s.e.xUAL INDULGENCE is a matter to be handled tactfully, but with absolute frankness. Men should be taught that it is not a matter of necessity; that their health will not suffer by any lack of it; that they themselves will be the sufferers for any violations of rules of health. The procedure directed by the War Department for purposes of combatting infection is as follows:
1. That physical inspections of enlisted men be made twice each month for the detection of venereal disease.
2. That any soldier who exposes himself to infection shall report for cleansing and preventive treatment immediately upon return to camp or garrison.
3. That any soldier who fails so to report, if found to be suffering from a venereal infection, shall be brought to trial by court martial for neglect of duty.
4. That men so infected shall be confined strictly to the limits of the post during the infectious stages of the disease.
5. That all officers serving with troops shall do their utmost to encourage healthful exercises and physical recreation and to supply opportunities for cleanly social and interesting mental occupations for the men under their command.
6. That company and medical officers shall take advantage of favorable opportunities to point out the misery and disaster that follow upon moral uncleanliness; and the fact that venereal disease is never a trivial affair.
With a great many men these precautions and measures will not be necessary but for the sake of those who are ignorant or neglectful, proper steps should at all times be taken.
EXERCISE.--A sufficient amount of exercise to maintain health is ordinarily provided by military drills and other duties requiring active movement. But this should be regarded only as the minimum of exercise; athletic work should be encouraged (and this will be done by the present activities of those "higher up"); bayonet training will be found an excellent medium of accomplishing a double purpose; calisthenics should be short but snappy and vigorous. A vigorous policy of an officer as regards things of this sort will ward off a great many minor ills and particularly "colds," which are often the result of poor ventilation.
CLEANLINESS OF SURROUNDINGS.--Men should be taught that cleanliness of surroundings is not merely for purposes of inspection; but that it is absolutely necessary where a great number of men are living together in close quarters. Quarters should be well policed; the company street should be kept clean; refuse of all sorts should be kept in receptacles provided for that purpose and frequently removed. A police squad appointed daily should be charged with this work, and the corporal of the same made responsible for the condition of quarters and the company street.
PREVENTABLE DISEASES.--Men should be given a certain amount of theoretical knowledge of preventable diseases. These matters will be taken care of to a large extent by the Medical Corps; but men should be taught just what precautions are necessary to avoid recourse to the hospital.
VENEREAL diseases have already been touched upon.
TYPHOID FEVER is a germ disease and communicable. Vaccination is the first preventive; protection of water supply is the second; thorough disposal of wastes is a third; and sharp punishment for violation of sanitary regulations is a fourth. Habits of personal cleanliness will do much to prevent any such disease.
DYSENTERY is very common in field service, but may be prevented by same methods as for typhoid fever, save for vaccination; men suffering from this malady should be isolated, if possible, and utmost precaution taken to prevent spread of the disease.
MALARIA is a mosquito disease; get rid of mosquitoes and then you will get rid of the carrier of the germs. Quinine may act as a preventive.
Cases should be isolated, if possible.
TONSILITIS AND COLDS may be combatted very effectively by proper precautions as to ventilation.
MEASLES.--Very important but little known; isolation recommended.
There are many other diseases concerning which the men should be instructed, but lack of s.p.a.ce prevents further treatment of them. They should be taught the proper treatment of blistered feet, for they incapacitate a great many men; the chief causes are ill-fitting shoes and our old friend "uncleanliness." Shoes are the most important article of clothing of the infantryman; each man should have one pair well broken in for marching, and two other pairs. Socks should be soft, smooth and without holes--also _clean_. Further steps for the prevention of blisters are; hardening of the skin by appropriate baths for the feet; soaping the feet; or adopting some other means of reducing the friction of the foot against the sock. _Treatment_--Wash the feet; open the blister at the lowest point, with a clean needle; dress with vaseline or other ointment and protect with adhesive plaster, care being taken not to shut out the air. Zinc oxide plaster is excellent. Sterilize a needle; thread it with a woolly thread and run it through blister, leaving ends projecting about one-half inch; this will act as a wick and dry up blister in short time.
FIRST AID.--Explain to the men the uses of the first aid packet and of the pouch carried by the Medical Corps. (This pouch is being replaced by web-belts with pockets.)
WOUNDS may be cla.s.sed as ordinary cuts, inside wounds, lacerated, punctured and poisoned wounds. For ordinary minor wounds--iodine and exposure to the air are usually sufficient. _War wounds_ are usually caused by something having an explosive effect and may be accompanied by hemorrhage, shock and even loss of function; they may be arterial or venous.
POISONED WOUNDS are of two sorts; external and internal.
DIAGNOSIS TAG.--This tag placed on a soldier shows wound, name, rank, regiment, treatment received, etc. This tag should be carefully read before further treatment is accorded.
TREATMENT OF WOUNDS.--The compress, of the first aid packet will always prove of help.
BLEEDING WOUNDS.--The bandage of the first aid packet will stop all ordinary bleeding; but in aggravated cases the bleeding may be stopped by pressure on the artery, between the wound and the heart. This may be done by hand or by means of the forceps in the medical pouch. The points of compression should be learned and located; in front of the ear just above the socket of the jaw; in the neck in front of the strongly marked muscle reaching from behind the ear to the upper part of the breast bone; in the hollow behind the collar bone; just behind the inner border of the larger muscle of the arm; the femoral artery at the middle of the groin where the artery pa.s.ses over the bone.
Bleeding may also be stopped to some extent by elevating the wounded part. A tourniquet may be improvised by using the compress, running a stick or the bayonet through the band, and taking up the slack by twisting.
POISONED WOUNDS.--For a _snakebite_ make a tight constriction just above the wound; make an incision at the bite and suck out the poison.
_Do it quickly_. If this is impossible, follow the same plan but give a stimulant; repeatedly loosen the constriction and let a little of the poison into the system at a time to be neutralized. In cases of chemical poisoning do not follow the usual method of treating poisoning. _Do not make the patient vomit_, but give him something fat or alb.u.minous such as raw eggs or milk. This forms mercurial alb.u.minate. _Ptomaine_ poisoning (symptoms are headache, cramps, nausea, high fever and chills, etc.). Drink salt water, vomit and repeat the procedure to clean out the stomach. A purgative should also be taken. Ice cream and milk kept too long are frequent causes of this sort of poisoning, as are dishes kept in the icebox over night.
FAINTING, HEAT EXHAUSTION AND SHOCK are all of the same cla.s.s; symptoms are the same--weak pulse, paleness and low temperature, tendency to fall to ground. Often follows taking too much water on the march. Treatment should be in nature of stimulant; make patient lie down, get blood to his head, wrap him in blankets, give him hot drinks, etc.
SUNSTROKE.--Symptoms and treatment are different. Patient has a high temperature. Keep his head high and feet low; disrobe him and pour cold water on him; keep him in a cool place until temperature lowers to 101; then remove cold water and temperature will go down itself. Do not apply cold water too long as the temperature may go to sub-normal which is just as dangerous as a temperature abnormally high.
BURNS AND SCALDS.--Air should be shut out; otherwise treat like blister, care being taken not to remove skin. Do not put on anything that will stick and do not try to remove anything that has a tendency to stick; put on linseed oil and water, cotton and a loose bandage.
FREEZING AND FROSTBITES.--Use ice water and snow to start with. Keep the patient cool until he is thawed out. Ma.s.sage and gradually work up to a warmer temperature.
FRACTURES are of three kinds; simple, compound and comminuted.
Simple: Bones do not penetrate the skin (may be single or double).
Compound: Bones penetrate the skin and cause infection.
Comminuted: Bone is shattered.
Indications of a fracture are: Pain, redness, swelling and mobility where it ought not to be.
TREATMENT.--Find out the kind of fracture. Paint the wound and put on first aid packet; replace the clothes and splint the break. Splints should not be too long so as to cause any friction or annoyance to the patient. They may be made out of any available material, such as rifle, bayonet, shingle, piece of board, scabbard, etc. Bind them firmly but not too tightly.
ARTIFICIAL RESPIRATION.--This subject is worthy of more treatment than it can be accorded here. Any text on first aid will explain thoroughly the Schaefer method, which is now the standard method in the army.
Points to be remembered in this method are; remove foreign articles from the mouth; curl the little finger over the 12th rib; avoid the pelvic bones; hold the arms straight and apply the pressure by means of the whole body brought forward; take care not to break a rib; do not give up too soon.
TRENCH FOOT.--This is due to long standing with legs and feet in wet clothes. There are three types:
Mild: Symptoms are numbness and a slight swelling.
Medium: Additional symptom of a bluing of the leg; also large blisters.
Severe: Gangrene sets in.
Tight clothes help to bring on these things. Keep the shoes, socks and breeches loose; keep the clothes dry; furnish the men with hot food in the trenches and so keep up the circulation. _Do not use grease_.
Trench foot can be avoided by proper treatment, and punishment should follow upon its contraction.
CHAPTER 11.
Signaling.
This chapter proposes to cover a large amount of ground in a small compa.s.s; hence treatment must be brief. A more liberal treatment will be found at different sources; here a few suggestions and hints will be given.
SEMAPh.o.r.e.--Time spent, 61 hours: 6 sessions 1/2 hours, 1 session 1 hour, 1 conference 2 hours. It is easy to say "just learn the semaph.o.r.e," but to learn it quickly and well is another matter. A few suggestions as to the methods followed by others will usually prove helpful. Learn the semaph.o.r.e by what may be called the "cycle" method, _i.e._, teach and ill.u.s.trate how the successive letters are formed by moving the arm or arms around the body in a clockwise direction through successive stages. There are a few exceptions to the rule as will be pointed out; but they only serve as a few landmarks and help to fix the whole matter more firmly in mind.
FIRST CYCLE.--1 arm. A to G. One arm always at the interval. Be sure to make the "D" with right arm straight overhead--then it is more distinct at a distance. (Plate.)
SECOND CYCLE.--2 arms. H to N, inclusive, with exception of J. One arm always in the A position. In making I always be sure that the left hand is at the A position. Some men insist in making this letter wrong by crossing the body with the left hand uppermost. This is very awkward and also very indistinct at a distance. P changes arms but retains same relative position of flags.