248 Measures outside the Bombay Presidency. [CHAP. IX.
towns with the Government officers, and in laying down definite (and
in some respect less stringent) rules for the segregation of the sick
and of persons likely to be infected, and the disposal of corpses.
Both sets of rules are given at length in Appendix IV. They deal first
with the measures to be taken in villages and small towns, and then
prescribe general rules for municipalities and cantonments.
Town
Committees.
The rules direct the formation of a committee in each municipality
or cantonment for the purpose of assisting the Health Officer.
The committee should, the rule states, consist of two members, one a
Hindu and one a Muhammadan, for each ward of a municipality or
definite portion of a cantonment. Their most important duties are
to accompany the Health Officer on his rounds of inspection, to
explain the necessity of the sanitary measures, to assist in their
execution and to bring to notice any complaint that may be made
and any abuse that they may discover.
First orders of
the Government
of Bengal.
The Government of Bengal addressed the Corporation of Calcutta
on the subject of the measures to be adopted with reference to the
outbreak of plague in Bombay on the 30th September, and suggested
that certain measures of precaution and preparation should be enforced.
On the 10th of October, when it was believed (erroneously as it sub-
sequently appeared) that a case of plague had been imported from
Bombay to Howrah, the Government of Bengal considered it desir-
able to issue a resolution appointing a Medical Board for the purpose
of determining the action to be taken by all executive authorities,
whether official or municipal, with the object of preventing and check-
ing the plague throughout Bengal.
Resolution
appointing the
Medical Board.
The resolution directed that all cases of illness believed to be
plague should be at once reported to the Board by the Magistrate of
the district, or by the Health Officer of the Calcutta Corporation, as
the case might be. The orders issued by the Board on matters affect-
ing health and conservancy were to be deemed the orders of the
Government and were to be carried out with all possible despatch by
the executive authorities. The Board were directed to order the exe-
cution of any reasonable measures of precaution, segregation, or disin-
fection which might appear to be called for. The areas with which
the Board had to deal in the first place were stated to be-
(1) The town of Calcutta.
(2) The port of Calcutta.
(3) The municipality of Howrah.
(4) The small municipalities adjacent to Calcutta and Howrah.
(5) The lines of railway.
Special instructions were given with respect to the precautionary
and sanitary measures to be carried out in these five circles. As soon