CHRISTMAS PICTURES

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2705, 26 February 1916, Page 11

CHRISTMAS PICTURES

LIFE IN A MALTA HOSPITAL

In the course of some letterß which have been written by a New Zealand nurse, now on hospital duty at Malta, and published in the Auckland "Star," the writer says:-j-

"Now we are getting cases of frostbite and rheumatism from Gallipoli, and all the ills that come from damp and cold. The poor fellows look such miserable objects when they como shuffling in to tho hospital, with their clothes all crumpled, and using walking sticks. They tell us that the wet and cold in the trenches is terrible. They sit and gaze at the Turks and the Turks at them, too cold even to hold their rifles. They have not tho restjhospitals that tho men in France have, because every inch of ground is under shell-fire. From all accounts, it must be a ghastly place—tho trendies flooded out, and theii'frozen stifE. the landing-place washed away, 1 too cold in tho evenings to leave their dug-outs and visit their friends.

"It is one of the most tragic events of : the war our leaving the Peninsula. To have fought so splendidly, _ lost so heavily' and then to abandon it! When 1 told one of the Australians about the retreat from Anzac, be went to bed at nine in the morning—ho was so heartbroken over it.

"We fi" '1 all the men so good and 'helpful wh in they aro up; Most of them haven't seen a woman for ages. We never hear any bad language, but_ we often hear 'sh--h,' when, we go into a ward. There is one block that hasn't any sisters, our men who are sent thero always come back': and say how . they miss us and how rough everything is.

"We had such a jolly Christinas. It is. astonishing how the wards have been decorated with all the men in bed. "We gave them coloured papers, and tliey all worked very hard. A cake was" to be given as a prize for the pretttest ward, and the competition was very keen. The tloor was strewn with bits of paper, and the men looked as if they had been sitting in pools of paste—they will wipe their fingers on their trousers. The excitement is .too funny for words. They were so eager about it, and 60 furious if the other blocks came in to look at their decorations in case they should, crib ideas. They all want cotton wool, which is far too precious to give out for decorations, but the scamps took it off the frostbitten , feet-and pneumonia jackets ! 'They stick at nothing. The ward that hasn't any frostbites is quite gloomy. The cotton wool is used to represent snow. The coloured papers are cut up and made into chains, festoons, window-blinds, mottos, etc. . "All the wards have different mottos. I was shown one with great pride. 'Gotfc Strafe the Kaiser' with a cross at either side, one red and one blue. As' a Red Cross sister I protended to be very indignant. They | explained in a hurry' that it was an. iron cross. 'But why red?' I asked; Aid the man wlio was least shy said it was a bloody cross —they are so funny. "The seventh ward has a picture of Ktichener, which they have surrounded with blue paper pasted on the back of a bed-rest; it has the place of honour in the ward. The finishing decorations are a deep secret at present. _ "Later. They have finished decorating Kitchener. He is wreathed in purple, yellow, and green frills of paper; and draped with a filigree of blue, edged with a deep fringe cut .in the most laborious and intricate of designs.

"Then men's patience and cheerfulness is a constant source of_ surprise. One we called.'Joe' was : seriously ill with enteric; he lias been here six weeks. I never" expected to see him get better, but he made a wonderful recovery, and I used to bully him so about taking his feeds. I do most of the two-hourly feeds; it pays to make them as nice us possible. They adoro jelly, but we so often can't get it. The transport must be. enormously difficult to work. When Joe left the hospital he nearly shook our hands off, and thanked us so gratefully. These are the rewards that make us think it is •worth while.

"It was announced as a great feat one morning, 'Paddy sat up for five minutes!' I got a patient to snap him. Poor old thins, lie is about fist. 2in., and used to weigh 13.6; now he is just a bag of bones, but on the mend. He wept one day because I told him lie was an old 'bother; he wanted bnvril for lunch, and waited until it was all given out before asking me. I had to boil up water and make a fresh brew. He is just like a child, and comes from Newfoundland, hut is about, as typically Irish as you could And. He is quite a dear, in spite of everything. "On Christmas Eve about forty of the sisters went round at 10 p.m. and sang hymns and carols. AH wore long coats and carried lanterns—quite an imposing procession in the moonlight. B. and I were the band, she with her Maltese cat and I with my violin. One sister insisted on carrying a chair (the Maltese cat is played like a 'cello). The.patients

loved it, and those who could followed us round from block to block.

"On Christmas Day we got all tho tables out on the verandah. The medical officer carved, and all tlie patients camo out except the 'no diets.' I made a specialty of these, and fed them till they coul<! eat no more (a very unusual state of affairs for "no diets"). Then we wero all snapped by the Maltese photographer. "Tho Red Cross are simply marvellous, and gave a present to every soldier, as well as fruit and'sponge cake for their tea. As wo liad also provided cakes and scones, they had a really good tuclc in.

"I suppose tho chief reason for these Christmas festivities being 'such, a success was that there were no 1 outside interests. We were just like one big family, and everyone entered into the spirit of the entertainment with heart and soul. Forty-eight sat down to dinner. We gave them roast beef and potatoes, plum pudding, jelly, . and rsteived fruit, apples, ■■.Wanges,. nuts, grapes, beer, and stout. Then, they all stood up and' cheered, and sang 'For They are Jollv Good Fallows." Tliev were thoroughly satisfied, and slept all tho afternoon.

"We went to the All Saints' concert with two New- Zealand boys. Lord Metliuen was there; he doubled nt> with laughter at a little Lancashire Tommy who sang in very broad dialect and mado some rather broad jokes. I have never heard 'The King' sungwith such vigoxir before; it was most stirring. The camp consists chiefly of New Zealanders and Australians. They.simply adore Major Mabin."