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.

  • Great Britain. Royal Commission Appointed to Inquire Into the Sanitary Condition of the Army.
Date:
1858
Catalogue details

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. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by King’s College London. The original may be consulted at King’s College London.

    33/747
    it. The mass of mankind do nothing well which they have not done long; and every change unnecessarily made at the commencement of war, when such disturbing influences are unavoidable, is the addition of unnecessary error and confusion. It appears to us, therefore, that all the arguments for a fixed stoppage and full ration in time of war apply also to a time of peace. In both cases it is the duty and interest of the government to see that the soldier is provided with such a ration as will keep him in health and efficiency. In both cases it is advantageous to get rid of a cumbrous and costly system of accounts, by which time and labour are unnecessarily consumed in peace, and which has to be abandoned in war, when the expenditure requires the greatest vigilance. Sir Alexander Tulloch expressed an apprehension that a full ration for three meals could not be issued by the commissariat at home without a considerable increase to the staff of that department; a reference, however, to the evidence of Commissary'General Adams will show that a very small addition, and that in the lowest class, namely, the issuers, would be required to carry the arrangement into effect, and the cost of that addition would be more than counterbalanced by the saving which would result from the simplification of the regimental accounts. The Accountant-General of the Army, who expressed an opinion very favourable to the proposed change, states that the diminution of labour consequent upon it will not be confined to the regimental accounts, but will be sensibly felt in the examination and audit in the War Office. Among other advantages stated in evidence as likely to accrue if this plan be adopted, is the doing away with the temptation to small peculation on the part of the non-commis- sioned officers charged by the companies with providing the materials for messing. We examined the Quartermaster General, and two other general officers who have had great experience in the internal economy of our regimental system, and all approved of the plan, though one of the latter expressed doubts as to the popularity of the change among the men. We satisfied ourselves, however, in this particular by examining several intelligent non-commissioned officers belonging to the guards, the artillery, the cavalry, and the infantry of the line, who were unanimous in its favour, though not concealing the probability that, like all changes, it would at the outset be received with some suspicion by the soldiers. We propose, therefore, that in lieu of the commissariat stoppages of 4\d. at home and 3\d. abroad for the bread and meat rations, and of the maximum stoppage of 3±d. for messing (exclusive of the stoppage for washing), one uniform rate at home and abroad be stopped for the entire ration, the government supplying the whole through the commissariat, including tea, coffee, milk, vegetables, with occasional flour and raisins for puddings, and the extra bread required to make up the three meals. In the Appendix will be found the rations said to be issued in the French, Turkish, and Russian armies ; also two rations proposed for the use of the English army in peace, one by Commissary-General Adams, and the other by Sir Alexander Tulloch. We are of opinion that no ration can be fixed upon which shall be adhered to both in peace and war. The conditions of life are so different in the two cases that whatever is suitable for the one must be either too much or too little for the other. We have already described the listless and inactive life of the private soldier during peace. We extract from the report of the commission of inquiry into the supplies of the army of the East the following description of the soldier’s life and duties in war:— £{ The average weight carried by a soldier on the march, including food and water for the day, is probably not less than from fifty to sixty pounds, and while carrying that burden he is frequently required not only to march considerable distances, but also to move rapidly, and make other great exertions. In the ordinary course of his duty he is called upon to watch during the night, at longer or shorter intervals, whatever may have been his previous exertions. He is exposed to every vicissitude of temperature, and often to the inclemency of the weather by night as well as by day, and must be ready to turn out when required, at any hour, and under all circumstances. He must generally be content with the shelter of a tent, whatever the climate may be. When engaged in siege operations, he has to perform, mostly during the night, the work that a railway labourer performs by day—excavating and removing earth. When stores are to be landed, he is often required to do the work of a dockyard labpurer. When employed on active service, the soldier, therefore, requires a diet as nutritious as that which is requisite to sustain the physical powers of any other man engaged in hard work, involving frequent watching and exposure/’ It is obvious that the most nutritive diet which can be provided is required to repair the waste created by such exertions, under such circumstances, and Dr. Christison considered that even what is generally known as the Crimean ration, and which included 16 oz. of fresh meat, fell short in its nutritive qualities of what was advisable under the circumstances. We have included in our Appendix Dr. Christison’s letter on this subject, as clearly laying down the principles on which not only the total nutritive Q. 6185-9. Q. 3697. Q. 3709-10. Q. 7216. Q. 7228. Q. 4626-4652. Q. 4864-5. Q. 4936-8. Q. 5070. App. Nos. xxv.-vi. App. Nos. xxix -xxx. Q. 6220-40. Rep. Crim. Com. p. 48. Q. 9850. App. No xxxiii.