Many persons are well nigh as sensitive to insolation of the spine as of the brain, and suffer at once from the exposure of the back to the sun’s rays. I have never personally experienced inconvenience on this score, but know that many find that the sun playing on this part of the person causes a dull, heavy aching:—an oppression rather than pain. Persons subject to such symptoms should wear a broad pad of the same material as the coat, thickly padded with cotton wool. The pad should not form part of the coat, but be made separately to button on, as it is cooler worn thus. Turning to the opposite extremity of the body, it must be admitted that, owing to the entire want of ventilation, our European foot gear is very unsuited for use in hot climates. Every one knows the discomfort that is caused by boots that “draw” the feet, and these symptoms are entirely caused by the comparative imperviousness of leather, as is clearly shown by the greater discomfort caused by patent leather, which is practically air-proof. On this account, shoes are more generally useful than boots, though the latter are required for shooting, or work in the jungle; as shoes do not sufficiently protect the ankle from thorns, or the possible attacks of a snake. During the hot weather, the most comfortable form of foot-gear is a canvas shoe, but as made by the ordinary English shoemaker with leather lining and elaborate leather toe-caps and cross straps, they present no real advantages over an ordinary leather shoe. They should be made of stout but open woven canvas, with no lining except over the stiffener at the heel, and quite without toe-caps or other ornamentation; though the sole should be as stout as that of an ordinary walking shoe, and it is better to choose a brown canvas, as the “blanco” used for giving a clean appearance to white canvas, soon fills up the pores of the fabric and makes it almost as impervious as leather. The Persians wear a sort of ankle boot, the upper of which is formed of knitted twine, and these “málikis,” made up on an European last, form ideal “uppers” for hot climates, for they are admirably porous, though so strong that they will outlast half-a-dozen leather “uppers.” Can not our European manufacturers devise something similar? In hot wet weather, it is a mistake to try to keep the water out, as the sock, if enclosed in a water-tight boot, will very soon become so saturated with perspiration that one has simply subjected oneself to heat and discomfort to no purpose. Whether for rainy weather, or for wading after snipe, or when fishing, the only desideratum is that the water should be able to ran out as easily as it gets in. Provided that clothing is changed as soon as one gets into shelter, no harm need be feared from getting either clothing or the feet wet, as long as one is on the move, in the climates with which we have to do. For the same reason the advantages of a waterproof are very doubtful, the fact being that, with a combination of heat and rain, one is bound to get wet anyhow, and whether the moisture comes from the outside or the inside of our garments is a matter of little moment. One other point in connection with foot-gear remains to be noticed, and that is that as one’s feet and hands become a full size larger under tropical conditions, it is necessary that those included in our outfit should be full large; for a shoe so loose as to be almost slipshod in England, will be found to be quite tight when tried on in India. The best way is not to confuse your shoemaker with directions, but to put on a couple of pairs of thick woollen socks and get measured over them.
At night, the main object is to have as little in contact with the skin as possible, so that mattresses of all sorts are best put aside during the hot months and a smooth mat substituted. Most tropical races actually prefer to sleep on a hard surface, such as the floor, during periods of heat, and though few Europeans can habituate themselves to so hard a couch, the majority prefer a cot formed of tightly strained cordage or webbing to the more modern spring bed of woven wire, the yielding character of which causes the surface laid upon to follow too closely the curves of the body. Personally, I prefer the woven wire, covered only with a loosely-made reed mat. Costing only a few pence, such mats may be frequently renewed, and they are far cooler than the fine and closely-woven “China” mats, which are rather costly, and in the finest quality almost impervious to air.
Assuming that one is properly protected against mosquitoes, the feet and chest may be left bare, but a light blanket or rug, folded to about 2 feet wide, should be thrown across the abdomen, as nothing is more dangerous than chill to this portion of the body.
Ladies’ costume lends itself more readily to coolness than that of the sterner sex, though its advantages are usually thrown away, by their obstinate adherence to the corset, a garment which is even more pernicious in hot climates than elsewhere. Apart from this, their most common mistake is to err on the side of over-coolness, and medical men who practise in the Tropics are constantly meeting with serious and obstinate cases arising from inadequate protection to the abdominal and pelvic organs.
Ladies too often expose the head to the sun in a most foolhardy way. It may be admitted that a safe sun-hat is not particularly becoming to either sex, but in the presence of the girl graduate, often surpassing her male competitors, no one can doubt that a substratum of brains underlies the golden hair, and this being admitted, it is clearly morally incumbent on ladies not only to make themselves attractive, but to take proper care of thinking organs of such high quality. Besides, a woman with a headache is seldom charming, and a very genuine one—no mere boredom—is too often contracted by the conscientious performance of the quasi-religious duty of paying calls at noon in a picture hat.
Even where a covered conveyance is available—and many of us do not run to anything more ambitious than a dog-cart in the East—it is quite possible to contract a headache in crossing a pavement, and when a lady drives herself, it is almost impossible for her groom to so hold an umbrella over her as to afford protection, without obstructing her view. On this account, it is better that on such expeditions she should submit to be driven, so that she may have her hands free to carry an umbrella or sunshade; and it is well to remember that a fairly large sunshade with a padded cover is really more efficient than the largest single umbrella, or even one provided with the customary thin outer white cover.
Mothers have a general tendency to overclothe their children. Provided that the abdomen be properly protected by a flannel “binder,” the less they are hampered during the day the better. A child’s extremities rapidly become clammy if it be inadequately clothed, and as long as these feel comfortably warm, nothing but harm can result from stifling them with coverings which cause prickly heat, with attendant loss of rest and all the evils that result from chronic nervous irritation. Above all things, the face should never be covered, even with a handkerchief, in the case of the youngest of infants; as this pernicious fad of nurses and mothers necessarily leads to the rebreathing of air already rendered impure by passing through the lungs, than which few things are more destructive to health, even in adults, let alone in an infant, where the rapid chemical changes involved in growth and development demand a supply of oxygen proportionately far in excess of that required by a grown-up person.
In children much troubled with prickly heat, who have reached the age of intelligence, a pair of silk drawers should be worn under the binder; and during the day, and at night under the mosquito net, nothing more than this is really required. At dusk, when they go out for their airing, and at any time when mosquitoes are in evidence, their costume should be contrived so as to protect them from the attacks of the insects as far as possible.
In countries where ophthalmia is common, protection from flies during the day is almost as essential as against mosquitoes at night, and if the child falls asleep it should at once be placed under a mosquito net, as the eyes of children seem to have a peculiar attraction for flies, and there can be no doubt that these insects are often instrumental in carrying infectious matter from the eyes of the diseased to those of the healthy.