufficient for the increased force sent out with Napoleon, the majority of the troops were accommodated in wooden barracks constructed in England, which are said to have been excellent of their kind. Since the island was given up to the British Government, the garrison has been quartered in James Town and Ladder Hill bar- racks, with the exception of a few small detachments at the outposts. James Town barracks are generally occupied by three companies, and the head-quarters of a Regiment. They consist of three ranges of stone buildings on an artificial ter- race of which the lower extremity forms a parade-ground ; the officers' barracks are of two stories, those for the men only of one, and said to be too limited for the number quar- tered therein, as the smaller rooms afford but 400 cubic feet of space to each individual. Duty and Employment. Barrack and Hospital Accom- modation. * A part of the 91st has lately been removed to the Cape.](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b21365313_0045.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
