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It may please the local doctors who lat ly, under appointment from the St. John's Ambulance Association, London, acted as exami 's for the Formosa centre, to hear that two of the candidates—both Customs' officers holding the certificate of coipetency—have recently had, and most effectively availed themselves of, opportunities for putting their knowledge to a practical test, while on duty on board steamers at Takow and Txinanfoo respectively. At the latter port one of the coolies engaged in loading the ship fell, and striking his arm against n sharp edge, divided the tissues, including one of the arteries. There wai of course bleeding, which the cloths applied by the native bystanders only served to absorb. The officer, on having his attention called to the accident, jumped down, put his thumb on the wounded vessel, and seizing the nearest thing at hand suitable for the purpose.—a lump of sugar—placed this in the man's armpit; by bandaging the arm close to h making pressure against the main artery, this effectually stopped all bleeding. The man was at once taken to the hospital, where the vessel was tied and the wound dressed, There can be no doubt: that but for this timely assistance the unfortunate sufferer would have bled to death very quickly. Only a few day afterwards, on board another steamer loading at Tainan-foo, a coolie fell down the hold and was grievously injured. 'The Customs' officer immediately attended tohim, bandaging and dressing his wounds, giving considerable relief, and certainly preventing that further injury being inflicted in transit which is s0 likely to happen when patients are handled by well-intentioned but ignorant bystanders.
We remembered hearing at the time of itsestablishmentthat this ambulance-centre, the first started in China, was formed chiefly for the use of the Customs' staff, whose duties are certainly liable to place them in positions where such training is likely to be of the utmost use, both to themselves and others.
We congratulate these officers on the good they have been able to effect, and their service on having added a further qualification in public utility to the others already possessed by its members, and which, in several respects, place the Chinese Customs ahead of similar services in other parts of the world.
18th April.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.