HC Deb 06 April 1875 vol 223 cc364-6
SIR LAWRENCE PALK

asked the Secretary of State for War, If his attention has been called to a statement in "The Times" newspaper of April 2nd of the sanitary condition of Beggars' Bush Barracks, and to the quotation from the Annual Report of 1873— A serious sanitary defect in barracks awaits removal until the Engineer department is in the possession of the necessary funds. I allude to cess pits in the vicinity of the officers' quarters and those of the barrack sergeant; whether numerous deaths, including those of two officers, have not taken place from scarlet and typhoid fever; whether a third officer was not taken ill and his life for a time despaired of; and if the officers' cook has died from typhoid disease in those barracks; and, whether the existence of these cess pits and ash pits, reported upon by the Dublin Sanitary Committee in 1873, and the report duly transmitted to the Commander in Chief in Ireland still exists?

MR. GATHORNE HARDY

Sir, I will give my hon. Friend such information as I have been able to collect on this subject. With respect to the Annual Report of 1873, I am not able to discover what that Report is; at all events, it is not an official Report connected with my Department, though I have no reason to doubt that some such Report was made. In December, 1873, the officer of Royal Engineers asked permission to remove these cess pits, and accordingly they were done away with, and the privies in the rear of the mess premises and barrack sergeant's quarters were converted into water-closets by March, 1874. With respect to the second Question, I am sorry to say that there were several deaths in 1873, especially of children. The medical officer in charge of the 2nd Battalion of Scots Fusilier Guards thus reports as to the year 1873— Zymotic diseases have furnished a larger number of admissions than usual, owing to the occurrence of enteric and scarlet fevers when the battalion was quartered in Beggars' Bush Barracks, Dublin. These diseases could not be traced to any sanitary defects existing in those barracks. There were seven cases of enteric fever of mild form. With the exception of two, all recovered. Among the men there were 10 admissions from scarlet fever of a mild type; all did well. There were 21 cases of scarlet fever among the children, seven of whom died. In 1874, I find that in the 3rd battalion of Grenadier Guards four cases of typhoid fever occurred in connection with these barracks. Whether they were attributable or not to insanitary conditions within the barracks is, however, open to question. The first case was that of a soldier admitted into hospital with typhoid fever, after confinement in prison cells. He stated that he had been employed in cleaning a drain near the officers' kitchen. The next case was that of Captain Langham, who resided in barracks, but who was absent in Glasgow from the 29th of October to the 3rd of November. About a fortnight after his return he appears to have been attacked. Being married, he resided at some distance from the officers' mess, from which, however, his meals were procured. The third case is that of Captain Van de Weyer. The surgeon-major stated that this officer was from the 20th to the 23rd of November on a visit to a country house, in which, it is believed, a case of typhoid fever had occurred some time before. On the 24th and 25th of November he was in barracks, apparently quite well, and on the 26th he left Kingstown for England. About a fortnight afterwards, at a county seat where he had gone to shoot, he was taken ill, with symptoms of fever, of which he died near Windsor. The fourth case was that of a mess cook, a civilian, who was employed in the kitchen during the day, sleeping outside. He died out of barracks. I am informed that the Medical department has no knowledge of the third officer alluded to in the Question in connection with these barracks. The principal medical officer in Ireland, in his Report, January 2, 1875, states— The general health of the troops has been good during the period specified. The Grenadier Guards have not been so healthy for the past 20 years. As I have already stated, the cesspits have long since been removed, and no cause of disease can now be found in the barracks; but additional ventilation for the drains has been authorized, and the Army Sanitary Committee will inspect the place on the 12th of April.