Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1915-08-07
URGE
STEEL HELMETS
London Newspapers Believe They
Would Cut Down Number
of Accidents.

London, Aug. 1.-THE London news
papers are urging upon the British
government the ACCESSIBILITY Of adopt
ing the steel fe.met, as well as some
simple form CT protective breast ar.
NOR. for the troops in France and
Flanders. France, Russia and Ger.
many have been experimenting along
this line for scmle time, and France
has recently definitely adopted a light
steei helmet. suggesting in design the
helI-piecc worn Is men-at-arms six
centuries ago.
Steel Fort Di~screuited.
ION Of the most remarkable fea-
lures of this war;" remarks the Times,
has been the return to the older, if
not to ancient, methods. The steel
fort has been discredited and the
earthwork Justified; the strenth in
and direction of the wind has become
a leading factor once again, as it was
in the days of bows and arrows, since
aeroplanes are affected by the wind
and gas attacks determined by it;
hand grenades, bombs and %catapults
have assumed real Importance. Fin
ally, tna question of armor for the
fighting man himself has come up
for consideration"
The value Of a light protective ar
NOR is attested in several recent ar
ticles in the British medical journals.
DR.. Devraigne, a French army SUR
geon, discusses in the Lancet the re-
suit Of his tests Of the new French
helmet and gives it his unqualified en-
dorsement. "The soldier who wears a
helmet" he says, escaped light
wounds of the head and even wounds
that would in ordinary circumstances
have been eve are greatly miti-
gated. The helmet frequently turns
off the bullet, in other cases dents or
stops it, while in other cases it is per-
forated but acts as a heavy drag upon
the force Of the projectlle SO that
hair and dirt are not driven into the
tissues of the head"
Protective Armor.
DR.. A. J. Hewitt, chief surgeon Of
the warshap Pegasus in her fight with
the Koenigsberg, writes in the Jour-
nal Of the Royal Medical Service urg-
ing the adoption of some kind Of pro-
tective armor for the navy. One
the remarkable features of the wounds
which came under his observation,
he says, was the smaller penetrating
power of the fragments of projectiles
in open places like hte upper deck.
The danger zone so far as life was
concerned, seemed to be confined to
a small area around the bursting
space, and though the initial velocity
Of the fragments seemed to be very
great it diminished rapidly, perhaps
owing to their irregular shape.
Zone seaman" writes DR.. Hewitt,
"had his right arm so shattered thai
complete amputation was necessary
but a fragment of the same shell hi
the brass buckle of his belt, breaking
it but not even bruising the abdomen
Small fragments were also. the cause
of the loss of four eyes, but l am o:
the opinion that a pair of motor Cog
giles would have saved all these. A
case of injury to the jugular vein
caused by a minute particle Of shell
probably could have been stopped by
a linen collar. 49,.
Would Decrease Wounds.
Gin my opinion a coat of light chain
armOr, or even leather, with a pair
of goggles made from %toughened mo-
tor screen glass, would be Invaluable
to captains of d%estroyers, navigators.
and others in exposed positions who
are likely to encounter ships armed
with similar guns"
DR.. Delorme, medical general of
the French army, believes that pro-
~tective armor would cause a marked
decrease in the large number Of minor
wounds which have serious results
owing to the development of infec-
ton. at is Infection through hair,
shreds Of %headgear, soiled bullets, ir-
regular dressings, ETC., he says, "that
makes minor head LESSONS sc danger
our and causes a mortality varying
from Is to 81 per cent"