WOUNDS IN WAR.

Pukekohe & Waiuku Times, Volume 5, Issue 161, 31 March 1916, Page 1 (Supplement)

WOUNDS IN WAR.

SCENES AFTER A BIG BATTLIi. Between the fields of war in South Africa and in France, remarked Su - - geon-General Sir Anthony Bowlby in a lecture in London on " Wounds .'n War," there was a radical difference. South Africa was thinly populated, uncultivated, and with few domestic animals; the soil was dry and sandy ai'l the rainfall was slight. Bacteriological examination proved that a'i forms of pathogenic bacteria wore absent from the soil except in the nMghbnurhoocJ of the dwellings of men At tho present seat of war all these conditions were reversed, and every form of micro-organism flourished. The behaviour of wounds in the two wars had an infinitely grave difference, which corresponded to some extent with the conditions. In general terms it n.ight be said that the injuries in the South African war were less severe, and the complications due to them far fewer and less serious than those of the past jear in France. "NORMAL" WOUND RARE. Describing the character of tho wounds in this war, Sir Anthony said that the wounds were as various as the projectiles themselves. The so-called "normal" bullet wound, common in the South African War, was quite rare, as even if the entry was small the exit was almost always ragged and large When a large bone was struck the part looked as though it had been struck by a large fragment of shell. This was due to the fact that the bullet, travelling at the height of itsmomentum, not only smashed the bone, but also imparted its momentum to the shattered frag, ments and drove them in every direction, so that the injury to the soft tissues was inflicted in great part by tho fragments of bone themselves. Wounds caused by shrapnel bullets were not as extensive as the worst of those caused by the pointed rifle bullet, for although former made i large hole of entry, they did not cise the same divulsivo or exploit force as the latter; they were, however, often multiple, and on account of the fact that this form of shell burst in the air, the bullets very often wounded the skull or brain. All shell fragments, beinjr rough and jagged, tore away parts of the clothing and carried them into the extreme depths of the wound. Nothing was more striking than the immense amount of destruction wrought by even quite small pieces, of a shell burst by a large charge of a high explosive, as the

wound in the tissues might be ten times as large as the missile. AFTER A BIG FIGHT. | The lecturer went on to speak of the condition of the wounded men after a big fight. The most remarkable thing to be observed, he said, in a room tilled with large numbers of recently wounded men, would be the fart that nearly all of them were asleep, in spite of wounds which one might well suppose would effectually banish sleep. But as the surgeons worked their way from man to man, it was only too evident that some of those who were asleep were also suffering from profound collapse, and with hundreds of such men rh e best chance of life was for them to be kept warm and left absolutely quiet for a period. It was practically true that every gunshot wound of this war in France and Belgium was more or less infected at the moment of its infliction. >Suggestions had been made for the application of an antiseptic agent by the wounded man himself or his com raws as soon as he was wounded. This would be useless, however, for not only would large quantities of any agent be required for the numerous large wounds, but it would be obviously useless to employ them unless they could penetrate to all parts of it, and unless the wound 1 could at once be protected from fruther contamination. A school of thought had arisen which asserted that antiseptics were useless as such, bus with this he c-'id not agree. I Practically all men who had had slight wounds, as well as many who r.ad had serious wounds, had done exceedingly well. It should be a satisfaction to everyone to know that except when there was overcrowding through the rush of frequent battle, the conditions for the reatment of the wounded in well-equipped operating theatres were not one whit behind tho best thrit could be found in civil life.