An Unconquerable

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30478, 27 June 1964, Page 4

An Unconquerable

Horizontal Man. By Paul Bates and John Pellow. Longmans. 190 pp. Illustrated.

This is a documentary of great importance not only ini the realm of medical and scientific treatment but in the province of human courage. Paul Bates while serving in the army in Malaya contracted poliomyelitis. The year was 1954. For 10 years now he has been almost completely paralysed. The narrative of how he has overcome many of his disabilities is thrilling. Apart from the amazing things he can now do, typing from his mouth, operating an amateur transmitting station, taking part in an air race from London to Paris, etc., the courage to

conquer his emotional responses is magnificent. Mr Bates is dead from his neck to his toes, and having only two fingers of his left hand that he can move, he is a brilliant example of the power of mind over matter. He is an unconquerable. His life is governed by machinery not only to enable him to breathe (he has a tube in his throat fbr intake of air and is encased in a metal breastplate and backplate, and many electrical gadgets around him for all his activities) but there is no confining of his spirit and his will to live. There is humour in this book which softens tragedy. There is courage that defies despair. It is an unforgettable story.