The Grenada sentinel. [volume] (Grenada, Miss.) 1868-1955, 1914-12-25
TRAIN FOR WOUNDED
Germany's New Railway Hospital
Is the LAST Word"
Kitchen, Operating Room, Sleeping
Quarters, Dining Saloon and Beds
for 800 Gift Of Brunswick
Red Cross

hiOuSu tHc COuTlcSy VI tuo
foreign Office and the war ministry I
had an opportunity Of examining the
last word" in German hospital trains,
the new Duchess Victoria Louise" be-
fore 1t started on It's maiden trip to
the front, writes a correspondent of
the New York Tribune. Thirty-eight
cars long and of all-steel construction
throughout. 1t was equipped at a cost
of about 100000 by the Red Cross as
ISOLATION Of the duchy of Brunswick
1.-THE government furnishing the rolling
stock. and is the forty-eighth hospital
train equipped and presented to the
nation by wealthy private individuals
and Red Cross associations.
The last car is a storeroom for mat
t~resses, linen bedding and clothing.
The train has accommodations for 800
wounded without crowding.
Next comes a car stocked with food
supplies-enough being taken for one
round trip. The third car is a model
kitchen. In addition to q coal range
1t has four huge aluminium soup, broth
and hot water kettles, the heat for
these being steam, piped from the en-
CINE that pulls the train.
The fourth car Is the operating room.
equipped with the irreducible mini.
mum Of actual necessity. In the cen.
ter is a steel-framed operating table,
and there are a gl%ass-topped table for
operating instruments, an instrument
wall cabinet with glass doors, . steri-
lizer, a hot water heater and a porce-
lain wash basin-nothing more. The
forward end Of the car is partitioned
off to make a small room for drugs
and surgical supplies. Doctor Niehaus,
chief OF the medical staff OF the wal
ministry, who acted as my cicerone,
said the operating a was used only
In cases Of the utmost emergency in
! transit. In each case the train wal
stopped while the operation was be-
ing performed.
Next comes the office Of the chief
surgeon in charge of the train; then
a saloon car, l%uxuriously equipped
leather armchairs, little writing desks
and engraved portraits of the kaiser,
kaiserin. crown prince and duchess
Victoria Louise. It is theoretically a
resting room or lounge for the sur
geons and sisters-"when they get
time to rest. which isn't often" com.
mented the military guide.
Then come two salon cars, each with
ten small ~staterooms, for wounded Of
fcers; then two first and second class
coaches, sleeping quarters for doctors
and nurses; then 80 hospital ears for
wounded soldiers. Each hospital Q
is a little ward Of IL cots-three
"double-decker' units along each side
Of the car-with a table and chair for
the nurse in charge and a small cup
board containing dishes and table
hardware for ~, and also a telephone.
the surgeon in charge being in tele-
phonic communication with every car
Of the train.
To the side of each cot a small,
round wooden tray is fixed on a swivel.
while from the curtain hangs a net
basket to hold the small personal be-
longings of the future patient. A clean
shirt is laid out on every cot.
Doctor Niehaus said to me:
Our hospital trains now make the
run from the front in France-say
from Cambria to Berlin-in 4S hours"
The same authority supplied some
other interesting information about
the sanitary service and care Of the
wounded.
In addition to the 48 hospital trains.
which are the gift of individuals and
associations, there are the regular
military hospital trains which have
been engaged by the government.
These are intended for the transpor-
tation Of the severely wounded. The
hospital a Of a regular hospital train
which l examined had eight beds mot
cots) arranged In double-decker suites.
one In each corner of the car. The
iron framework Of the double-decker
beds is equipped by powerful shock
absorber springs to counteract the Sc
we're jolting on the badly rebuilt
stretches Of track toward the front,
and each unit can be completely cur.
toiuod CH