Report of the Commissioners appointed to inquire into the regulations affecting the sanitary condition of the army, the organization of military hospitals, and the treatment of the sick and wounded ; with evidence and appendix. Presented to both Houses of Parliament by Command of Her Majesty.
- Great Britain. Royal Commission Appointed to Inquire into the Sanitary Condition of the Army.
- Date:
- 1858
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: Report of the Commissioners appointed to inquire into the regulations affecting the sanitary condition of the army, the organization of military hospitals, and the treatment of the sick and wounded ; with evidence and appendix. 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.
803/978 page 43
![In anticipation of Lord Panmure being induced to order tlie carrying out of this proposal, I beg to add in reference thereto tliat, as the article in question is produced chiefly in Ireland, its price would be consi- derably enhanced and its despatch delayed by its being sent to London for shipment; hence it is desi- rable that it should be sent from the Irish port nearest to the place of its production. Further it may be riglit to mention that ten tons ]>y weight of peat charcoal measure nearly thirty tons ; it would therefore be necessary to engage 600 tons measurement for the conveyance of tlie quantity spe- cified. Finding that the importers of this article had been iu the habit of sending it in hogsheads, which are unwieldly and difficult of stowage, I have requested in respect of recent shijiments that it should be packed in old flour barrels as being more manageable and easier of distribution. Lastly, I venture to add that it is very desirable that the supply referred to should be sent by a steam ship, as we cannot calculate on the continuance of cool weather at the stations named much beyond the middle or end of April. I have, &c. (Signed) A. Smith, The Under Secretary for War, Director General. &c. &c. No. 141-2. E. C. Mundy, Esq., to Dr. Smith. War Department, Sir, 13th March 1855. In transmitting for your information the cojjy of a letter from Dr. Milroy, containing certain re- marks on the summer clothing for the troops in the Crimea, 1 am directed by Lord Panmure to request that you will impress on the Principal Medical Officers abroad the necessity of the men keeping their woollen shirts and cholera belts on. I have, &c. Dr. Smith, (Signed) E. C. Mundy, &c. &c. Dr. G. Milroy to Lord Panmure. Whitehall, My Lord, 28th February 1855. I BEG very respectfully to submit a few re- marks upon a subject which is at present under your Lordship's consideration, viz., the summer clothing of the troops in the Crimea. My attention has been a good deal drawn to the study of the various circum- stances influencing the health of the army for several years past, and especially since 1B5_1, when I acted as Medical Commissioner in Jamaica, during the prevalence of cholera there, and when General Banbury, then Commander of the Forces, requested me to look narrowly into the subject. In Appendix E of my official report to the Colonial Office, ordered to be printed by the House of Com- mons last year, I have recorded the general results of my observations. These may perhaps be not undeserving of your Lordship's notice at the present time, when the or- ganization, &c., of the medical department, among others of the army, is so much canvassed. I would especially solicit your Lordship's attention to the re- marks on canteens, and also to the two suggestions at the end of the appendix respecting the inspection of barracks, &c., by medical and engineer officers together, and the annual or biennial publication of reports. But to come to the special object of this letter, the -proper clothing of the soldier in hot weather. There is no point on which my opinion is more decided than as to the great utility, I Avould almost say the necessity, of woollen clothing l>eing worn next the skin in hot climates and in malarious regions. It is of the utmost consequence for the maintenence of health that the surface of the body be guarded against the changes of temperature, often very great, during the twenty-four hours, and from one day to another. Sudden chills of the surface when the skin is perspiring freely are among the most frequent causes of attacks of fever, dysentery (that bane of armies in the field), and diarrhoja, not to mention of the increased lialiility to cholera, chest complaints, &c., &c. Fresh arrived troops are of course more susceptible than others. Each man should in my opinion be provided with two or three woollen shirts or jackets, so that he is never without one on him, night as well as day, when engaged in out-door duty. They may be of a thinner texture for summer than for winter wear, only they ought to be woollen, not linen or cotton. It is a common prejudice that woollen clothing next the skin must be disagreeable and oppressive in hot climates. Quite the reverse, as I can testify from my own experience in the West Indies, and up the Mediterranean, &c., provided always the outer clothing be loose and easy, especially round the arms, shoulders, and chest, and the throat be not confined with any hard stock. I would here mention an occurrence which struck me forcibly in Cuba, in 1851, among the Spanish troops, as well deserving imitation in our own service. I happened to be in Havannah when the soldiers marched out to attack Lopez and his buccaneering ex- pedition just landed from New Orleans. The weather was very hot, and as the service was expected to be very fatiguing, all the troops, officers as well as men, wore loose dark green blouses, secured with a belt round the waist, and low-ci-owned straw hats. I could not but think at the time how much more suit- able such a dress was in a tropical country than the tight encasements of the British troojis I had just left in Jamaica. Allow me in conclusion to offer one or two other very brief hints connected with the health of the troops. 1. The chocolate sent out should if possible be pre- pared with sugar, as it is France, and thus be ready for use at once, whether eaten in the solid form, or used as a beverage; otherwise it will not be liked by the men, as mentioned (I think) by Mr. Filder, in one of his letters. Chocolate is infinitely preferable to coffee; where there is any tendency to diarrhoia, coffee is apt to increase any disorder of the bowels. 2. The water drank by the troops in the field should, when suspected to be impure, be previously boiled if possible. Cold tea makes an excellent be- verage. The addition of a little elixir of vitriol to impure water Avould be both grateful and useful, especially in the summer months. 3. The daily use of quinine as a jarophylactic, before the fever season begins, might be of great service by fortifying the system, &c. This practice has been followed with decided benefit among the crews of our ships of war on the coast of Africa, and other sickly climates. I have, &c. (Signed) G. Milroy, Lord Panmure, K.T., Medical Director. &c. &c.](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b21365210_0803.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
