Willmar tribune. [volume] (Willmar, Minn.) 1895-1931, 1917-01-24

floor, it was evident that the demon
of the scrubbing brush, which has
possession of all model institutions,
had full sway in Douglas barracks.
Pine boards could not we'll have been
made whittier. No laundry man need
have feared to own to the doing up
Of the bed linen and counterpanes,
and science had not discovered any
mode of making bed look more like
a packing box, than those in that
model hospital.
What an impertinence a sick or
wounded man was, in one of those
square beds. He was almost certain
to muss and toss it, and this must
have been a browning calamity.
After the Snowman had shown all
he cared to have me see, sat talking
with the man had come to visit, and
he said, in a whisper:
Are there lice in all the hospi-
tals?"
Lice? Why, certainly not"
well, there are plenty of them
here, and they tell us they cannot be
helped-that they have them in all
the hospitals. Look here!"
He turned down the nice counter
pane, and there, in the blanket, the
disgusting creatures swarmed. l was
shocked, and half rose, in the i'm
pulse to make an outcrry. but he
warned me not to let any one know
he had told me, or it would be bad
for him. asked why he did not tell
the surgeon.
''He knows all about them, and says
they cannot be helped"
'You have Sisters of Charity here;
tell them
"Oh, they never do anything in the
ward but walk around and talk nice,
and pray with men who are going to
die. They must know about them"
l walked around alone, and the
Snowman did not seem to like it, but
l talked with the men in the cots, put
my hand under the cover, found feet
encrusted with the exudations of few
er, until they were hard and dry as a
bit of kindling wood; hair full of dust
from the battlefield, and not one man
who had been washed since being
carried away from it; while there
were vermin in every bed.
The ward-master objected to my
leaving jar of jelly with my friend.
1t would spoil the good order of the
ward, and all delicacies were to be
given into the care Of the Sisters. l
found one of them who was quite will
ing to take charge of anything wish
ed to leave, but was pOwerless in the
matter of vermin. It was the ward
masters business to attend to that.
1t was the business Of the Sisters to
look after the clothing when it came
from the laundry. put it in order and
give it out when wanted.
My failure to get bed for the man
In the fort by applying to those in
authority, made me feel that it would
be useless to try that plan about the
vermin; and, in my perplexity, turn
ed to my old friend and confidant,
the public. To reach it, / wrote to
the New York Tribune, giving very
mild statement of the case.
Two days after Surgeon Baxter
came, with a copy Of that letter, and
told me he had been ordered to dis
charge me on account OF it. spoke
Of the men who must die if left, and
he was sorry but bad no option. Then
he bethought him that maybe might
get the Surgeon-Generalt to permit me
to remain, at least until the cases Of
my special patients were settled;
otherwise I must leave the hospital
that day. He was sorry l had dated
the letter from Campbell, had it not
been for this, he>could use his influ-
ence to sustain me; but professional
etiquette forbade him to harbOr or
countenance one who spoke unfavor-
ably of brother-surgeon. In other
words, by living in hospital l be-
came one of ring, bound to keep
hospital secrets, and use only words
of commentator in speaking or writ
ing of anything I saw.
took a street car and proceeded
to the Office Of the Surgeon.General-
saw the man who held the lives of
my patients in his hands, ate the only
piece of humble pie that ever crossed
my lips, by apologizing for telling the
truth, and got permission to go back.
to the men who looked to me for Me..
/ have felt that made . great mis-,