Evening star., 1944-01-04

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A mule, 1t seems, loves to have its
ears bitten-not to hard but Just
hard enough so that he can feel 1t.
That is one Of the daily jobs OF a
mule nurse" at the field hospital
Maj. Wirtz has set up here where
animals wounded at the front are
brought back to be patched up and,
If possible, returned to service. They
are SO valuable in this campaign
that the loss of one of them Is al
most irreparable.
The vital need of mule transport
of ammunition. water and food in
mountain fighting through terrain
where there were no roads and
often no paths first became apparent
to the 45th Division in Sicily.
I remember during the fighting In
the hills west of San Stefano under
the blistering sun of late July see
ing soldiers scaling precipitate paths
with heavy water cans on their
backs and collapsing under the
ordeal. A small mule train was
hastily built up from animals re-
Questioned from neighboring farm
ers but, 1t turned out, these mules
and jackasses were less equal than
men to the terrific strain. They
had been underfed so long that
they were anemic and many of
them dropped dead on the mountain
slopes.
Began Collecting Animals.
But the commanding general of
the division satisfied himself that
lot OF good sturdy mules were
indispensable and Mai. Wirtz set
to work collecting animals and get
ting them in good condition for the
Italian campaign. Had 1t not been
for this foresight the extremely
difficult mountain fighting above
the Volterno would have been vastly
more difficult.
In numerous cases mules have
been the only means of getting sup
plies to the men pinned down in
1ox holes. They, at least, can 20
greater part of the way, but often
eventually the country gets SO rough
that they must be unloaded and
their burdens placed on the backs
OF men who go on all fours through
the rocks to the foreward positions.
Naturally, a lot of mules are
wounded and others are seriously
injured by slipping over cliffs. Often
the injuries are so severe that nor
mally the animals would be shot
But here they are so hard to get
that whenever it is humanity possible
they are evacuated to the mule hos
pital. where the routine is much the
same as that in field hospital for
soldiers, with sick call every morn
Ing, and the application of the
latest advances of veterinary science
to restore the animals to duty.
Some major operations have been
performed with amazing results. A
mule with a piece of shrapnel
through one of its lungs was back
in service as a pack animal in a
couple OF weeks. Some come out of
the mountains with four or five
bloody shrapnel wounds in their
legs. Many have serious cases of
pneumonia.
Mule Nurses Necessary.
Just as in the case of human
beings, Maj. Wirtz says, the sulfa
drugs have been miracle workers
with mules, but the major factor
always is good nursing. Mule
nurses were not easy to find, but by
comolng the division. made up
largely of farm boys from the
Southwest, competent staff is
being built up. Mule handling. Mai.
Wlrtz points out, became largely a
lost art between the last war and
this one.
Mule sick CALI in the hospital
barnyard is a fascinating sight. The
animals are pareded before the
doctor. who watches them with a
practiced eye.
They tell me what is wrong with
them," he says, and, unlike SOL
diers, they never lie about it. I
have never yet caught a mule in a
lie. Maybe they are not clever
enough"
The telling" of course, is in the
way the sick animals behave.
For weeks getting wounded out of
the mountains was major problem
OF the campaign. Litter bearers,
with seriously injured men on their
backs, struggled through the rocks
for hours to get to the nearest
dressing station. The problem is
being met in part by a mule litter
devised by Maj. Wirtz by means of
which 1t is possible to carry a man
out OF the hills in relative comfort,