Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1908-06-24
JAPAN sHAMEs THE wosLD.

Serious and enlightened members
OF the medical profession always have
treated the medical department OF
the United States army as , Joke
But when We tried to put an army in
the field in 1898 comedy became most
CHASTITY tragedy.
The medical department was so
little able 10 look after the health
OF the army in camp or field that it
melted away in the breath OF fever
like frost in the sun. Typhoid, dysen-
-ery and other preventable diseases
EaYaged our home camps worse than
a hostile army. The cream of our reg.
ular forces, sent to take Santiago.
had to leave their horses and half
their baggage and artillery behind,
carry the outer Notifications by front
al attack without roads, amb1lances
or HOSPITALS to care for the wounded
and then call upon the fleet to COM
plete the capture of the city before
they should all drop in their tracks
from fever.
The capture of Santiago was a
race with time and death. Had 1t
been delayed, the seige must have
been raised and the fever stricken
army brough home as was done soon
after. Meanwhile troops in Chieka-
manga and Tampa were dying like
flies. The army was saved only by
disbanding it. But for the sound
minds in sound bodies o. the navy
We should have made an awful mess
of that war. For every life lost in
action, fourteen hundred wore saeri.
feed by pre7entable disease.
We have commented before on ia.
pans brilliant record in maintaining
the health of troops in the field. Now
we have official reports from the
chief surgeon of General Okus army,
the largest and the first in the field.
The army had lost in action over
$4,000 men, killed, wounded and
missing; but 65 per cent of the 81
900 wounded were able to be sent
home to the Japanese hospital. There
have been over $4,000 cases of dis
ease, of which only 40 resulted fatally
and less than 5000 were serious
enough to be sent to the home hos
pital.
In all there were less than 500
eases of typhoid and dysentary, the
traditional ravages of army IN the
held General Oku's army was about
the size of that pars of ours which
| went to the front in 1898. He lost 40
men by disease where we lost $500
in the field and as many more in our
filthy home camps. We are not much
worse than other civilized nations.
The British lost more men by dis.
ease than by action in South Africa
and continental armies operating
oversee always have been decimated
by disease.
The secret of Japan's immunity is
that she has applied medical and
surgical knowledge gained from US
We make discovery of means to care
for wounded and prevent or cure
disease. We are content to deliver
| lectures and write books about them
without applying them to save the
lives of troops in war. japan takes
our discoveries and applies them in
such a way as to save thousands of
soldiers to continue the struggle and
end the war.
This triumph of Japan is the dis
! grace of all nations. 1t will be to the
eternal disgrace of any nation that
shall again go to war without medic.
! al equipment approximately equal to
that of Japan. AS for our own nation,
| we think if it should call for volun.
teer enlistments again with the medi-
cal department in its disgracefnl con-
dition, 1t would be the duty of the
whole press and public to discourage
enlistments and resist CONSUMPTION.
1t is every mans duty to die for
his country when necessary. 1t is no
citizens duty to rot in fever camp
for a government too indolent to ap
ply common medical knowledge for
the safety OF its troops.