The Elk Mountain pilot., 1918-03-07

But what about wrecked men?
In France have heard an ironist say:
Yes, he was IA hero for ten days and now he is
decorated ruin: cripple for life"
Yet even 'muties" can be patched up. They
can be provided with 'jambe Americaine" and
an arm fixed with all sorts Of joints and springs
that make 1t practical. Last week. In the train to
Nh 1 sat next to such mended hero; he
showed me his arm with real pride, and explained
that for the present he had work in the municipal
markets of Paris; but that he hoped to get trans
ferred to something more esthetic; he would pre-
fer TO be sort of subcurator in picture gallery.
See. Monsieur, can hold n fork like this-or
l can grasp glass; the thumb is exaggeratedly
long; have to get special glove -
Yes, the mutiles' features can be nodded into
something like human semblance, where it's the
face that has suffered. But that is hardly enough.
1t is not enough to make the hero for days. the
cripple for lifetime. look like He must
be restored to real living-to part In the world
OF Industry. That Is for the sake of Belgium.
France. or Britain, whatever his country may
be; 1t Is also for the mans own sake.
have just had talk with Miss Grace Harper,
chief of the bureau of the re-educaton of mutiles
Mt American Red Cross headquarters in Paris.
She has shown me estimates that for every mil
lion men placed in the field France counts hav-
ing to care for 10000 mutiles-5.OOO of them n
month. And this figure does not take account Of
the war blinded and wardeafened and war-crazed.
please do quote these figures as our own."
says the cautious chief "They are the best esti-
mates we have been able to secure, but they are
estimates
France is working miracles in making over
manned men," Miss Harper goes on, but ut
the close of 1917 the work of reconstruction has
not yet caught up with the destructive forces. Un
der the French system the wounded soldier passes
from Post de Secours' to n base hospital and
thence to one of the eleven existing Centres de
Physiotherapie." At that center he receives sur
gical treatment. physotherapy. both, physio
therapy meaning electrical or mechanical massage
Here he receives also artificial limb. and his
industrial training is begun-to fit him for a
place in the social organism
"The French centers of physiotherapy are capa-
bic Of receiving less than 25 per cent of the mu-
tiles. Happily the schools of re-education are able
to take care of some OF those mutiles who must
perforce, forego the physotherapeutics.
Il am talking 10 you in terms like these because
the problem is such big one. and because our
own country, too, must realize something of the
problem all up against. and the support
that must be given to the American Red Cross IL
either to be of much help to France or to
ourselves In this business of making out of
wars wastage But l want you to realize that the
Red Cross did not come to France just to study.
II. for one, have been in Paris since March, 1917
and have visited practically every large center of
re-educational work in France, and some of the
small ones; not all, by any means, for nominally
there 103 of them. The Red Cross continues
to study the new developments, the demands
In the field of re-education. for when the Ameri-
can army has its full share of casualties the Red
Cross, whose first task is to back up that army,
must benefit by French and British experience.
But our real program for helping in France has
now advanced beyond the stage Of study.
"A superficial examination of field shows
this: The training already provided In France Is
industrial training. the preparation of dis.
charged soldiers for such Jobs as stenography.