PALY IN A MISSING LIMB

Evening Star, Issue 16625, 7 January 1918, Page 4

PALY IN A MISSING LIMB

Much has been heard recently of the fact_ that persons who have lost a limb retain tho" sense" of that limb, and can feel pain in it. But a soldier who writes to the 'Manchester Guardian' describes a much more elaborate variation of the phenomenon: "I had the misfortune to lose my left hand on the Messines Ridge last June, and all the pain I have suffered from tho wound has been in the hand .which Ino longer possess. Now, the pecu"liair part of it all is that on alternate days the fingers of the missing hand open and closo—tliat is to say. yesterday they were closed, to-day they are open", to-morrow they will be closed again.' This change takes place during sleep, and once or twice, on restless nights, 1 have actually felt the change taking place. I was leftbraided. and during the attack I" carried my revolver in the missing hand. When the fingeTs are closed ther are exactly in the same position as if *thcv were- 'still grasping tho revolver. The only explanation I can offer is that, what remained of the hand after I was wounded was ammitated exactly 24 hours later. Also, I was wounded somewhere about 4 o'clock in the morning, and was onerated on about the sumo time the following morning, and the opening and closing of the lingers takes place about this time."