Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1904-10-06

"a q SoinASeA stiAHS WHICH q Se!S12 naQ
tied about his waist. Another soldier
had received a bullet under his chin.
which had made its way out BY the top
OF his head, yet he was recovering. 1t
the oriices made by the bullets were
not so PLAZA, it would have been diff
cult to believe recovery possible. Il
seemingly is. The little specialized
doctor pointed out many instances in
his textbooks, some of which were
printed in English, some in German.
l met Surgeol-Major L. L. Seaman,
late surgeon of the 1st United States
volunteer engineers, at the sekijuji-sha
Byoin. he was much impressed by the
success of the Japanese treatment of
the wounded. After what l have
seen," he told me, as we eft the hos
pital to gel into our jinrikishas, y
should hesitate to operate in a single
case at the front. The feature of the
Japanese surgeons work." he cen
tinued, lis that he leaves the wounds
alone, and there are few operations;
indeed, almost none at all. OF course
biSAC SOulS lew CdSSS,
and such things, where the knife is
used, but it is used no more than is al
solutely necessary. The first aid
dressing of the Japanese is very sim
pie. When it is placed on the wound
by the surgeon at the front it is not
touched again until a hospital is
reached. The wounds are usually asep-
tic; in fact, from observat 'ons which /
made in the Spanish-American war,
the Boer outbreak and the boxer rising
in China, smal-caliber bullets are usu-
ally aseptic and heal promptly. The
wounds that are jagged and more ex-
tensive are caused mostly by the de-
tachment of the jacket and the intro
duct.on into the wound Of fore gn arti-
Giles, such as cloth, button, etc, by the
lateral infringement of the bullet, or
ricochet. I have noticed that the
wounds of the Japanese soldiers have
very minute orifices, those of exit and
entrance being hardly dist.nguishable
from each other in appearance. From
what have seen so far, l most heart
feel that the Japanese surgeons will
again prove to the medical men of the
world that manipulation AID probing
of such wounds on the field, except IN
the rarest instances, is surgical NAL
practice. The principle of leaving the
wound alone is the best, and the first
aid dressing the best thing that can be
used. 1t is far better to bandage the
wound properly and avoid infection
than to risk that danger by an opera
ton under such conditions as prevail
in the field. The Japanese are ever
apt pupils, and they are following well
the examples set by Lister and Pas
teur, to whom military surgery owes
its greatest debt. 1t was those ia
nous doctors who sfmplified it's labors
and taught the great lesson of non-in-
reference. The soldier who falls on
the battle field from the effect of a bali
passing through any but vital part
of his anatomy, and who has a first
aid bandage promptly applied, and
is then transported to a general hos
pital where the Roentgen rays and
the principles of asepsis and antisep-
sis can be utilized has far greater
chance of recovery than when his
wounds are treated on the field In
the war with Spain there were 95.1 per
cent. of recoveries, while 40 per cent
died as result of following these con-
sentative methods. l believe the Jap
anese have even better results
"To my mind" said DR.. Seaman,
"the ration issued to the Japanese SOL
der has much to do with his immunity
from suppurative conditions following
serious injury. The freedom of the
constitution of the Japanese soldier
from infammatory conditions or urea
is largely the result of his Diet, that of
rice, fish and a simple vegetable. The
soldiers ration of rice, l am informed,
IS six 'go,' or about SO ounces daily. A
box, like cigar box for 100 cigars,
full of rice is served to each man three
times daily, and in addition to that ra-
ton, which costs three sen (%d). the
men are allowed six sen QBd) in
peace time and 71s sen Oess than I'D
in war time. This money is placed in
the hands of the commissary officer for
the purchase of extras, which are
given over and above the rice diet.
Biscuits and an occasional ration of
meat are now served In the hospitals
eggs are used largely. 1t may be that
some meat is also used, but | have not
noticed it. Often two eggs are served.
In the case of fever patients or very
sick men only rice water or a little
vegetable soup is given. 1t is I'M
doubtedly the diet of the Japanese sol
der that is the great secret of the sue
cess achieved by the army surgeons.
The soldiers are in superb physical
condition, and they can far better
stand the shock of a bullet wound or
an operation than a man who is fed en-
an unsuitable diet"
THE United States has much to
learn" continued DR.. Seaman, lin the
matter of a military ration, especially
Tor fighting in hot climates. The 1st
volunteer engineers, whom | accom-
panied to Porto Rico in the war with
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