Dear Mary,
This is
my last day in the hospital. After I was shot in the leg, I summoned up the
energy and forced myself to limp away from the battlefield until a man helped
me all the way back to a regimental aid post (RAP). On the way, I noticed other
Canadian men that were more severely injured and had to be carried back by
stretcher bearers. At the time, I felt woozy and thought I would go unconscious
before reaching the place. At the RAP, they could only carry out first aid and
provide some men with drinks but as they could give me proper treatment, I was
further taken to a casualty clearing station (CCS) by ambulance.
The ambulance I was carried in
I got there after
some time and the first thing I noticed was the strong stench of blood inside
and it was not merely coming from the blood streaming down my left leg. Someone
helped me to the bed and two other men started performing surgery to remove the
bullet from my flesh. I clenched my teeth and gripped onto the side of my bed,
restraining myself from letting out even a grunt. I couldn’t allow myself to
express the slightest pain I felt while there were hundreds of others that lied
down, looking like they were dying.
A nursing sister told me I would be fine in no time. I noticed other soldiers who had lost an eye, an ear or were left with deformed faces after getting it stitched from a deep cut. People were having their fingers cut off or legs amputated which made me feel extremely lucky to have only received an indirect shot. Others had even bigger wounds on their chests or thighs with blood gushing out nonstop. I could almost sense the excruciating pain they felt. Finally after they dressed up my leg with bandages, I was put on a train nearby and brought to a hospital because the CCS was just overflowing with terribly injured people who had to be tended to immediately. Now that I’ve had about a week’s worth of healing, I have to return to my unit tomorrow morning. Still, I must have my last good night’s rest so I will write again as soon as possible. I’m sure I’ll be back fairly soon so I hope that for the time being, you too are taking care of yourself as well as Sammy.
At the CCS
A nursing sister told me I would be fine in no time. I noticed other soldiers who had lost an eye, an ear or were left with deformed faces after getting it stitched from a deep cut. People were having their fingers cut off or legs amputated which made me feel extremely lucky to have only received an indirect shot. Others had even bigger wounds on their chests or thighs with blood gushing out nonstop. I could almost sense the excruciating pain they felt. Finally after they dressed up my leg with bandages, I was put on a train nearby and brought to a hospital because the CCS was just overflowing with terribly injured people who had to be tended to immediately. Now that I’ve had about a week’s worth of healing, I have to return to my unit tomorrow morning. Still, I must have my last good night’s rest so I will write again as soon as possible. I’m sure I’ll be back fairly soon so I hope that for the time being, you too are taking care of yourself as well as Sammy.
Love
always, James Carter
(Sources:
- http://regimentalrogue.com/misc/researching_first_world_war_soldiers_part13.htm
- http://www.1914-1918.net/wounded.htm)
No comments:
Post a Comment