The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1917-10-04
F:E. DEANS NEPHEW
WRITES FROM FRONT

Harry A. Dean, a nephew of F. {.
Dean, who is now a member of q hos
pitsl company in France, in letters TO
home folks relates numerous interest
ing incidents. Young Dean, whose
father is superintendent Of schools Of
Crystal Lake county, writes as fol-
lows:
81 am on night duty in a heavy
surgical ward. My work is hard and
of delicate nature, for one must be
careful with these boys who have just
been or are about to be operated on for
the removal of sharpnel or the ampu-
tation of an arm or leg. Some Of
these wards look like gymnasium be-
cause of the numerous splints, pulleys
and other tackle.
lone of my duties is to go around
among these patients who have irriga-
tion tubes in sides. arms. legs or
stumps and shoot some eusol in every
there hours. Then | help give medi-
cines, dress the wounds and wash about
20 or 80 patients every morning. Oh,
I'll be regular dotcor when We come
back.
"It must be a regular hell up near
the front. The noise of the straffe
must be terrible. We are from 40 to
60 miles back from the trenches, but
right at this minute am listening to
the noise of our barrage. The sound
is something that you might not notice
unless you were looking for it, but it
sort of presses into your ears like the
buzzing of a bad cold. The best way
| can describe it is that it sounds like
the distant playing of kettle drum or
like the steady roar of racing auto
mobile travelling some distance away
with the muffler open. That's what it
sounds like this far from the line, just
think what it must be up there. The
roar of the guns is SO steady that it is
almost a continuous noise. don't see
how the. .gunners have any ears left.
1.-THE men seem to be in fairly good
shape when we see them here. how
ever. 1t is wonderful how quickly
some of the wounds heal. Our U. S.
A. surgeons and doctors are certainly
making lot of friends. | have stop
ped in at the operating rooms several
times and have seen some interesting
cases. Eusol is used to a great extent
in washing out wounds. 1t is great
gas bacilli preventative. Gas poison
ing takes off many of the wounded.
There's man dying of it now right
next to me. He has been dropping for
the past several days.
1--WE are very busy at present while
the big push is on. The boys who
come in say that we are giving Fritz
20 to his one. His mortality must be
terrible indeed. The men say that
dead Germans are thick on all the
ground they take.
lone of the men in my ward was SO
eager to push ahead that he was
wounded by shell from our own bar
rage, to which he had pressed too
close. A barrage, you know, Is solid
wall of shells behind which our men
advance. They lombard a while and
then move the barrage up and lombard
some more.
"Our squad was tested with chlorine
gas day before yesterday. We were
given gas drill, compelled to run 200
yards and do other stunts, wearing
masks, box type helmets. You have
to breathe through your mouth all the
time: Jas your nose is pinched tight,
and take it from me, in strenuous
work it is some exertion. Finally we
all went into a chamber filled with
chlorine gas. first having taken off our
watches and all metal possessions.
We felt absolutely no effects from the
chlorine with the masks on. 1t smelled
in our clothes, however, for day af-
terward, and all metal parts were
turned green. The mask is wonder
full thing.
"After this they exploded tear-gas
shell in practice trench and made US
walk through it without masks. Tears
streamed down and our eyes smarted
so we could hardly see. We were a
funny sight coming out of the trench,
all crying. A funny incident of 1t was
this, one of our lieutenants went in
ahead of some of the privates and hes
itated wee bit in the center of the
trench. The gas there was choking
and one of the privates yelled, 'D-n
you, hurry up The officers thought
this bit of breach of discipline was
huge joke, and soon it was all over
camp.
"This is probably the last letter
will write before my 2lst birthday.
Who ever thought | would spend it
here? can't think of anything else to
say except that some home made
fudge would be very acceptable, mas
much as sugar is SO scarce. We eat
milk chocolate over here.