THE "FIRST AID" FEVER.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 294, 5 September 1908, Page 11

THE "FIRST AID" FEVER.

This is the season when those classes end that have during all the winter been teaching the inexperienced how to render first aid to the injured, and when tho students have to give an account of .what thoy have learned. In Wellington no. fewer than fiftyfivo women and girls havo been attonding the lectures and qualifying themselves as helpers in emergency. It is a noble work and worthy of great commendation; but with all tho admiration in the world for the earnest young pioneers of assistance to tho distressed, ono cannot help realising just tho sort of stir and commotion that those fiftjjfive students havo been causing in tho privacy of their own homes. Wo have most of us been there ourselves, and know what it means. Barbara has just been through her first examination, and if her family live to be Methusalohs they will never forget tho examination week. She had taken her lectures in a gay, light-hearted way, chattering to her next-door neighbour when occasion offered, bothered with the dry list of bones, quite _ sensationally interested in the effects of poisons, and proud of her bandages. That was until the week of the examination. When that camo, despair fell upon Barbara and on all the house. She was tragically sure that she would fail and that her family would thereby bo for ever disgraced. ■ Feverishly sho attacked the text-book, and at all odd hours, in all sorts of odd places, she would be found porring over its pages, ready, without an instant's warning, to thrust tho book into any friendly hand with the abrupt request: "Please hear mo my list of bones," or, "Ask me about the poisons." At meal-times we were aware of ner ghoulish eyes upon us, and shuddered as wo realised that she was mentally X-raying at our dorsal processes, or tracing tho course of a carotid artery. Her talk was of burns, poisons, and antidotes, her dream was of shocking accidents where she had to put tourniquets on three limbs and bandage for a fractured neck. On tho morning of tho examination, as 'she and her sister wore walking through town, a brown horse gently bolted down tho

street. It was not a very exciting bolt, but a sharp Corner to be turned gave it quite a I promising look, and pantingly Barbara hastened on-its trail. Tho sister lagged behind, but Barbara hurried on, never was pupil more anxious not to miss an object lesson, and never was kind-hearted girl moro disappointed than Barbara whon she arrived at tho scene of tho disaster, and bursting into tho midst of the crowd that had gathered found horse and driver contentedly nuzzling each othor's heads and exchanging condolences, while a broken shn.ffc alone ooro witness,.to tho fact that there had been any sort of accident. They don't teach how to bandago broken shafts at. the ambulance classos. Tho samo 6ister accompanying Barbara to tho examination room filled her, up to tho last minute! with information as to the effect of, and tho antidotes for. irritant poisons, and narrated inch by inch the progress of tho circulation of tho blood. "Thanks so much, goodbye," said Barbara, giving her sister a grateful squeeze. "Thanks so much," said her lips, but, "Yes, those are the floating ribs," said tho fingers that even in that last sad moment could not refrain from original rosearch. Tho door closed behind her, and Barbara bad gone to h'or doom. It was all over, thought tho sister, with a feeling of blessed relief. All over I No such luck! Great as was Barbara's anticipatory ignorance, greater still was what might be called her posthumous knowledge. That night sho brought homo with her a friend, a fellow pupil, and for three days tlio two did nothing but discuss tho questions that had been put to them, tho questions .that had not been put to them, tho wrong answors thoy gave, why they wero wrong, tho wrong answers other _ girls had given, tho extraordinary questions that other examiners had in bygone, prehistoric years put to moro or less fortunate pupils, together with all tho different Rorts of bandaging they might have been called upon to do. It was a terriblo week, and the only thing that kept the family from nervous prostration was the dread that Barbara might, if they broke down, take her. nursing course immediately, and insist qn practising on them. . .