DISEASES AND MALINGERING
Perhaps a few observations on the principal diseases to which these
Indian convicts were liable may be found useful; and we take for the
purpose the statistics of the year 1863-64 as given in Appendix No. 2,
when nostalgia did not occur. In alluding to these diseases, we shall at
the same time notice the locality of the Singapore jail, and the
composition of the soil on which it was built. It is now universally
recognised that the soil on which communities reside continuously does
in a measure influence their health.
So many works on hygiene have, however, been written, and so much has
been said by medical experts on this subject, that we may almost say
that it has been exhaustively treated. What we wish to show is simply
that soil and locality do not influence all communities alike.
The site of the Singapore jail in Brass Basa Road was originally a piece
of low ground saturated with brackish water; and the convicts themselves
were, as we have elsewhere stated, employed in conveying red earth from
the side of Government Hill to reclaim most of this marsh, in order to
erect thereon the necessary buildings for their occupation. The site had
to be raised from two to four feet, and the red earth was what might be
called disintegrated laterite or clay ironstone. When the finished level
was completed, it was about two feet above high water mark S.T. The
surface of the enclosure had been so thoroughly trodden down, rolled,
and graded to the drains and into the adjoining canal, that, with the
periodical coatings of pure white sand from the Serangoon sand pits that
had been laid over it, it had become almost impervious to water; and
this we would notice particularly, for it had much to do with the
sanitary condition of the jail and its inmates.
The dormitories were further raised slightly over two feet above the
general surface, and their floors were carefully laid, so as literally
to be as dry as a bone.
From Appendix No. 2 it will be seen that the principal disease from
which these Indian convicts suffered was "fever," but not of a dangerous
type; for, upon comparing the admissions to hospital with the deaths
from this disease in all three settlements during the year referred to,
we find that in Singapore and Penang they were _nil_, and but seven in
Malacca. The next ailment which presented numerous cases were abscesses
and ulcers, and the deaths from this cause amounted only to one in
Singapore. Many of these ulcers were on the legs, and were caused by
grit getting between the skin and the leather band worn under the fetter
rings of convicts in the fourth and fifth classes. Stomach and bowel
complaints rank next on the list, but we find that the deaths here only
amounted to units. Rheumatic affections were numerous, caused perhaps in
that damp climate from working on extra-mural duties and returning to
jail in wet clothes with the wind blowing on them. A few cases of dropsy
appear on the list, the largest number occurring in Penang, three only
at Singapore. There were ordinary cases of oedema.
The death-rate to strength per cent, from ordinary diseases for the year
given was 2.20 for Singapore, 3.82 for Penang, and 3.17 for Malacca.
Perhaps the special attention to sanitation in Singapore may account for
the death-rate being lower here than at the sister settlements.
After the convict jail had been broken up, and the convicts had all left
it, the jail was handed over to the prison authorities to be converted
into a criminal prison for the whole settlements. Not long after this
change had taken place a very peculiar disease broke out amongst the
inmates. It was known as Beri-beri, or, as some call it, the "Bad
sickness of Ceylon." It is a very serious disease, and some think it
arises from extreme exertion without sufficient sustenance to the body.
In 1878 the ratio of mortality in the prison had risen to 16.20 per
cent.; in 1879 it was further augmented to 20.63 per cent. The Local
Government deemed it necessary without delay to appoint a Committee of
Inquiry into the possible causes which had given rise to the spread of
this disease. The conclusion at which they arrived was that it was due
to the want of proper drainage of the site, so that the soil had got
water-logged, and had generated malaria; also, that the prisoners needed
a more nitrogenous diet. They advised the erection of an entirely new
prison on a better and more elevated locality. These suggestions were
all adopted, and the Committee in their judgment were greatly aided by
Dr. Irvine Rowell, C.M.G., the Principal Civil Medical Officer, who
formed one of the Committee.
There was no time lost by the Government with the Colonial Engineer
(Major McNair) in preparing plans and erecting on the west side of
Pearl's Hill, near the old civil jail, a prison on the cellular system,
and after the most approved English model; but the change of site did
not effectually remove the disease, for as late as the year 1884 "there
were 262 cases under treatment. In the first nine months of that year
the deaths were comparatively small, but during the latter three months
they increased, constituting nearly one half of the total deaths during
that period." Dr. Kerr attributed this increase to exacerbation in the
type, and epidemicity of the disease.
It is not necessary, nor is it within our province, to attempt a
description in detail of this disease; and happily it is mostly confined
to Ceylon and the Malay Archipelago, though it occurs occasionally in
China and Japan, where in the former country it is known as "Tseng," and
in the latter as "Kak-ki." It is referred to in a book we have quoted in
the body of this work, viz., that written by "Godinho de Eredia" in
1613, reproduced by M. Leon Janssen in 1882. It is called there
bere-bere, which in the Malay language signifies a "sheep," or a "bird
which buries its eggs in the sand," and is not now known by the Malays
under that name, as far as we can gather, as a "disease." Godinho de
Eredia says that the Malays cured it by the use of a wine made from the
nipa palm, from whence we know a saccharine fermentable juice exudes
from the cut spadices of this and other species. They call this juice
"tuaca." Marco Polo alludes to the same wine in his second book, chapter
xxv.
Some authorities say it arises from malarious exhalations, favoured by
damp, or over-crowding in buildings improperly ventilated. To this
latter cause we are inclined to attribute the outbreak in the Singapore
prison; for when the prison was occupied by the Indian convicts, the
area of open space round the different wards and buildings was well
exposed to the action of sun and wind, but after its conversion into a
criminal prison, this open space was divided off by high division walls,
and for the purpose of shot drill and work sheds the enclosure was
still further crowded. Perhaps the disturbance also of the soil may have
had something to do with it, for we have known instances in the town
where the excavation of subsoils had liberated noxious gases.
It was, however, very remarkable that during the period of over
twenty-five years when this jail was occupied by the Indian convicts,
not a single case of beri-beri was known to have occurred. The medical
officers were quite unable to account for this, and of its
non-occurrence in other parts of the town.
The Rev. Wallace Taylor, M.D., of Osaka in Japan, attributed the disease
to a microscopic spore found largely developed in rice, and which he had
also detected in the earth of certain alluvial and damp localities.
FEIGNED DISEASES
The question of feigned diseases should find a place in a work treating
upon convicts, for amongst a number of natives in confinement--and
indeed also amongst European prisoners where--regular work is insisted
upon, and idleness in any is severely punished, it is but natural that
some should be found to resort to expedients to escape work, or, in
other words, to malinger.
Perhaps the most frequent cases of convicts in irons was the
encouraging of sores round the ankles, where the iron rings of their
fetters were placed; and this was done, notwithstanding the precaution
always taken to guard the ankles with leathern bands for the rings to
rest upon. When suspicion was attached to a convict in irons that he was
tampering with his leg sores, he was at once detailed to work with the
gang beating out coir from cocoanut husks: it involved no use of the
legs, but it was the hardest of labours. The result was that the convict
soon gave up the trick, and begged to return to outdoor work with his
own gang. Of course there were cases where convicts working on roads or
at sand pits may get grit below their leathers, which, without knowing
it at the time, would cause a sore; but such cases were readily
distinguished from those sores wilfully caused and designedly kept open.
We had no cases of feigned insanity or any species of mania, but cases
of imitated "moon blindness," or dim-sightedness, did occur now and
again for the purpose of shirking night watch.
Upon one occasion we had a remarkable instance of shamming blind, which
is worth giving in detail. The case was that of a life convict
transported from Madras, who complained that lime had suddenly got into
both of his eyes while employed at the lime kilns. It was deemed by the
medical authorities as not unnatural that he should become blind from
caustic quick-lime, and he was admitted into the convalescent gang,
where he had only the simple and easy task of picking oakum. The deceit
was as cleverly kept up for years as it was cleverly commenced at the
outset, and was only detected by Dr. Cowpar, a hard-headed Scotchman and
skilful surgeon, who, during the absence of the permanent incumbent, had
been appointed by the Government to officiate as medical officer of the
jail. After his inspection of the invalids in the convalescent gang, he
looked at the eyes of the "blind man"; and, having some suspicion in his
mind, he decided that he should be put aside for closer examination.
When the inspection was over, the "blind man" was taken, and carefully
led by the peon in charge of the gang to one of the long wards, when he
was told to walk up and down in the presence of the doctor. After he had
made two or three trips, the doctor directed two men to hold a long pole
about a foot off the ground on the track he had to pass. When he came to
the pole he fell over it flat on his face, and to the bystanders it
seemed rather an inhuman proceeding on the part of the doctor, but he
had observed an ominous pause before the convict had struck the pole
with his legs.
He sent for his case of instruments, and, withdrawing a probe, he with
little difficulty removed the film off both of the man's eyes, which
proved to be nothing more nor less than the thin membrane found inside
an egg, which the convict had artfully introduced, and renewed from time
to time. Of course he was reduced to the fifth class, and to the
hardest labour.
We have often thought it strange that none of his fellow-convicts
appeared to suspect him, or if they did, they kept it back from the jail
authorities; and certainly to any casual observer the deception was
complete, and it was the best case of feigned blindness we have ever
known or heard of.
Upon the whole, however, cases of malingering were few and far between,
as most of the convicts became after a time interested in the works upon
which they were engaged, and those in irons were ever on the look-out
for promotion to a higher class. Sometimes there was a case of feigned
rheumatism or paralysis, but the application of the galvanic battery
invariably cured them of that after a few powerful shocks.