Evening star., 1942-09-24
U. 5. Army Designing
Bush Shirt for War
In Desert Climates
Garment EosiIy Adjusted
To Meet Extremes
Of Temperature
BY THOMAS r. HENRY,

BY THOMAS r. HENRY.
About 80 years ago East African
elephant hunters began pulling theil
shirts out of their pants.
Thus they may be said to have re.
discovered fundamental principle
OF designing clothing for comfort ii
countries with great extremes o.
temperature rapidly succeeding each
other.
They developed the "bush shirt.
1t became almost the uniform oi
African hunters.
Now specialists of the United
States Army Quartermaster Corp.
attached to the Research and De.
velopment Branch, familiar with the
adjustments essential for life ir
deserts, are developing this shirt
which serves as both shirt and coat
Into a prospective part of the uni
form Of American soldiers.
Their experiments under the able
guidance of Maj. Gen. Edmund B
Gregory, the quartermaster general
may have far-reaching effects on
postwar clothing.
Russians Alone Baked.
Prominent in the work of design
Ing desert clothing, as well as various
other paraphenalia essential to life
in the hot, waste places of the earth
Is DR.. Frederick r. Wulsin, Harvard
University explorer and anthropolo-
gist, who has led several desert ex-
petitions.
Much OF this necessarily Is kept
secret because such a detail as the
technique of obtaining drinking
water in the desert might mean the
difference between victory and de-
feat in = campaign.
The basic principles Of the bush
shirt, however, have long been
known to all the combatants.
Throughout most of history, DR..
wulsin explains. the shirt has been
worn outside the pants by most
peoples.
Only the Russians, among Euro
peans, consistently have refused to
tuck 1t in ana have been subjected
to some ridicule because of what now
appears to have been common sense
The dress of Europeans before
the Middle Ages, DR.. Wulsin points
out, was essentially an undershirt
covered by a loose outer garment
which might be compared either to
the present shirt or to the coat.
Such was the jerkin and the Roman
t,lnic. They were garments designed
for service and comfort.
Easily Adjusted to Heat.
Then, probably because Of an ef-
fete fancy of the wealthy, folks be-
gan putting decorations ns"-collars
and cuffs-on their undershirts, worn
next to the skin. This led In turn
to = separate garment, with no
known utilitarian purpose, to be
worn under the jerkin. 1t was
tucked into the pants. The outer
garment itself was somewhat modi
fed to become the present day coat.
The models of bush shirts de-
Nsed by Quartermaster Corps spe-
ciaists look like coats.
But If we called them coats y,
say DR.. Wulsin, somebody would be
sure to have the bright idea of
putting shirts under them and the
Idea would largely be defeated.
The great advantage of the bush
shirt for desert warfare, he ex-
plains, Is that it can be adjusted
20 easily to variations in tempera-
ture. It is fitted with an adjustable
belt. When q soldier is cold he
tightens the belt and the warmth
Of the garment is increased. When
he Is hot he loosens the belt and
allows the air to circulate. This
cools him off rapidly, as long as he
keeps moving.
Shorts" Not Official Garb.
The shirt is worn with loose pants
with extremely large pockets to carry
food, ammunition, etc. They can be
either full-length or Shorts" and
this, certain authorities believe,
should be left to the commanding
officers in the field.
Shorts" never have been official
" approved by the United States
Army. There are various objections
to them. One is that the knees get
skinned when soldiers are obliged
TO crawl on their stomachs. Another
Is that bare knees attract mosquitoes
and are scratched badly when pass.
ing through brambles. There is nj
question but that they are cooler.
without trying to balance the
score, many clothing designers say
some consideration must be given tt
the fact that British, French, Ital.
fans and Germans after experience
in desert fighting have all adopted
shorts"
Extremely Cold at Night.
Perhaps no area of warfare. DR.
wulsin says, requires such adjust
able clothing as the desert. The ides
that a desert, even close to th'
Equator, is constantly hot, he ex
plains. is a complete fallacy. Al
most anywhere it is likely to get ex
tremely cold at night. Also fal
lacy is the idea that deserts ar
wastes OF sand. A map Of Nortl
Africa, for example, shows no grea
expanse Of sand near the regiol
where British and Germans now ar
fighting.
This terrain is mostly broker
rock. The rocks soak up heat durin
the day and give 1t OF very rapid
as soon as the sun goes down. Ther
IL no thick blanket of water vapo
to reflect it back again, such as on
finds in temperate climates. 1t sim
ply becomes diffused into space,
A British officer recently returne
from North Africa told DR.. Wulsi
that he always needed two woole
blankets at night in summer an
four or five in winter. A heav
oyercoat was needed all winter.