Surgical Experiences in South Africa, 1899-1900: Being Mainly a Clinical Study of the Nature and Effects of Injuries Produced by Bullets of Small CalibreMakins, George Henry
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Surgical Experiences in South Africa, 1899-1900: Being Mainly a Clinical Study of the Nature and Effects of Injuries Produced by Bullets of Small Calibre
Makins, George Henry
Gunshot wounds; South African War, 1899-1902; Surgery, Military
Lastly, we come to bullets of large calibre unprovided with a mantle.
The Martini-Henry is practically representative of all these, but I
append a photograph of some twenty out of thirty varieties which came
into my possession during searches amongst captured ammunition. Some of
these were provided with a copper core to facilitate 'setting up,'
others were cupped at the top, and others flattened, to increase the
resistance on impact. I can say little about them except that I believe
some of the forms were responsible for a considerable proportion of the
most severe injuries we met with, in some of which a large and regular
entry made their use certain, while a considerable proportion of them
were retained. In the case of the viscera their power of doing serious
damage was very striking compared with that of the bullets of small
calibre. As with the small sporting bullets I think their use was often
due to the fact that the sporting Boer preferred to use the weapon he
was accustomed to rather than his military weapon.
A considerable number of the Boers were armed with Martini-Henry rifles,
and this was particularly the case with small bodies of men, rather than
with the larger commandos fighting regular engagements. The Transvaal
Government, moreover, had Martini-Henry rifles made as late as 1898. The
Martini-Henry bullet was responsible for some of the worst fractures
that came under my notice, but it is of interest to remark that its
capability to do damage did not satisfy some of the Boers, who cut them
as is shown in fig. 43. I cannot say what the effect of this manoeuvre
was, although it may have accounted for some of the wounds of the calf
such as are mentioned below.
Some odd missiles were met with during the campaign; thus, at Ladysmith,
I was told ball bicycle bearings were at one time in use amongst the
Boers.
_Anatomical characters of wounds of irregular type._--It will be seen
from the above that in dealing with wounds of irregular type we have to
consider those due to irregular impact of normal regulation bullets, to
bullets deformed by contact with bone, to ricochet bullets, and lastly
to bullets of the expanding type.
No further mention of those due to irregular impact is needful beyond
what has already been said under the heading of wobbling, except to
point out that, given a fair degree of velocity, these injuries may
assume an actual explosive character, especially in the case of skull
fractures. The description of extensive wounds accompanying comminuted
fractures finds its most appropriate place under the heading of injuries
to the bones, and will be there considered (Chapter V. p. 155).
'Explosive' exit apertures are, however, described as occasionally
occurring in injuries involving the soft parts only. I saw no cases
substantiating this belief, but several were described to me as having
been met with in abdominal injuries, which terminated fatally at an
early date.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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