Evening star., 1944-04-09
BY Harold B, Rogers.
Star Staff Writer.

a special brace. But he's playing volley
ball and tumbling on gymnasium mats,
to bring back that arm.
In a breathing spell between exercises,
Staff Sergt. Allen Anderson of Water
town, Wis, limbers up that crippled left.
eff they don't discharge me from the
Army I want to get right back into ac-
ton"
What kind of action?" he is asked
with the paratroops, of course!"
The doughty little sergeant is SYM
Dol of "reconditioning. That's the new
word adopted by the Army for bringing
soldiers back into form for another drive
against the enemy. Don't use ''rehabili-
tation" any more, Army officers advise.
Say ''reconditioning. That means
bridging the gap between a sick or
wounded soldier and a well soldier
again on duty with his outfit.
Sergt. Anderson is bridging that gap
at this great hospital along with hun
dreds of other battle casualties.
Physical and Mental Tonic
The program gives a soldier both
physical and mental tonic. Recondi-
tioning starts with exercises in bed
TT was dark when we came down into
Sicily" said the paratrooper. soon as
we got loose from our chutes, we formed
our group. The shooting started al
most at once. The next morning I got
mine, in six different places. 1t was
from an .88-millimeter gun off an enemy
tank. got blood plasrna on the beach.
That helped lot All the other wounds
have healed. They cut inches out
of this bone in my arm and fastened the
two loose ends together with screws.
Now it's perfect union. See how
strong it is? See that SCARF" he asks
rolling up sleeve. But the elbow is
stiff and this hand won't work good yet
Something about the nerve. It's grow
ing, though, that nerve, and as soon as it
grows together somewhere near the ell
bow, I'll be as good as new. Till then
I'll have to wear this brace" He used
to be a shoe cutter and figure skater be-
fore the war.
Jap Sniper Got Him
Former farmland Pvt. Gilbert Slayik
OF Diagonal, Iowa, got Jap sniper bull
let through the right shoulder on New
Georgia. "It hit me like a hammer
and went right on through" he said
pointing. These exercises are doing
me lot Of good" He had been going
the rounds of about Is different devices.
Including the big shoulder wheel The
wheel is about the size of one on an old
fashioned store coffee grinder. 1t keeps
Slavik's arm working in a big circle.
An artillery shell got Corp. Robert
Loaney of Kellogg, Idaho, a hard-rock
miner who worked before the war in
lead. silver and gold underground.
"We were building a bridge over the
Volturno River. The Germans tried
three times to hit us. The fourth time
they didn't miss. A augmentation shell
caught me under the right arm. Para
yzed a nerve. But it's good now"-this
Wn1le swinging his arm. The corporal
had just finished running an obstacle
course all around the big gymnasium.
generals, colonies and a big group of
visiting Army officers from all over the
United States here for a conference on
physical reconditioning watched eagerly.
Nothing Stops Them
These battle casualties were among 50
convalescent patients working in the
gym. Casts on arms and legs didn't stop
their running, jumping, swinging on
horizontal bars, parallel bars, riding the
bicycle, tumbling and hand wrestling
Some climbed ropes.
The most fun seems to be a rooster
night. Two lads with big casts on their
arms grin broadly. Each grabs hold of
one OF his own legs, and hopping about,
tries to bump the other off balance.
That's the real name of the exercise
rooster fight" and it is almost as
comical. 1t strengthens the leg. back
and other muscles. So does Indian
wrestling. But step on toes" proves the
hveliest sport of all. Looks like some
thing picked up out of the back alley
from youngsters of or g. Good thing
they have on hospital moccasins.
Two men upside down on an inclined
abdominal board" have their feet Sc
cured by straps and try to pull up. This
recalls an indictment against American
men
America is soft in the belly" charged
DR.. c. H. McCloy, civilian consultant to
the surgeon general of the army. "A
man is about as old as his abdominal
muscles DR.. McCloy warned the con-
ference session. Feel yourself there"
he advised" and see how old you are.
When you get a group of men who are
soft in the stomach, they are not in
good condition for the Army.
Americas Physical Needs
We have found that America is soft
In the belly. Following that up in the
experimenting studies, we find that we
have been sitting so much that we are
pretty thin down there, and that we
need lot Of deyelopnental work" DR..
McCloy, former YMCA physical director
talked for more than an hour on all
kinds Of physical needs of young
America
More strenuous exercise for patients
IN bed was recommended. This was
demonstrated over in the penicillin
ward, where the new wonder drug was
saving arms, legs and lives. There men
with long standing, or new infections,
were treated to the marvel of penicillin
healing.
Five Jap bullets hit Pvt. James Cogh-