Diary of a Nursing Sister on the Western Front, 1914-1915Anonymous
History
Diary of a Nursing Sister on the Western Front, 1914-1915
Anonymous
World War, 1914-1918 -- Hospitals, charities, etc.; World War, 1914-1918 -- Personal narratives
_Later._--Hazebrouck. We have been out, but couldn't get as far as No.--
Cl. H. (where I find T. is), as the R.T.O. said we might be going on at
11.30.
We came across an anti-aircraft gun pointing to the sky, on a little
hill. The gunner officer in charge of it seemed very pleased to see us,
as he is alone all day. (He walks up and down the road a certain
distance, dropping stones out of his pocket at each turning, and clears
out the surrounding drain-pipes to drain his bit of swamp, as his
amusements.)
He showed us his two kinds of 12 lb. shells, high explosives and
shrapnel. The high explosive frightens the enemy aeroplane away by its
terrific bang, he says: our own airmen say they don't mind the shrapnel.
He says you can't distinguish between one kind of French aeroplane and
the Germans until they are close enough over you to see the colours
underneath, and then it may be too late to fire. "I'm terrified of
bringing down a French aeroplane," he said. He was a most cheerful,
ruddy, fit-looking boy.
9 P.M.--Another train full, and nearing Boulogne; a supply train full of
minor cases came down just before us from the same place, where we've
been three days running. The two Clearing Hospitals up there are working
at awful high pressure--filling in from Field Ambulances, and emptying
into the trains. All cases now have to go through the Clearing Hospitals
for classification and diagnosis and dressings, but it is of a sketchy
character, as you may imagine. They are all swarming with J.J.'s, even
the officers. One of the officers is wounded in the head, shoulder,
stomach, both arms, and both feet. A boy in my wards, with a baby face,
showed me a beautiful silver, enamelled and engraved watch he got off a
"Yewlan"; he was treasuring it in his belt "to take home to Mother." I
asked him if the Yewlan was dead. "Oh yes," he said, his face lighting
up with glee; "we shot him. He was like a pepper-pot when we got to
him." Isn't it horrible? And like the boy in 'Punch,' he'd never killed
anybody before he went to France. I wonder what "Mother" will say to his
cheerful little story.
I have been busy bursting a bad quinsy with inhalers and fomentations.
After a few hours he could sing Tipperary and drink a bottle of stout!
There are two Volunteer shop-boys from a London Territorial Regiment,
who call me "Madam" from force of habit.
_Sunday, January 17th._--We didn't unload at Boulogne last night, and
are still (11 A.M.) taking them on to Etretat, a lovely place on the
coast, about ten miles north of Havre. The hospital there is my old
No.-- General Hospital, that I mobilised with, so it will be very jolly
to see them all again.
We are going through most lovely country on a clear sunny morning, and
none of the patients are causing any anxiety, so it is an extremely
pleasant journey, and we shall have a good rest on the way back.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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