The Guthrie daily leader. [volume] (Guthrie, Okla.) 1893-1996, 1904-09-19
ASovr soLDluws rsSru.
Inag muse Be Looked After to Main
tain Military Efaclencv.

once has appointed eight dental sur.
geons who are TO aid in maintaining
ne courage and temper of tho
army" Interesting as is the announce
msnt, England ls considerably behind
the United States in learning the i'm
portance Of caring for soldiers teeth.
In the FIRST place. we have bad these
important adjuncts TO the medical
corps since February 2, 1901. when the
law Officially creating them was pass
Cd The Law stipulated that there
should be one dentist for every thous-
and soldiers and officers. As the law
has been In force for over three years,
and the wisdom of It's passage has be-
cOms daily more manifest, the limit oe
the number OF dentists allowed for
the army is already nearly reached.
In this country a secondary consld-
Grafton, quite naturally following the
nrst, has bobbed up-an effcrt nn the
part of the dentists to be admitted In
to the army as commissioned officers.
At the present time they are merely
legalized aids to the medical corps
under the Jurisdiction OF the army sur.
geons.
When Gen. Miles signed the order
for the appointment OF dentists It had
been discovered that however well the
natives OF the Philippines and Cuba
preserved their teeth in their warm
climates, our soldiers suffered severe
ly. AS soon as regiment reached the
tropics, its officers and men began to
have trouble with their teeth.
The trouble, however was the result
Of intestinal disorders. The medical
men who were behind the bill Great
ing the dentists understood this. and
useful as the dentists are to any
army in any lands they have proved
especially so to American soldiers,
cause of the new possessions and
physical ailments following upon
their arrival there.
While the law stipulated that not
more than one dentist for every thou.
sand soldiers should be appointed, 1t
allowed them to be sent In whatever
quota was deemed necessary to what
ever points needed them most. As a
result we now have in Cuba and the
Philippines a regular army of den
lists, so large as TO put to shame the
recent appointment Of eight tooth doc.
tors by the United Kingdom.
So important IS this army depart.
ment that it seems surprising how |.
has remained to be established until
so recent date. Army officers declare
with one voice that there is no such
q think as a courageous fighting force
with bad teeth, but it is a solemn
truth to which the powers Of the
world seem Just waking up.
I think that most people will agree"
said an army surgeon the other day,
"that dyspepsia is not conducive to
gallantry and dash. With your heart
beating violently, your head in
whirl. and your stomach affected as
BY the heaving sea, you cannot ex-
peot your nerves to be in q condition
proper for successful &C ion in modern
warfare. For that a man must be abb
solutely at. II the soldiers teeth are
bad. and he is inclined to dyspepsia
IN peace and comfort, what will he be
when his meals are rough and irregu-
lar? Unless 'molars and grinders are
In good order it must mean that before
long the man viii be permanently on
the sick list
"As matter of fact, It is quite ap-
palllng how many would-be recruits
have to be refused because of the con-
dition o. their teeth, and the war Of
nce in this country as well as the one
In England. is to be congratulated up.
on the steps It is taking to insure good
teeth in the soldiers. The common ad.
age. No foot. no horse. might well be
paraphrased into no tech, no man
while not abreast Of us in the mat
ter Of army dentists, Great Britain is
As | understand going to the fountain
step in advance Of US in that It is.
head in the matter. and Is trying to
enforce a law which requires the ex-
animation Of the teeth Of boys In the
boarding schools In teeth, as In eY-
Brything else, the boy is father to the
nan. A generation bred from dyspep.
ties means a people whose shattered
constitutions will crowd our hospitals
and asylums. The strain OF modern
existence is often put down as the sole
cause for modern lunacy. II is no
doubt. contributing factor but be-
lisye very much Of It is due to neg
lected teeth. accentuated In two or
three generations.