The commonwealth., 1915-01-22
.LOSE'THE|R SPEECH
Many Soldiers in Hospitals Un.
able to Talk.
Men Recovering From Severe Wounds
Must Be Taught to Talk ~ Chill.
dren--Can't Frame Words--
Physicians Explain Work.
BY KARL H. Won wIEGAhD.

q Fiicl Press stan tOTTSBpOnueulb
l.aon, FranCe,~-Today | saw men
being taught to talk again. In the
human repair shops" the great Ger
man field hospitals. these men were
| learning anew the use OF brains.
tongue hands and feet. They had re-
crIyed their baptism OF fire. Bullet,
shrapneI. broken shell. all had done
their work And now medical science
vas doing its utmost to restore the
yIc,ims to partial normality.
This III the third time that Laon has
! been in Possession OF the Germans,
urst in 1914 and again in 1870. but
oY' fearful blood5hed The main hos
| H'ai is tmproyised, q large roomy
school huiItinR, we'll lighted and aired.
| Ia lrGul Is a large bronze monument
| erected to three young Frenchmen--
/ frauCs-tirnurs executed by the Ger.
mans in 1870 for snipng Singularly
! enough this monument Is unscathed.
Professor HrOCkenheImer, In charge,
and Doctor Iuetkenmueller. chief sur.
| gpOn, explained tho work They care
| for . 100 severe cases, but the light
| wounded arc given first aid treatment
| and sent back to the homo bases, as
| this Is too close to the actual front
| to permit keeping any wounded that
| can be moved More than score Of
| cases. French and German alike, where
| trcphning operations had been nec-
| Cessary, we're shown. 1t was singu-
Tar picture Through the windows
! came the deep, low bass note OF dis
| tant guns killing, smashing. tearing,
manning the human "tenpins." Here
| they were being patched up. Nurses
sat by bedsides Of friend and foe alike,
bathing fevered brOws and teaching
palcfaccd bearded men to speak the
most simple words, telling them the
names of objects and putting words
together into sentences.
"What is this?" asked Professor
Hrockenheimer, holding pencil be-
fore bearded warrior from whose
skull he had cut splinter OF steel
The lips trembed. Then came the
feeble answer: Pencil
held out cigarette and asked
what it was. The mans lips moved
and look came on his face which
seemed to say that he knew what It
was but couldn't say. Then Professor
IoCkenhemer came to the rescue.
" hat do We do with this?" he asked.
An apparent tremendous mental effort
and then the reply: Smoke"
Correct said the professor; now
what Is it," This time the brain and
tongue worked and the answer was
correct.
Hours have to be spent by the
nurses teaching these men all over
again" explained the professor. st
requires unending patience and per-
severance"
Many cases of plastic surgery were
shown Men with most OF their faces
smashed away were being brought
back to life with parts Of their bodies
being grated on to cover the terrible
gaping holes Many would be much
better dead. but the doctors feel 1t Is
their duty to save all they can.
We do not ask the wounded
whether they want to live or de-"
explained Professor Bockenheimer.
At the main French hospital Profess
sor Manasse of Stuttgart WAS In
charge. Here, too, nurses were teach
ing men to talk again and terrible
wrecks of humanity we're being
patched up.