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23
The s.s. " Gloucestershire," of Liverpool, 131,296, arrived at Gravesend at
3.10 a.m. on March 8th. She sailed from Rangoon on the 5th February, calling at
Colombo, February 11th, Suez, February 22nd, Port Said, February 23rd, Marseilles,
February 28th, and Portland, Dorset, March 7th.
The vessel was boarded at Gravesend by the Assistant Medical Officer of this
Authority, in company with the Customs Preventive Officer. They were received by
the Captain and the Surgeon of the vessel at the top of the ladder, and, in reply to their
questions, each stated that there had been no sickness on board save that a member of
the Native crew had fallen from the bridge, injuring his leg. The Assistant Medical
Officer, accompanied by the Captain, inspected the Native members of the crew, looking
especially for signs of Plague as the vessel had come from, and had touched at, ports
where that disease existed. It was dark at the time, and artificial light had to be
used for the purpose of examination.
The Surgeon subsequently filled in a certificate, stating that there had been no
contagious or infectious disease, or any illness exhibiting feverish symptoms or diarrhoea
while lying in the Port of Rangoon or on the voyage to London. This certificate also
stated that he had examined the crew within twelve hours of arrival, and found all in
good health and free from symptoms of Cholera, Yellow Fever, and Plague.
The vessel was in a hurry to save her tide for docking, and the vessel entered
Tilbury Dock, where the passengers landed, their names and addresses having been
previously furnished to the Medical Officer. In the course of the day various members
of the crew departed for their homes. At 10 p.m. I received a telephone message that
one of the crew, who had gone to his home at Grays, had developed Small-pox. I
telephoned Dr. Willoughby, communicated the facts to him, and he proceeded at
11.30 p.m. to Tilbury Dock, and visited the vessel. The donkeyman was found to be
ill, and Dr. Willoughby, on examining him, found that he was in the very earliest stage
of the eruptive condition of the disease. On March 9th at 8 a.m. the launch entered
Tilbury Dock, and the donkeyman and three members of the Native crew were removed
to Denton Hospital suffering from Small-pox. The remainder of the Native crew with
their effects were also taken to Denton Hospital, thoroughly disinfected, and
returned to the vessel by 7 o'clock on the morning of the 10th, whilst the effects of the
white crew were fumigated with sulphur to render them safe for handling. The
members of the white crew with their effects were then removed to the Hospital and
treated in a similar manner. Dr. Willoughby also vaccinated 128 members of the
crew, only the chief engineer declining, as he had been successfully vaccinated by
Dr. Willoughby about three years ago. I was subsequently informed that two
members of the crew, who had gone to Liverpool, had developed the rash of the
disease, and had been isolated in hospital.
I received a call from the Surgeon of the vessel on March 10th, and he
furnished the following information : —
It appears that the Native crew joined the ship at Rangoon, and were
signed on at Calcutta, having been previously examined for disease, and
vaccinated by the Medical Officer at that port. (This vaccination was apparently
done very perfunctorily) in the majority of cases only one mark being found,
and all of which had been unsuccessful.
At Colombo the crew were mustered and examined by the port doctor.