MEDICAL AID MAN GIVING BLOOD PLASMA TO A WOUNDED MAN. Plasma was dried human blood that could be kept almost indefinitely under ordinary conditions. It was prepared for use by adding the required amount of triple-distilled water or a saline solution containing the same amount of salt as whole human blood. It was not as effective as whole blood, which retained its effectiveness for a maximum of only twenty-one days when properly stored and refrigerated. This made whole blood difficult to keep and use under field conditions.] [Illustration: SICILY DIGGING A FOXHOLE IN AN OLIVE GROVE using a helmet as a shovel. These holes provided excellent protection against shell and bomb fragments. The steel helmet was used for a variety of purposes besides protecting the head. It made a fine wash basin, was used as a basket to carry post exchange items (paper bags were not available), and practically everyone used it as a seat while living in the field. In some cases it was used as a cooking utensil in violation of regulations, as excessive heat took the temper out of the steel, making it useless for the purpose for which it was originally intended. (The soldier in picture is wearing the fiber liner while he digs with the steel helmet M1.)] [Illustration: SICILY A GOUMIER OF FRENCH MOROCCO. The goumiers, generally called goums by American soldiers, formed part of the French colonial troops. Serving with the Americans in Tunisia, Sicily, Italy, and southern France, they were greatly respected for their fighting ability. (The term “goum” literally means “company,” and a goumier is a member of an infantry company. Not all native infantrymen, however, were known as goumiers, the term applying only to soldiers of certain Moroccan tribes.)] [Illustration: SICILY GOUMIERS ADVANCING ACROSS THE HILLS IN SICILY. Their specialty was mountain fighting, and they used horses and mules to carry supplies.] [Illustration: SICILY SOLDIERS STERILIZING MESS KITS AFTER EATING. When possible this was done before and after every meal. Such procedure was of the greatest importance in Sicily where sanitation as we know it was little practiced among the population as a whole. In spite of every precaution, dysentery of one kind or another was common among Allied forces.] [Illustration: SICILY INFANTRYMAN TURNED MULE SKINNER.] [Illustration: SICILY PACK MULE. The interior and northern coast of Sicily were mountainous and had few roads fit for vehicles. Mules often had to be used to bring supplies to troops in forward areas.] [Illustration: SICILY