Part 6 (1/2)

W.M. LETTS, in the _Spectator_.

FOOTNOTES:

[4] There are now three appointed to each Brigade.

THE CARE OF THE WOUNDED

CHAPTER VIII

THE CARE OF THE WOUNDED

Among the many sad sights witnessed in modern warfare, I question whether there is any more pathetic than a train of wounded men pa.s.sing down from the Front. Every description of injury is noticeable, for shot and sh.e.l.l are not discriminating. From cases of the severest abdominal and head wounds, the patient being in a more or less collapsed condition, one turns to the laughing lad, with only a clean shot through his forearm, and who still has the exciting influence of the 'sc.r.a.p'

thickly upon him. But slight or dangerous, each requires attention, for owing to the grave danger of septic trouble, the smallest scratch may prove fatal. In their handling of the enormous number of casualties, the work of the R.A.M.C. will stand out in luminous letters when the history of the war is written. From sanitation, to a major operation, this Department is equal to the occasion, and one is lost in admiration at the splendid devotion to duty exhibited by this strictly scientific branch of the service.

Wounded men always possess a sad and enthralling interest to the public mind. It is not morbid curiosity alone which draws men and women to gaze upon the unhappy sufferers, rather I think it is a feeling akin to awe, for it is recognized that these men have been in the thick of it, and the imagination of the onlookers sees the courage they have displayed, and peering through the veil beholds the terrible sights they have seen.

These, and similar thoughts cast a glamour over the most ordinary wounded man, and clothe him with a heroism which in all probability he of all men is most unconscious of possessing.

The variety of circ.u.mstances under which men get wounded is unbounded.

Mult.i.tudes of those bowled over have never seen a German. It may be far back in the rear that a 'Jack Johnson' or 'Black Maria' (for we have many names for the German high explosive) has knocked a man out. It is all over in a moment; in the quiet of the night, or amid the bustle of the day the deadly shriek of an approaching sh.e.l.l falls upon the man's ear, and before he can seek for cover--even supposing there is any to hand--the roar of the explosion will probably be the last thing that he will remember before he awakes to his agony. Or nearer to the line, the whistle of an approaching shrapnel speaks of coming danger, and then a p.r.o.ne figure on the ground tells of one more who has been 'pipped,' to use a colloquialism of the Front. When we consider the extreme range of a seventeen-inch gun as being not far short of thirty miles, the difficulty of being out of range is at once apparent. Nearer at hand, within a few yards, an accurately thrown bomb is a fruitful source of injury to our fighting men, whilst in these days of accurate rifle fire 'snipers' mark the slightest movement at a thousand yards. In the fierce rush of the taking of a trench, men are as thick on the ground as the leaves of Vallombrosa. At such times, notwithstanding the specific orders to the contrary, men are constantly helping each other. For brotherly love will a.s.sert itself even amid the rush of battle. Here is an order from the 'Standing Orders' of the Seventh Division:--

'Wounded men.--All ranks are forbidden to divert their attention from the enemy in order to attend wounded officers or men.'

But notwithstanding this command, again and again heroic deeds are performed by combatants in their endeavour to get their wounded comrades out of imminent danger.

It was a n.o.ble deed of the Rev. Nevile Talbot, who, learning that his brother in the Rifle Brigade was. .h.i.t, rushed into the zone of fire, only to find his beloved relative dead; straightway he immediately diverted his attention to the need of a wounded 'Tommy' near by. The Rev. and Honourable B.M. Peel was badly hit in the head and left leg, in charging with the Welsh Fusiliers; true, he had no right to be there from a military point of view, but I believe the O.C. had given him permission, and certainly his heroic action inspired the men, and has left a splendid memory in the minds of those who were with him. In such ways the front line of casualties occur. How are they dealt with? I will describe as briefly as possible the procedure which governs the handling of the wounded from the fighting line to the Convalescent Home in England.

(1) Nearly every Battalion has its Regimental Surgeon and Bearers; the latter are men who are specially trained to render First Aid, and to carry the wounded out of the zone of immediate fire.

(2) At this point the stricken one is taken in hand by the Bearer Section of the Field Ambulance, under the command of an R.A.M.C. officer, who, where necessary, quickly renders First Aid by applying a tourniquet where there is arterial bleeding, or bandaging up an ordinary wound. These men, whether attached to the Field Ambulance or a regiment, are worthy of the highest praise. No courage is of a higher order than that which enables men, devoid of the excitement of fighting, to pa.s.s within the deadly hail of lead.

(3) The wounded man is then conveyed to the Field Dressing Station of the Field Ambulance. This may be located in a deserted building: a barn, a farmhouse, or some such place.

It may be even placed behind a haystack, or in a wood, but certainly in the most sheltered position that can be found.

Here the man's wound receives more careful attention, but with a rush of such cases it is impossible to bestow all the care that is desired. Very hurriedly the man's clothing is cut open, the wound cleansed with iodine, or some such disinfectant, bandaged up again, and the sufferer is ready for evacuation to a Casualty Clearing Station.

(4) Some miles behind the firing line, a convent, schools, or any suitable house, or group of buildings, has been set apart as a hospital, and under the present system greater a.s.sistance can now be rendered to the patient. Even operations may be performed if the case is one of special urgency. At this point I would call attention to the remarkable revolution that has taken place in the transport of the wounded, through the agency of Motor Ambulances, in lieu of the pair horse Ambulance formerly in use, and which rumbled along the uneven roads, thereby causing an intolerable amount of suffering to the badly stricken men therein. The sufferers are now conveyed swiftly, and with far greater comfort, to their temporary destinations; and hundreds of lives are being preserved by means of this miracle of modern times.

(5) The hospital train at the 'rail head' which serves the district is the next experience of the wounded man. Those who have examined these wonderful accessories to modern warfare will have been struck by the completeness of the arrangements. Beds of the most comfortable description, having regard to s.p.a.ce, are provided, whilst sitting cases are arranged for in ordinary carriages. Furnished with a well-appointed kitchen, nothing is left to be desired as regards the food, and this, I need hardly say, appeals very strongly to a man who has been living upon Army rations for weeks or months past. There is even a small operating theatre in the best equipped hospital trains.

(6) This brings us to the Base Hospital, where is found the finest talent, both medical and surgical, that the country can produce. Some of our greatest civilian medical men, in a temporary capacity, are now rendering invaluable aid to the remarkable cases which proceed from the fell work of shot and sh.e.l.l. These hospitals, some of which are due to the magnificent enterprise of private individuals, provide for a very large number of patients. In one centre alone there are eight hospitals, with fourteen beds in each. Here, too, are working the most highly trained nursing sisters, and the wounded man will, to his dying day, remember the patient skill bestowed upon him by these devoted women. A patient recently remarked to a friend of mine, who asked him whether he didn't think the sister was an angel, 'Indeed she is, sir, a regular fallen angel.' His adjective was a little out of place, but he meant to describe exactly what we all feel with regard to these splendid ministers to our need.

(7) The hospital s.h.i.+p next receives the sufferer, and herein everything that modern ingenuity can devise is applied to the necessities of the case. Landing at some convenient British port, an English hospital train receives the wounded man, who is speedily whirled away to--