Folio 5: A list of men vaccinated on board, [names and details follow]. The surgeon...

ADM 101/26/6/4

1852-1853

Folio 5: A list of men vaccinated on board, [names and details follow]. The surgeon remarks, 'a fair trial was given to the vaccine in all these cases, a slight efflorescence which in a few days receded, the virus must therefore have been deteriorated'. Folio 5: William Cornwall, sent from Parkhurst Prison; date of vaccinated 2 November 1852. Folio 5: Samuel Davey, sent from Parkhurst Prison; date of vaccinated 2 November 1852. Folio 5: Frederick Hand, sent from Portsmouth Prison; date of vaccinated 2 November 1852. Folio 5: John Smith, sent from Portsmouth Prison; date of vaccinated 2 November 1852. Folio 5: Peter McCabe, sent from Portsmouth Prison; date of vaccinated 14 November 1852. Folio 5: John Norcott, sent from Pentonville Prison; date of vaccinated 14 November 1852. Folio 5: John Jones, sent from Portsmouth Prison; date of vaccinated 14 November 1852. Folio 5: William Cornwall, sent from Parkhurst Prison; date of vaccinated 30 November 1852. Folio 5: Frederick Hand, sent from Portsmouth Prison; date of vaccinated 30 November 1852. Folio 5: John Smith, sent from Portsmouth Prison; date of vaccinated 30 November 1852. Folio 5: Samuel Davey, sent from Parkhurst Prison; date of vaccinated 30 November 1852. Folio 5: James Turner, sent from Dartmoor Prison; date of vaccinated 30 November 1852. Folio 5: Surgeon’s note, All the above were tried with 'the points' and lymph and appeared to going on well, until the third and fourth day, they then decreased. Signed: Alexander Cross, surgeon superintendent.

Folios 6-7: case no 1, Robert Clare, aged 2, son of Private Clare 11th Regiment; sick or hurt, diarrhoea, sickly looking and scrofulous child, whose health was impaired by bad nursing, suffered from distressing sickness at stomach, with frequent purging, evacuations dark liquid and foetid, tongue furred; put on sick list 12 August 1852, discharged 15 August 1852 from the sick list.

Folio 7: case no 2, Mrs Hayward, aged 29, wife of Sergeant Hayward 11th Regiment; taken ill in the English Channel; sick or hurt, indolent ulcer, over the flat surface of the tibia; put on sick list 13 August 1852, discharged 1 September 1852 cured.

Folio 8: case no 3, John Belton, aged 21, Private 11th Regiment; taken ill in the English Channel; sick or hurt, gonorrhoea phymosis and sympathetic bubo, of a gross habit and filthy in his person, suffered from virulent gonorrhoea and phymosis accompanied by a glandular swelling in the left groin; put on sick list 20 August 1852, discharged 2 October 1852 to duty.

Folios 8-11: case no 4, James Eastwood, aged 24, Convict; taken ill in the English Channel; sick or hurt, ramollissement cerebric chronic, general debility with [all?menarrhoea], a delicate weakly looking man received on board from Pentonville, according to the Surgeon he felt inclined to reject him as unfit for the voyage, the surgeon was however assured by the Officers who came with the prisoner and by the prisoner himself that he was in good health and was not subject to illness. This prisoner's character, which given by the Officers that he was very bad, and the surgeon was also informed that he was a most troublesome and intractable prisoner, of a disposition so obstinate… the surgeon stated that he was induced to receive this prisoner on board in which later on the surgeon repented having done so; put on sick list 28 August 1852, died 30 September 1852 at 7.30 am.

Folios 11-13: case no 5, James Benson, aged 24, Private 11th Regiment; taken ill in the English Channel; sick or hurt, remittent fever, of a delicate and slender make, newly recruited, was put on the list with catarrhal symptoms, with constant pyrexia; put on sick list 31 August 1852, discharged 24 September 1852 to duty.

Folios 13-15: case no 6, Jeanette Gray, aged 4 months, Child of Private Gray 11th Regiment; taken ill at sea; sick or hurt, bowels complaint; put on sick list 8 September 1852, died 14 September 1852 at 11.45 pm.

Folios 15-17: case no 7, David Hawthorne, aged 48, Convict; taken ill at sea; sick or hurt, pulmonary apoplexy, a man of large stature and formerly of considerable muscular, but now broken down and his muscles much attenuated, he appeared melancholy and desponding always seemed to labour under depression of spirits, had lost most of his teeth. Evidently had led a very hard life which induced premature old age…according to the surgeon, the attack was remarkably sudden and rapid in progress, the patient come into the hospital in a state of prostration almost to collapse, skin cold and covered by clammy perspiration, pulse frequent weak and intermitting, complexion exhibit a livid hue, respiration extremely short & hurried and intermitting and speaking effected with great difficulty…; put on sick list 11 September 1852, died 11 September 1852 at 9.30 am.

Folio 17: Surgeon noted that soon after the ship entered the Tropics and especially near the Equator where the weather was wet, hot and sultry, bowel complaints became prevalent on board, in which according to the surgeon it is partly derived from the bad quality of water used at the time. The bowel complaints generally took on the character of diarrhoea but in a few instances the disease assumed the form of dysentery being modified by the habits and constitutional peculiarities of the patients. The following was one of the earliest cases which put on the dysenteric form.

Folio 17: case no 8, William Brown, aged 40, Convict; taken ill at sea; sick or hurt, dysenteria, of a short and moderately full habit, was for some days past troubled with diarrhoea and was seized with severe griping pains over the abdomen most violent in the umbilical region; put on sick list 10 October 1852, discharged 16 October 1852 quite well.

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