Medical and surgical journal of Her Majesty's Ship Basilisk for 1 January to 15 December...

ADM 101/244

1874 Jan. - Dec.

Medical and surgical journal of Her Majesty's Ship Basilisk for 1 January to 15 December 1874 by Peter Comrie, Staff Surgeon 2nd Class, during which time the said ship was employed in New Guinea and on passage home.

Folio 1: Printed instructions on completing the journal, nosological tables and general remarks.

Folios 2-3: James Potter, aged 25, Captain of the Main Top; disease or hurt, phlegmon of lip. Put on sick list, 31 January 1874, at Sydney. Discharged, 10 February 1874.

Folio 4: Ed Pocock, aged 27, Able Seaman; disease or hurt, continued fever. Put on sick list, 7 April 1874, Possession Bay, New Guinea. Discharged, 1 May 1874.

Folio 5: Mr William Watts, aged 36, Engineer; disease or hurt, continued fever. Put on sick list, 14 April 1874, Possession Bay, New Guinea. Discharged, 22 April 1874. He complained of weakness and even after discharge had not fully recovered though the surgeon could find no trace of organic disease.

Folio 6: Richard Ottway, aged 35, Captain of the Quarter Deck; disease or hurt, continued fever. Put on sick list, 16 April 1874, O'Neil Island. No date of discharge recorded. He suffered a loss of strength accompanied by muscular weakness out of all proportion to the length or severity of his fever.

Folios 7-8: Frederick Jackson, aged 25, Stoker; disease or hurt, continued fever. Put on sick list, 16 April 1874, at O'Neils Island. Discharged, 4 June 1874.

Folios 8-9: William Fry, aged 22, Ordinary Seaman; disease or hurt, ulcer. Put on sick list, 3 April 1874, Skelton Island, New Guinea. Discharged, 26 July 1874.

Folios 9-10: Edward Tomlinson, aged 30, Private Marine; disease or hurt, continued fever and pleurisy. Put on sick list, 17 April 1874, Teste Island, New Guinea. Discharged, 14 June 1874.

Folios 10-11: Robert Hughes, aged 33, Stoker; disease or hurt, continued fever and pleurisy. Put on sick list, 29 May 1874, Pitt Island, New Guinea. Sent to the Colonial Hospital at Singapore, 1 July 1874, returned convalescent, 24 July 1874. He remained weak and anaemic during the voyage home.

Folio 12: Frederick Gairdner, aged 39, Captain of the Fore Top; disease or hurt, sciatica. Put on sick list, 25 June 1874, on passage from Amboina to Singapore. Sent to the Civil Hospital at Singapore, 30 June 1874, returned convalescent, 21 July 1874. Pin in the right hip shooting down the right thigh, in hospital he was given injections of morphine and chloral hydrate and the limb was bandaged with flannel dusted with sulphur.

Folio 12: James Andrews, aged 32, Stoker; disease or hurt, continued fever and scorbutus. Put on sick list, 29 June 1874, Singapore. Sent to the Civil Hospital at Singapore, 30 June 1874, returned improved, 24 July 1874. If the ship had not been homeward bound he would have been put forward for survey.

Folio 13: Joseph Dean, aged 21, Able Seaman; disease or hurt, abscess (gluteal). Put on sick list, 19 June 1874, at sea on passage from Amboina to Singapore. Discharged, 21 August 1874.

Folios 14-18: Charles Warren, aged 19, Gun Room Steward; disease or hurt, syphilis and erysipelas. Put on sick list, 9 July 1874, at Singapore. Sent to the Military Hospital at St Helena, 9 October 1874. With remarks on some interesting features of the case, the early appearance of secondary symptoms, the erysipelas and the force of the lesions.

Folios 18-19: Ernest Francis, aged 26, Sailmaker; disease or hurt, syphilis. Put on sick list, 21 August 1874, on passage from Singapore to the Cape of Good Hope. Sent to the Hospital at Ascension Island, 20 October 1874, since landing him in England in his debilitated condition in winter would have been unsafe.

Folios 19-20: David Jennings, aged 22, Able Seaman; disease or hurt, ulcer. Put on sick list, 11 March 1874, Dawson’s Straits, New Guinea. Discharged, 10 November 1874.

Folio 20: [Jonathan] Fernandez, age d26, Ward Room Servant; disease or hurt, cataract. Put on sick list, 1 December 1874. Sent to hospital at Chatham, 4 December 1874.

Folio 20: William Turpin, aged 22, Able Seaman; disease or hurt, syphilis secondary. Put on sick list, 3 December 1874, Sheerness. Sent to hospital, 4 December 1874.

Folio 20: Edward Vineall, aged 26, Able Seaman; disease or hurt, contusion of foot, from a cask falling on it. Put on sick list, 4 December 1874. Sent to hospital, 4 December 1874.

Folio 20: Thomas Coghlan, aged 30, Boatswain's Mate; disease or hurt, syphilis secondary. Put on sick list, 3 December 1874, Sheerness. Sent to the hospital, 4 December 1874.

Folios 21-25: Blank.

Folio 26: List of 'Men entered on board during the period'. Lists names of twelve men who joined the ship at Sydney at the end of January 1874.

Folio 27: Table I, Showing places visited by the ship.

Folio 27: Table II, A list of men who received wounds or hurts. Alonzo Smith, aged 43, Gunner Royal Marine Artillery, certificate granted 24 February 1874, inguinal hernia. John Thompson, aged 32, Private Royal Marine Light Infantry, certificate granted 25 September 1874, contusion of left hand. Andrew Brown, aged 28, Shipwright, certificate granted 25 September 1874, a blow from a maul on the left hand.

Folio 28: Table III, not completed.

Folio 29: Table IV, All cases between 1 January 1874 and 31 December 1874. Average numerical strength of the ship's company 151.

Folio 30: Table V, Number of cases of disease arranged by age groups.

Folios 30-43: Surgeon's general remarks. Staff Surgeon Comrie joined the Basilisk in January 1874, replacing Staff Surgeon Goodman. The ship and crew are described on folio 30 and 31. Folios 31 to 34 describe New Guinea with tables of meteorological readings on folios 32 and 33. Folio 34 describes Amboyna [Ambon Island] and Singapore, the Civil, Military and Lock Hospitals. Folios 36 to 43 discuss the diseases which occurred, with continued fever discussed on folios 36 to 37 and a table 'Cases of continued fever contracted in New Guinea’ on folio 38. Folio 39 has a chart 'Cases of syphilis and their evolution contracted during the period', with syphilis being discussed on folios 40 and 41.

Folios 44-45: Blank.

Folios 46-54: Alphabetical sick list.

112

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