REMARKABLE FORTITUDE.

Colonist, Volume LVII, Issue 13795, 16 June 1915, Page 8

REMARKABLE FORTITUDE.

A motor ambulance driver in France tolls the following story of the remarkable fortitude oi: a severely wounded British officer. "After dinner I commenced a lottor,' but was interrupted by a shell bursting somewhere in the vicinity and a, man yelling for bandages. Of course, I rushed to see if I could be of any use, and found that the shell had burst at the side of the road about forty yards away, right in the midst of a party of Indian engineers who were inspecting the telegraph wires. T—and I grabbed stretchers from our car, and with some others rushed for the Indians. I was late in starting, owing to my litter, and all the Indians were being attended to when I arrived on the scone. However, I saw someone in the shell hole which was on the side of the road opposite from where ■ the men had been hit, and so had escaped .notice. In it was a man, the white officer of the Indians, who appeared to have his legs half buried in the debris of the- hole. He told us to attend to the others first; ho was all right. And then as we moved him we saw that ho was standing on the stumps of his legs! i?oth had been shot off at the knee. "He was perfectly conscious and ralm, and spoke as though he were a medical officer and someone else the victim. He looked at his legs as we moved him on to the stretcher and asked me quietly (he was not in tlie least excited, and his handsome face showed no pain) to tie something tight round both thighs to stop the bleeding. I did what I could with my handkorcliief and another I requisitioned, and we took him to our billet. We had to move hurriedly, of course, as a second shell had followed, and we wanted cover in case any more arrived. "There were two R.A.M.C. men with us and they attended to the subsequent first aid. They discovered another horrible wound in his arm, and while they were dressing it he told them he thought he would give up football nest year. We then took him to the nearest hospital; he was still conscious and perfectly collected, and laughed quietly and talked, apologising lor the trouble ho was causing, while on his way to the hosiptal. And I came back thinking of that tag in some book or other —'I have eeen a man.' The poor fellow died in hospital."