THE WOUNDED IN SEA FIGHTS

North Otago Times, Volume CIV, Issue 13662, 2 September 1916, Page 2

THE WOUNDED IN SEA FIGHTS

HOW THE NAVY TENDS THE' v.u; : , ':^^ASvALTiEß;;:: : ; ;■;';:■.-■■,, ; '.'V- ;'(By,J,J. ti|^o;DaUy;M»li,):v:r^ ] Willie,-the ''Nelson spirit'*:Btllljanimates.'.'officers aiid-iiien'because'lt'/is soiiiethiiig'.-.tliat cauiiot boimprovpd on, ,iH'inatters.o'f nuitcf'ial' aiid bigatiisMg l '•'iJio Navy- keeps uplo;'datc—j;6r'so:ahcaT6f It, : ,"l-u : haudlingc|spl-? I tics : ;in laud-war' and :•'sea -war-''there.'is ■■" riio.w- little .difference in .practice. -Exact liH'-ll?^™ 1 lf . 1 ' ;-V?J. stained } : ber' realise; circumstances are against:such a' ■tliiii'g.f. ;But' ; oil /sea;! lib sjii ta 1 hi ps•li avo '■• similar.; I ,ol'ough't ~about v 'on, laud, ;by ; motor; andiu-J i-')'aiic'(\s;,aiid,-''ah!bulaiicc;.,trai 'iib'l;ireturii to port after ,'i-battle, ~ Hospital,: ships, would., convey I'tli'e wo'unilcd.' fi;oiii../MJ)e lighting line," , to hospital/ If:t%Flee 1 tydid viii;;'.'naval, .amhulancti grains .WbMil'Vlwavs- li : e .'available',- wherever' |a'ml ? jyliciievcr. reijuirpxl. -y-AJl' thls'Wijs plauiwKoiit .bofo)ti r war,begah, .a.ndw i'W;t%'.'"systeln-'''ii'a3 :i Wrked : ''ni&'Bt ( .effi'' ;ciontly,;';; ;r - •:.■•'!'.";'.' ■\. .„„..'.- :'■

:- ; :Exc^pt ; . for:tlie''.'- < small,.;f7 ) ' , '.;!:all. warshipsicariiy*two .or ni'or'e'surgeons,' iof-«whW the'fleet-'s'ui'geon : is>the senior,-- /.TJiitJe'r :the ? -doctors ;there : :'is v a 'trained,-;:.6ta'ff : t ; of; : sick-berth'. stewards and aj;tendan;ts',who' h'av'e.„'becn' taijght ' ••th-eir;-,iobs:ib;;dßy-.pf i'the:'tig,.iiayar!'hoss tysJfy iiavai ; ; terminology,, rather 1 •pzzlosftlio r lajfclsmauj, .one'. niay explain tUafc:. tlie .'.'Qiek. 'bay;- is the ''do'ctor.'s ' sliop'.'. of.- tjie;-sliip;aiid its' tomp'orary Jiospital;;, Bb. far,, as appearance/.goeß ■it.vsoiri'ewhat - resembles"a; smallV hosjiUr.'Warai M^ji/who"''go v sick' ,:i - or-.arc. Jiurt ; ara • '^^l"!. .the' ut until ihey, are: able ;to to. duty'or an" opportunity them;tp hospital comes 'along. \ 'Pbrfsdine'^earsfpa^''there' has .gener' J ! ally.,.been,aUio!ipitar''sliip,in regular.at- ' 'teiKlane,e.>pon Jhe'-Eieet'- whenever■-it ;"was-,at;:sea. .'For along.whilUliis.iduty iulfilleil^by-t'ilie^.Maine/ a vessel, • igiyen. fp 'usi dnTing War,, •. Now .we have ; iqujete' a■ 'tfeef; of thQse,|oatiiig'iiayal'hospitals. ■ :.r; : -> •? ,, Second ; tO'None. i : l \" : ' : :. / Tile .'medical.;; department' of.'' the' Navy : has; not'; always■.••b.eohv'feo good- as it.js ! no% although that'was not the fault of -its- officers..' Until ai couple of decades ago •the;' Sick-bay 'arrangements • : w'ere • rather ..crude.. Surgeons: had to provide ' their'o'wii'instruments, which' meant .'.. that their cases we're.not'too well filled sometimes. More than once in;those casualda'ys I have been, shown in>Bick 1 bays antiquated' sets of surgical infetru-. ments that had btien handed downftom . surgeon to surgeon and 'told that 'they were.in use 'at Trafalgar. But this I regarded as being mtkded to emphasise the unfitness of the '''tools" rather than' tci itell'their true,history, • ' |'\ Somebody- at- last put "a dose of finger", 'into' tlie Admiralty, ami the Navy began to move towards its present state' of unprecedented cfficjeiicy. •'"■'■ One of!the earliest steps taken along this-road, was the equipment of sick bays with full sets of modern ; surgical ' instruments. • Arrangements were., likewise made .for... ua'yal.' surgeons' to : - abreast, of the times in professional knowledge. Now the Naval Medical Service is ..second to none—and ahead of most, ■ •'. -..■'",

[ While a battleship is in action the surgeons and' their assistants occupy two'. stations, one forward, 'the other aft. .Both are; "down below" 1 in a piace protected by -armour. Also, both plies' are iitted "iip ; like perfcetly - equipped operating theatres. When, at the call of' the. bugle,'' sailors go to their guns in readiness for.action, the sick-berth staff valid' those detailed to assist Iheiir start littihg out the medical . stations.. Thither they carry operating • table • and - all ndcessary instruments, a.medical' chest, an emergency chest,, bowls'of 'antiseptic, and -all else that is needed fqr-the grim work that lies ahead of the surgeons. A peep into 1 one" of these stations, with, its white-clad staff,.would make one think lie'was;looking at'a section that-had been taken' from a, hospital and- by some menus dropped, into a warship. One would not,* in fact, find in- any ' hospital ashore a better equipped operating theatre,-than -one of these, "statious" 'wiicu it lias:been fully "laid " out." ; ■•.', . ' ;-.

Stretcher parties : move, about the ship after the. fight- hap'begun and* pithor up. the wounded, whom they "strike down" (lower through a hatch) to the surgeons,below,>'.After being attended to there, the wounded are car.; ried to the sick-bay, the ward-room; or any other part::of the. ship that has been turned into a temporary: hospital, ami-remain there' under'the"charge of sick-bay: men until'.they ■ .can-"be:'re-moved. . ;■■ . .

Magnificent-.Work. Forc3ighted' : as wj>llW' thorough are :he. mothode of our naval doctors, If

possible, before going. irity action everyone aboard the ship bathes and puts on clean white underclothing. .This is done because .it has been found'thafc the. dyes iii coloured clothing infect wounds; and thus" niake a man's'injuries worse than they would' otlierwis'o be. As it is not always possible in the heat.of battle for the ambulance -par- , ties to. pick up men immediately, they fall, sailors aro taught first aid, aritl a bag of-first-aid dressing is supplied-,to every gun's crew,, so that, -prompt, though' temporary, attention may-be- J>given': to/every wounded man,-. Blue- '' ■' jackets usually knot a' black-silk handkerchief around their'waists when'going .into action, and this handkerchief ' comes' in handy as a triangular baudago in.an emergency. ■ ■ Tlie 'naval surgeon, has to ''carry on" in':far more trying conditions than , fall to tile lot of his Army confrere!

All the time, a battle is in progress lie remains in the heat of the fray, for he cannot get out of it. For him there is .■'no such .'thing «s a dressingstation outside the zone of fire or on the, edge of it, With the' thud of falling shells and the noise of near-by explosions ever in his ears he must go steadily along, doing his best for the'wounded; who .are conjing to him in a continuous stream. All the while he | docs not know at'what moment his ship may; be sunk,'; in which case his own chancy of escape, like that of everybody, offiji "below," would be small,: Even WW extreme calamity does not happen, IIM is always a possibility that a stray projectile may find its way to his "station" or fill the place with choking fumes.'

Faced by all these: risks, and amid a deafeniug pandemonium of roaring guns,'ho must'keep a deft hand and a steady nerve, as the preservation of life and limb depends upon his skill. Truly, his situation is one not to be coveted, but he never gives thought to its difficulties: and dangers. Duty is the supreme call, ami he obeys it wholeheartedly. During the North Sea battle the naval 'surgeons and. their

stall's did magnificent work, and many of them died at their posts. All honour to them for their courage and devotion!