The Saint Paul globe., 1900-06-17
BURNS BY BULLETS.
Missiles Heated by Their Flight
Through the Air.


A curious case OF possible burn from O.
bullet was shown In a wound received by
a corporal in the Queens regiment saws
correspondent of the British Medical
Journal. The bullet possibly a spent oueJ
had struck the shaft of the tibia close TO
the crest transversely, and apparently
had drilled tie bone. There was little
irregularity Of the bone. and Il fragment
may have been displaced Close to the
exit wound was mark resembling al
burn the extent and shape Of a bullet
The patients account was that he had
felt himself hit and felt something burn
ing his leg. On removing the puttie the
bullet was found lying underneath it.
The man stated that it was red hot
perhaps pardonable eXagSeration. The
bullet, at any rate, was too hot TO hold
n the hand without pain. The bullet was
not ricocheted in appearance. Another
patient gave a somewhat similar account.
In this instance the bullet entered one
inch to the right side of the eighth GOrsal
spine and made its exit three inches be
low the clavicle on the same side, with
out traversing the thoraCic cavity. The
bullet dropped inside the shirt and burned
the skin. The bullet was found Inside the
clothes a day or two later. Such ac-
counts have to be received with a GER
tain amount Of caution, but undoubtedly
the mark on the skin of the abdomen did
resemble a burn.
It is often supposed popularity that the
temperature of bullets /; great rails q b
the friction Of the air. The suppcstion
does not seem to rest on an experimental
basis. Arrest of 1Vement would q vclol
heat, of course, but the prodlgious range
Of the smal-bore bullet shows that tre
friction is exceedingly slight. Markers at
rifle butts are familiar with the fact thac
ricochet shots, which arc recognized by
the peculiar hum they make in passing
through the air, and which often fall deal
by the shelters or drop back of the tar
geD if picked up at once are warm, or
even hot; but in such cases the move
ment has been violently arrested 1T is
possible that some Of the heat might
be developed by the arrest Of the bullet
by the clothing, but IN such a cas- the
missile cannot have been travelling with
any great velocity. 4 r.cochet shot Loses
the spin in its longitudinal axis that it
acquires in passing through the rlGed
| barrel, but as it glanc-s off af er the iul-
pact IT may revolve on a transverse axis,
turning over and over in its fignt. 1t g.,
therefore, unlikely to make the small
wounds of entrance and exit chaTaCta-is-
tic Of the perfect small-b re bullet. More
over, the nickel sheath Of the bull. will
probably split up as the bullet strikes
the earth and bounds up or elances from
1t. 1t is occasionally stated that the cIc-
atrical cord resulting from the passage
Of small-bore bullet through soft It's
sues is due to the cauterizing action OF
the bullet Such view is hardly 10 he
! taken seriously. The cicatrix resembles.
no doubt that which might be caused by
passing a thick galvanic wire through
the tissues, and then raising It to q tenn
peratUre sufficient to burt the tissues.
But the cicatrix of a bullet wound is not
|
which 1t passes through the tissues IS
too great to allow time for any caUteriz-
Ing action. even If the bullet were at
white heat.