Evening star., 1914-11-15
LESSONS LEARNED ON
BATTL TLEFlELDS OF EUROPE

the Pasteur Institute in Paris. Later
accounts have been that the serum is
being injected into patients on the bat
tlefeld. and that many amputations
have been obviated and large loss or
life prevented. A high authority in this
country, commenting on the reported
discovery, said that there is every rea-
son to believe that such a microbe has
been found
"One OF the horrors of the war is the
high mortality rate among surgeons
and the battlefield lifesavers associated
with them. News comes from Berlin
that there is a growing dearth of sur
geons and physicians in the German
armies, due to the fact that 'arge num-
bers Of them have been ! on the
battlefield. Many men BILE, to death
on the field because they cannot be res
cued, and many daring spirits among
the surgeons and Red Cross workers
have fallen in the attempt because of
the rain of rifle and shrapnel bullets
over the field
This news is significant as tending
to throw light on the increasing preva-
lence of tetanus and gangrene. If the
losses of surgeons, nurses and troops
of the medical corps and the ambulance
service have been heavy among the
Germans. it is reasonable to assume
that such losses also have been heavily
felt by the French, British, Russians
and Belgians.
"It has been reported that many of
the French soldiers stricken on the
field have had their wounds infected by
being laid on straw which had been
previously used and which was not
clean. The Union of the Women OF
France is now furnishing large wash
able canvas bags to contain straw, ana
having ears to slip handles through.
that when supporting man they may
be the easier handled. These bags are
covered with removable oilcloth, and
it is probable that many lives have been
saved in this way. That is one of the
lessons of the war.
"Anti-typhoid therapy is being given
general application in the armies, but
this cannot now be classed as an eN-
pertinent or a lesson OF this war. IL
passed from the experimental to the
months ago, and the debt of the world
to the medical department of the United
States army and to the American navy
in this matter is very great.
''Since the announcement of the out
break of cholera in the Austrian armies
reports have come that cholera vacci-
nation Is being resorted to. A recent
writer on this subject said that In the
Austro- Hungarian armies the soldiers
are being vaccinated against cholera at
such a rate that no doubt by this time
every man in the service has received
the treatment. Vaccination against
cholera was. ! believe. first made du-
ring the Balkan war. and II was an
nounced at the time that the vaccina-
tion insures the person so treated
against anything but a very mild at
tack of this terrible disease.
'"The way of vaccinating soldier
against cholera Is this: A soldier steps
forward with his coat and shirt open
dab of tincture of iodine is given to
the right breast and then follows the
injection of the serum. This is follow
ed by the placing of bit of adhesive
plaster over the point where the injec-
tion was made. According to the ac-
counts the whole operation for each SOL
dier. including the questions as to his
personal history. name, age, ETC.. re-
Quires only half a minute"