SURGKONfs' KEI'ORTS XEW .lEKSEY TIlllMi DISTKIC'T. "2,81 



is inipiugnateil with siilpliiite ofiioii. Tlio populaliou is conipo.scd priiiciimll.v of tlic proiliuiii;; 

 classes, and, geuenilly speaidiig, the i)eoi)Io are steady, iudustiions, and iiitelligeiit. 



In |)olitics, the district is democratic by ti majority of from 3,000 to (5,000. The pvevailiii}; 

 religions denominations me the Presbyterian and Methodist, altliongli all the forms of worship 

 known in Christian commiiDilies are to be fonnd. 



8c faras I am able to jndge, there is no special prevailing <liseavse ; but. as might be exi)ected 

 in the regions in wliicli limestone exists, or in which hard water is fonnd, we have more diseases of 

 the kidneys and r.rinary organs than elsewhere. In the neighborhood of the salt-marshes, the 

 diseases are more or less of malarial origin, or partake somewhat of that type. As the country 

 becomes more thickly settled, and more attention is iiaid to arlilicial drainage, these 'malarial 

 diseases become less lre(jueiit, and are decidedly more amenable to treatment than they were 

 formerly. 



In a country such as the one Just described, it might be reasonablj supposed that such a war 

 as that just terminated could not be the cause of very material suffering so long as the liuaninal 

 condition of the Government was sound and healthy ; and I think I may salely assert that this dis- 

 trict is far richer and better developed today than it was when the war commenced four years 

 since. 1 cannot close this portion of my report without acknowledging my indebtedness to Pio- 

 lessor Cook, of New Brunsw ick, for valuable information ujjon this subject. 



1 presume the sixth (piestion of the circular is intended to api)ly principally to residents of the 

 di.strict, although it is -somewhat obscure in its meaning. It is partially answered in the preceding 

 paragraph, as a large portion of our exemptions and rejections ha\ e been from such diseases as I 

 have heretofore referred to, together with such disqualiticatipns as herniiis and injuries of various 

 kinds to be found among Uien whose occupations require considerable manual labor. It will be 

 noticed, by glancing over my rei>orts, that very few have been considered disqualified by reason of 

 mental disability. A very large number of recruits and substitutes have been rejected for syi)hilitic 

 and kindred diseases ; the reason being that by far the larger portion of these men did not belong to 

 the district at all, but were obtained by township-agents, bounty-brokers, and runners, from the 

 very dregs of the large cities; and it has often been a serious question with me whether it would 

 not be far better to refuse to accept volunteers and substitutes entirely, rather than take such 

 outcasts as have frequently been presented. The larger portion of them were morally unfit for any 

 kind of service ; and in the last draft 1 was obliged to reject a great many for this cause. 



It is reported that the English and other armies are made up, to a gieat extent, of the very 

 worst of luen — offscourings and outcasts of all kinds; but I confess 1 cannot understand how sucii 

 men can be expected to be transformed into good, reliable soldiers, except l>y long and thorough 

 drill, and rigid, un\ieldirig discipline. 



'' Your views in reference to the different sections of paragraph S.j." — In answei- to this qnes- 

 lion, 1 can only say that I consider parapraph So, when interi)reted and applied by a surgeon who 

 combines discretion, tirmuess, and courtesy, so nearly perfect that it is almost impossible to suggest 

 any alterations of imi)ortance that would certainly be actual iujpiovements. I might suggest, 

 perhaps, that in relation to the subject of teeth, &c., more might be left to the judgment of the 

 examining surgeon than is the case at i)resent ; although I should object to giving examining-sur- 

 geons any great amount of liberty, as it is quite important that all should operate upon a unitorm 

 basis as far as [tracticable, anil that each surgeon should have some specitic orders to fall back 

 u|)on in cases'of necessity. The main object of this suggestion is to call attention to the dissimi- 

 larity existing in the modes of examining an<l the difference in the (jualitic; tions required of 

 recruits and drafted men. Might it not be better to have a nuiform table of disqualifications 

 which might be applied to both classes ? They have the same duties to perform, stand side by side 

 in the ranks, and I can see no good reason why the same standard should not api)ly to both. The 

 labors of the ofticeis of the board of enrollment might be somewhat increased by such a change as 

 suggested, but the Government would obtain better soldiers, and the people would be far better 

 satisfied than at present. This difference in the standard has frequently caused considerable dis- 

 cussion and dissatisfaction amongst the i)eople, and it has often reqnired (]uite a lengthy exi)lana- 

 tion to satisfy some of the bettei-inlormed and most loyal men as to the jiropriety and necessity of 



