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In this detailed report, Colonel Trimble details the number of people entering and leaving the hospital, including a number of deaths. Members of staff have joined and left, and the Hospital had been visited by several notable people, all of whom were impressed with its operation, with some of a medical profession giving very high praise. He draws attention to recent research into the bacteriological aspect of Trench Fever, as well as progress in using x-rays to identify foreign objects in the human body.
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Army Post Office, S.11.
British Expeditionary Force,
France.
11.10.16.
My Lord,
Herewith my weekly statement respecting the
work of the St John Ambulance Brigade Hospital.
The following convoys have been received :-
| Sitting. | Walking. | ||||||
| Wednesday | 11th. | No. | 16. | A.T. | 44. | – | |
| Thursday. | 12th. | “ | 30. | “ | 79. | – | |
| Saturday | 14th. | “ | 1. | “ | (Officers) | 1. | 2. |
| “ | “ | “ | “ | “ | 68. | – | |
| “ | “ | “ | 19. | “ | 80. | 40. |
giving a total admitted of 314.
The total evacuated during the week is 495.
and I regret to say there were 18 deaths. This we must
expect as the inevitable result of the very serious
cases they are sending to us.
The following Sisters were taken on the strength
of the Hospital- Sisters Bescon, Rigden and Nelson.
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Sister Ivers went off the strength of the Hospital on
the 13th. Inst. She had not been very well and so went
to the Sisters Home at Hardelot for a short rest.
On the same date Sisters Watson and Babbitt and V.A.D.
Nurse Wilson left for England on the completion of their
contracts. I also regret to report that V.A.D. Nurse
Gwen will not be able to return to the Hospital owing to
the present condition of her health.
The London Gazette of October 13th. notified
the promotion of Hon. & Temp. Lieut. W. B. Coe to be Hon.
and Temp. Captain while employed at the St John Ambulance
Brigade Hospital. Captain W.B. Coe is our Dental Surgeon.
Major Houston went on leave on the 12th.
and is to return on the 25th. Inst.
On the 13th. Inst. General Sir Arthur Sloggett
and Lady Debenham called at the Hospital. Sir Arthur was
desirous that Lady Debenham should be shown over the Hos-
pital; this was done and she seemed very pleased with all
She saw.
On the same day I had in the way of visit-
ors, Lt-Colonel G. Stephens Sub. Editor of the British
Medical Journal, and Colonel Burchaenall brought Colonel
Wilson of the War Office. They found the Hospital very
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full and working at full pressure and I feels sure they
were all satisfied that we are doing an excellent work,
and doing it in a business like manner.
My next batch of visitors turned up on
Sunday the 15th. Inst. And consisted of the Moderators
of the Established and the Free Churches of Scotland, the
Revd. Dr. John Brown and Dr. George Adam Smith. The last
named gentleman is the Principal of the University of
Aberdeen, and I believe a Hebrew scholar of much note.
These devines were accompanied by Major General; Simms the
Principal Chaplain. They had a good look round and much
interesting conversation with Scotch soldiers.
On the same day I had a telephone message
from the D.D.M.S. saying that two French Doctors who are
Deputies of the French House of Representatives, together
with being President and Vice President of the French
Hygienic Society would be glad to see the Hospital. They
came and were accompanied by Captain Boudsille who acted
as their Interpreters. It was quite an interesting exper-
ience showing them our methods of working in the differ-
ent Departments of the Hospital. They were men who fully
understood and appreciated everything they saw. Through
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4.
their Interpreter they informed me that the St. John
Ambulance Brigade Hospital was the best Institution of
its kind they had ever seen.
On Monday the 16th. Inst. I had a commun-
ication from Major Turnbull of the D.D.M.S. staff asking
if I would take Lady Tange, her daughter Mrs. Robinson,
The French Medecin Chef who is O.C. the French Hospitals
At Paris-Plage and Le Touquet, the Chief Surgeon and
the Chief Physician of the Hermitage Hospital round the
Hospital. This party arrived about 3.30.p.m. and were
shown everything. The French Doctors were greatly delight-
ed with all they saw, and I think their great admiration
was especially taken by the cleanliness and order which
prevailed on all sides.
There are two matters of importance to which
I would like to draw your attention, and these relate to
Research work which has been carried out by Major Thomas
Houston, Captain John McCloy and Captain F.T. Crymble.
The first two Officers named have been, since the Hospital
opened, directing their attention to the Bacteriological
aspect of Trench Fever. In connection with this work they
found that there is a micro-organism very common in the
wounds of soldiers and which normally resides in the human
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5.
intestines, and they set themselves to ascertain if the
organism could produce certain illnesses among soldiers
not wounded, but who lived in the trenches along with
those who had been wounded. As a result of this admirable
work it is shown that a great number of cases of Trench
Fever are due to this organism. The article goes on to
deal with the relation of the same organism with muscular
rheumatism and other kinds of fever hitherto mostly des-
cribed as Influenza. In addition they have shown that
vaccine therapy can be utilised most successfully in the
cure of these cases. It is probable that no better
or more original Research work has been done by Bacteria-
ologists since the war began. Major Houston`s and Captain
McCloy`s article was published in the Lancet of October
6th.
Captain Crymble, who has been in charge of
our X-Ray Department and who is one of the teachers of
Anatomy at the Queen`s University, Belfast, has written an
article on the “Anatomical localisation of a metallic
foreign body and reconstruction of its track”. This appear-
ed in the British Journal of Surgery for October.
It opens up a new ground entirely and its object is to
show that it is possible to combine radiographical results
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6.
with sectional anatomy and thus determine the anatom-
ical position of a foreign body.
My object in bringing your attention to
the work of these three Officers is to emphasise the
position of the St. John Ambulance Brigade Hospital with
regard to scientific research done by its staff.
Both these contributions are to be published in pamphlet
form and these I can let you have later on, but in the
meantime some copies of the journals in which the articles
appeared might be procured and brought under the notice
of the Chapter and Council of the Order.
I am sorry to have troubled you at such length but I feel
that the matters I have last mentioned will be of consider-
able interest. I might add that the photographs embodied
in Captain Crymble`s article are all the work of our own
photographer. They are excellent examples of photographic
art, and in many cases they are reductions of large pictures,
which I believe requires a good deal of skill.
I have the honour to be,
Your Lordships
Obedient servant,
(signed) Charles J. Trimble
