Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-04-27
MEDICAL ETHICS
IN WAR DIFFER
FROM CIVIL LIFE

James f. Witter OF this city has
received an interesting letter front
James r.. Whi rton. brother OF Mrs.
Witter, who is with the medical
corps somewhere in France and
which gives a new angle to mill
tary practices not usually seen By
the layman. The letter in part
follows:
Somewhere in France.-My Deer
Brother: I have this day received
your very welcome letter Of Jan.
80 and will hasten to answer it.
You asked two questions that
think | may answer in A manner
at least. First, you ask ii / am IN
position likely to be a source Of
physical danger. Now, first, | am
in the medical corps as you know,
and the medical corps is peculiar
in that it is subject to being moved
around to any point where doctors
are most needed and naturally
where there are the most sick and
wounded there is where the doe
tors are needed most. That being
the case | am subject TO service
anywhere any time. At the pres
ent. however, | am with regiment
that is not a fighting organization,
therefore, l am not in any physical
danger.
The second question, as l read
your letter, is, automatically, Are
you cruel to the soldiers! To this
l can answer that | am not. l can
appreciate the point Of view of the
so-called layman in regard to the
much talked about abuse of the
men, or to put it as is often done,
the willfuI neglect of the men who
are sick and dying. One must be
able to have comprehensive view
of the whole situation in order to
see this point of view that l will
try to present. First, l will say
that in my army experience to
date, l have yet to see the first
case of willful neglect or cruelty
to any man by a medical officer.
The medical department as all
other so-called non-com Blatant de-
partments of the army has for it's
central aim the increased efficiency
of the combatant forces. This can
at all times call on a medical OIL
Ger to do things that in civil prac-
tice would be wholly wrong. For
instance, let us say that an engage
ment is on and the wounded are
coming in in all degrees of serious
ness. The success of the battle
depends on having every man pos
sible on the firing line. A man is
brought in with his leg shot away
and he will soon die if not attend
ed TO at once (and possibly any
how. Then at the same time, one
or more men come in who can be
quickly attended to and put back
on the line for duty. In civil prac-
tice the worst injured would be
given the first attention. In mill
tary in such a case the slightly
wounded must be taken care o.
first, regardless of the conse-
quences to the more seriously
wounded. This may seem to be
terribly practical. but such are the
requirements of war. Now again,
suppose there are several ships in
the harbor that must be unloaded
with the least possible delay, and
it is cold and raining, and there
are some men in the command who
are suffering from severe colds.
In civil practice it would be econ
omy to send all such to their quar-
tiers for a day or two in order to
make their recovery more rapid.
In military practice, In time of war,
it is not enough that the man. will
recover more rapidly or surely if
left indoors. The first thing 70
consider, is the unloading of the
ShipS now not tomorrow or next
week, but now. Accordingly there
fore, all men able TO do a days
work are ordered to the ship for
work with the knowledge that some
will be made sick thereby. OF
course, it is not pleasant, but the
necessity of doing so is apparent.
We never know what eXigency re-
quires the rapid unloading of the
ships. II may be that big battle
is on and that the immediate ar