Evening star., 1942-09-13
BY SUSAN b. ANTHONY, III,

Star star Correspondent.
CARLISLE BARRACKS. Pa, Sept.
12.-It was zero hour" Our troops
concealed in an apple orchard wore
tense, watchful expressions. One
quarter mile to the east our smoke
screen obscured them from the
enemy.
Suddenly the non-com waved his
right arm signalling the moment
for attack" and the first khaki-clad
infantry squad, crouching low
sprang into action, advancing over
the yawning field with guns held
at high port" and bayonets fixed.
The sound of rifles, machine guns
and trench mortars shattered the
still air of the summer afternoon.
Pvt. Bill Jones was the first to
go down" from an enemy bullet. He
stopped short, arched himself, let
out sharp oath and fell His COM
rades raced on driving to the east
to crush the enemy. They could
not stop to help the wounded"
man.
But Bill was not forgotten. Hardly
had he dropped when a medical
soldier, part of Bills company, red
cross on his arm, came running to
him, located his wound" loosened
his tunic, quickly applied a dressing
taken from his first-aid pouch, with
drew Bills bayonet from his gun,
wrapped white bandage about
the bayonet and stuck it upright in
the ground.
Aided by Litter Bearers.
The medical soldier, called a COM
pany aid man, left Bill and raced
forward with the infantry attack
performing the same deft first-aid
tasks for every wounded" soldier
he could find in the battlefield.
Bill lay on the ground for only
q few minutes when four litter
(stretcher) bearers came over to
him. The white bandage on Bills
bayonet was the. signal for them
to pick up a little wounded" one
who could not walk Meanwhile,
walking wounded" men whose in
turies were slight were walking as
directed by the company aid men
to the battalion aid station, 500
yards back of the lines, the medical
unit which serves one infantry bat
talon.
Bill was lifed on to the canvas
litter. Three of the bearers sup
ported him on their knees while
one slid the litter under him with
q minimum of motion for the
wounded" man. They carried him
back to the mobile battalion aid
station, the first stop on Bills jour-
ney away from the infantry battle.
One of the medical officers at the
open air station. which is the med
ical unit closest to the front, ex-
amined Bills wound" gave him
a dose Of tetanus antitoxin to pre-
vent lockjaw and wrote out his di-
agnosis on a tag attached to Bills
uniform. Bill was placed under
tree until litter bearers took him
to his second stop, the collecting
station, one mile back from the
front, which collects patients from
battalion aid stations.
Picked Up BY Ambulance.
A this station, also in the open
air, Bill was examined once more
to see how he was holding up on
the Journey, was fed warm drinks
from the kitchen truck and was put
In a motor vehicle-an ambulance
for the first time since he was
'wo,lnded"
His third stop was 7 miles back
of the lines at the clearing sta
ton, the largest medical unit serv-
ing an infantry division, which
y clears patients from the three COL
lecting stations for evacuation still
further away from the battle. For
the first time Bill was placed in
tent. And here he received more
definite treatment for his wound"
than in either of the other two mo-
bile medical stations.
His fourth journey was by anbu-
lance once more to an evacuation
hospital, Is or more miles back of
the lines, and then to a general
hospital in the rear.
From the moment Bill fell on the
battlefield his life was in the hands
of the Medical Department of the
United States Army, the corps of
thousands of doctors, dentists, vet
erinarians, medical soldiers, litter
bearers and clerks. Their main goal
is to save Bills life by emergency
treatment administered at the three
mobile medical stations which move
as do the fighting infantry troops.
Their job is to fit wounded SOL
dier who cannot return to battle
for safe exit from the area in which
the infantry division is fighting to
comparatively safe hospital in the
rear.
Bill In this case was not really
wounded He was a member of the
32nd Medical Battalion of officers
and men who put on demonstrations
daily at the Medical Service Field
School, Carlisle Barracks, Pa, so
that medical officers and officer can
didates can get an eye witness view
of the exact technique for treating
and evacuating wounded soldiers in
the midst of battle.
Follow Fighting Units.
Under the command of 1t. Col.
Joseph U. Weaver the 32nd Medical
Battalion operates as part of a tri-
angular infantry division. The three
types of medical units of the field
service, three battalion aid stations
to a regiment, three collecting sta
tions and one clearing station to a
division advance or retreat with the
fighting infantry in the division
The normal method of evacuating
wounded from the front, however, is
not in the bright light of day as in
Bills case, In this war of aerial
bombardmert, total blackouts are
the safest and most desired condi-
tions under which to evacuate In
addition to daylight demonstrations
therefore, the 32nd Medical Battalion
Z demonstration troops illustrate the
whole process of evacuation from
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