From tae " Kose Heratp."
The following are extracts from an ex-interesting article by a Japanese military surgeon, translated and edited Mr. Adashi Kinnosuke, which appeared in "The Independent" for the 20th of October "How is it with you, the Red Cross People? Have you not had a number of casualties even among your people in this war?" said Field-Marshal Oyama to me on his way to the front. And, indeed, in the violence of their zeal Russian bullets have paid not a few compliments to the headquarters of the Red Cross.
It was little past seven o'clock on the evening of the 24th of July, and the place was near Tashichiao, in the village of Taping. That was the time and that was the place where I received my first wound. The battle was savage, and the shots that fell round about the field hospital were quite thick. From all over the battlefield came the call for the surgeon. I was stooping over a soldier who was severely wounded. I had my back to the enemy's fire. My brave fellow was shot in his right leg. I was doing what 1 could for him. At the time I was at peace with most people and all the gods, thinking I was engaged in a good work. I was somewhat surprised, therefore, by a sudden visit from a Russian bullet just at that time. I felt as if somebody had taken a stout iron rod to me with a certain degree of violence. Not in the least did I suspect that I was shot. 'The first news that I was wounded came from an army nurse, a man whom I knew very well, and who is called Fukazaws, I saw him' rush over the wounded and the blood-stained battlefield toward me. Bandages were flying from his hand, eyes were wild. He seemed to be very much excited, and he was scandalised to find that I was perfectly innocent of the fact that I was hit. He went for my wound "s if his very life were dependent upon it.
The war has wrought many singular changes in our solders. At home. in camp, it has been the experience of all of us surgeons to find soldier here and there who would come with a plausible story of some complaint from which he was suffering. He would ask for a statement from us that he might be excused from the daily exercise. Now upon the battlefield the contrary is the fret. Our men, who xre indifferent both to the Russian bullet and to hostile swords, they who laugh at the Russi mines and barbed wire fences, and delight in joking frivolously about death, seem to be afraid of one thing: they are afraid of being suspected of being ill at They know that when a man is sick he is denied the pleasure and d tinction of fighting in the first line of battle. The other day I came upon a man who was carrying four bullets within him, I said to him, seeing his clothes were bloody, " What is the matter? you not wounded?" He turned to me with a smile and said, "Oh, no, not at sir; I am perfectly well." I saw him limp. I laid a violent hand upon him and subjected him to an examination. As I have said, I found four bullets in hi body. Imect with just such a case a hundred times more or less every day. They shun the surgeon as they would the very demon, and it is very much more difficult to discover a man who is ill than a man carrying four bullets. Not a single soldier has come to us and complained of his illness. Always they have taken care to conceal the first symptoms of disease, and by the time the medical men are able to find out thata man is ill he finds his patient completely beyond the assistance of medical, science. This is working hardship upon our men and upon our hospital corps. Men who could have been cured in the earlier stages of their illness are dying from this peculiar attitude of the Nippon soldier. To see him in his endeavour to remain in the fighting line, and it matters little whether he is mortally wounded or seriously ill, you would say that the Nippon soldier is certainly insane. To fight every minute of the day and night seems to be the one thing he wants. He is a casuist of the purest water. He troubles himself very little as to the methods, so long as the end in view is attained. Ho taxes his wit to the utmost. He seems to put in all his lonely hours in the lull of fighting to frame many plausible yarns with which to blind the searching eyes of his superior officers and surgeons in their attempt to discover a sign of illness or of wounds that might be carrying and from which he is dying. Many of these white lies bring tears to most of Even when they are amusing in their lameness, the tales they tell throw more light for the student of the Nippon soldier than any heavy volume of official reports. As if we have not enough to do, therefore, we are obliged to keep our eyes sharply upon every private so shat we may catch him in his unguarded moment and save in spite of himself.
The effect of the first wound or two on cour soldier is rather striking. Instead of stopping him, they invariably help to fire him with enthusiasm and to increase his energy. I have no psychological oxplanation to account for this singular pheno. menon. Asa matter of fact, I simply jot down my observation that almosti.every soldier who receives a wound seems to rush forward with double the ener and enthusiasm toward the hostile positions.
Many a time have I myself hoard a soldier rushing forward with the ory, "Rosky, you brutes! Wait a minute! We will show you a thing or two!" And invariably, whenever I hear this cry, I know that the soldier who is rushing past me is wounded. Asa simple statement of fact I may be permitted to put down here that, in the minds of our soldier boys, the field hospital is a Hades, compared to which the desperate hand-to-hand fighting with the Russian is a rath r entertaining Paradise. It was yesterday that I actually stumbled over a soldier. Ho was down on the ground. So severely had he been wounded that he could not continue forward march. I said to him: Hero, my man, you are wounded. Let moe call tcher. You have no time to lose in making your way to the hospital." In answer he turned his face to me and laughed out loud, and said: " Why, sir, there is nothing the matter with me at all. Is possible that the august presence is so blind as not to see that I am resting a bit? I had to run a great deal and Iam somewhat tired; that is all. Wait a minute, then you will see how I will get at those Russians, and you will be thoroughly satisfied that I am as healthy as the next man." Do you know that the men of the hospital and myself had actually to use physical force to get this fellow upon the stretcher and carry him to the rear Cuanxe's Wortp-Fasxp Broop Mrxrune "The most searching Blood Cleanser this Sold everywhere at 2s. Od. per bottle. Beware of worthless imitations and subscience and medical skill have brought to light." Sufferers from Scrofula, Scurvy, Eczema, Bad Legs, Skin and Blood Diseases, Pimples, and Sores of all kinds are solicited to give it a trial to test ite value. Thousands of wonderful cures have been effected by it, stitutes —Apvr.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.