Tale of a Casualty Clearing Station (1914-1915) Online book

[catfishmo]

Another forum member suggested Tale of a Casualty Clearing Station by Royal Field Leech to me as part of my research into World War 1 Casualty Clearing Stations. It is posted free online here.

The tale begins in August 1914 as a group leaves England headed for France. It is a bit odd in that it is told in third person and none of the 'characters' are really introduced. Reaching France, the group is sent hither and yon, only to find when they reached the general vicinity, no one seemed to know exactly where they were to go. Although the author is humorous, I was halfway through the book and feeling a little disappointed--I had learned very little about the operating of a CCS. But around page 160 it began to reveal gems--the kinds of rooms/wards needed in a CCS, some of the non-medical personnel and their duties, who bunked with whom/where, and what was involved in converting an abandoned building into a medical facility.

This setting up of a facility happened about three times in rapid succession. Finally, they got bombed out of one place and moved further south. The next day, several men went back to the bombed structure to retrieve more equipment and they had their fist fatality--a corporal.

The town they moved to did not have a single building large enough to accommodate them, so they had to commandeer several buildings: two schools that held 50 beds each, a chateau that would accommodate about 100, and another chateau to house the officers. Details revealed here were golden--items in an operating room, how patients would be distributed between the three facilities, and the reader feels a bit like he is sitting on the shoulder of the "Master" as he is called.

They were given notice when to expect incoming wounded, and we get an inside look at how they prepared. The Battle of Neuve Chappell kept them busy for about three days straight. One gets a good sense of how they rotated patients through the CCS--in and out as fast as possible. Dress wounds, give them food, drink, an opportunity to sleep, clean clothes, and if they can stomach a 12 hour train ride, load them up and move them out. In one day they processed three ambulance trainloads of men through their facility--only keeping the most serious cases.

There is a good mix of anecdotes that reveal mens' personalities and interesting vignettes, and substantive details that helps a researcher understand the main structure/workings of a CCS. Two noteworthy anecdotes were the welcomed arrival of a mobile bacteriology lab, and a lengthy letter of thanks from a German patient who was transported from pillar to post for several weeks with a shattered leg before he found his way to the British CCS and received the care he needed. It was amazing he lived.

Although the book is 306 pages, it is a quick read. Unfortunately, the book ends rather abruptly in mid 1915. Apparently the Master and several of the others were moved to different positions, a few were ill, and the last doctor at the CCS “refuses the labour of the historian.”

Though there is no forward, introduction, or revelation as to the author, I suspect the author was "The Master." I have a new respect for the leader of such an undertaking. He needed excellent management and organizational skills. And this one was a talented writer with a knack for humor as well.

If you would like my 8 pages of notes, email me.

~Ginger

[paul leeson]

Ginger,

Looks like an interesting read, to accompany the Crimson Fields. Thank you for sharing.

Paul

[seaforths]

KE Luard's two books 'Diary of a Nursing Sister on the Western front 1914-1915 written anonymously and her other book 'Unknown Warriors' I think are both available via the Archives link. David Rorie's book 'A Medico's Luck in the War' is a good read but not available as a free download (as far as I am aware). However, the latter is Field Ambulance rather than CCS who he refers to as the 'spoilt children of the RAMC'. However, he does give a good explanation (and diagram) of the evacuation chain.

He also highlights issues I had never thought of, such as the Field Ambulances having to treat the local civilian population as well as their own men. The French doctors of the towns and villages had gone off to war with the French Army leaving them without medical aid. The Field Ambulance are found delivering babies in the middle of the night, treating the elderly and infirm with their ailments and trying to upgrade the sanitation in those areas.

One book which I would like to read soon is Mary Borden's 'Forbidden Zone' to compare and contrast with Luard's books.

[Don]

Thank you Ginger for the link, I have an interest in the VADS

Gerry

[Sue Light]

One book which I would like to read soon is Mary Borden's 'Forbidden Zone' to compare and contrast with Luard's books.

You'll definitely need a plate of chalk on one hand and cheese on the other

With reference to the two Kate Luard books - 'Unknown Warriors' is still in copyright and has only had the one edition in 1930, but is due to be re-published by her family in a new edition within the next two months.

Sue

[seaforths]

You'll definitely need a plate of chalk on one hand and cheese on the other

With reference to the two Kate Luard books - 'Unknown Warriors' is still in copyright and has only had the one edition in 1930, but is due to be re-published by her family in a new edition within the next two months.

Sue

Thanks Sue, I kind of suspected a difference between the two given they arrived at the Front from totally different backgrounds. I should also read 'Not So Quiet...' Helen Zenna Smith (AKA Evadne Price) but the content does not appeal to me very much. I suspect the latter is more fictional than reality. At least, that's the feeling I get from looking at some background information. I will read the Mary Borden book first when I can get to the library next week to get a copy. The only electronic copy of it seems to be in Spanish and the Smith book can stay on the back burner for now.

The reason for the Borden and Smith books is based on a letter written by Kate Luard but I cannot agree nor disagree with her comments until I've read the book(s) myself. However, I will transcribe, post and comment in due course.

[Sue Light]

It would be very hard to compare Luard and Borden - not only did they come from different backgrounds, but once in France lived completely different lives. Luard the British military nurse, trained and very experienced, working with the BEF in both hospitals and on British ambulance trains. She is a very straightforward diarist, relating events as they happened with little apparent embellishment. And Borden, not trained and barely a nurse, working independently in French hospitals often in appalling conditions. She writes the most lyrical and descriptive of accounts, full of drama and horror - for me, always the feeling that although beautifully written, it might not be quite authentic in detail. But their work was at opposite ends of the scale.

I would thoroughly recommend 'Not So Quiet ... .' Certainly much of it is autobiographical fiction, and very black, but it is meant to be a bit of a spoof, and it shows such a horrible side to women's work in wartime - the worst possible - but as long as you don't regard it as entirely typical it's a great tale and very thought-provoking.

Sue

[seaforths]

It would be very hard to compare Luard and Borden - not only did they come from different backgrounds, but once in France lived completely different lives. Luard the British military nurse, trained and very experienced, working with the BEF in both hospitals and on British ambulance trains. She is a very straightforward diarist, relating events as they happened with little apparent embellishment. And Borden, not trained and barely a nurse, working independently in French hospitals often in appalling conditions. She writes the most lyrical and descriptive of accounts, full of drama and horror - for me, always the feeling that although beautifully written, it might not be quite authentic in detail. But their work was at opposite ends of the scale.

I would thoroughly recommend 'Not So Quiet ... .' Certainly much of it is autobiographical fiction, and very black, but it is meant to be a bit of a spoof, and it shows such a horrible side to women's work in wartime - the worst possible - but as long as you don't regard it as entirely typical it's a great tale and very thought-provoking.

Sue

Thanks again Sue, glad you posted a little more on 'Not So Quiet...' I will ask at the library for that one too. I think I will find a stark contrast between the books. I can't really have or express an opinion unless I've read them. It's not so much about the authors as people themselves (although it is bound to have affected their writing, content and style) it seems to be more what they have said that has caused offence. I won't know unless I read them.

[catfishmo]

One book which I would like to read soon is Mary Borden's 'Forbidden Zone' to compare and contrast with Luard's books.

Margaret Higonnet has compiled representative selections from Borden's Forbidden Zone and from Ella La Mott's The Backwash of War in one book called Nurses at the Front. It might be a good option if you want just a taste of Borden. It was a new kind of literature for me--a narrative, but philosophical. Very dark, but full of brilliant, moving imagery. A couple of excerpts are pasted below (not sure if Bordon or La Mott--both writing styles were very similar):

-91 “At midnight I will get up and put on a clean apron and go across the grass to the sterilizing room and get a cup of cocoa. At midnight we always have cocoa in there next to the operating room, because there is a big table and boiling water. We push back the drums of clean dressings and the litter of soiled bandages, and drink the cocoa standing round the table. Sometimes there isn't much room. Sometimes legs and arms wrapped in cloths have to be pushed out of the way. We throw them on the floor—they belong to no one and are of no interest to anyone—and drink our cocoa.”

-130 “...they lie on their backs on the stretchers and are pulled out of the ambulances as loaves of bread are pulled out of the oven.... ...He lies still; he smells bad; he smells like a corpse; he can only move his tongue... This is the place where he is to be mended. We lift him on to a table. We peel off his clothes, his coat and his shirt and his trousers and his boots. We handle his clothes that are stiff with blood. We cut off his shirt with large scissors. We stare at the obscene sight of his innocent wounds. ...He suffers us to do as we like with him. He says no word except that he is thirsty and we do not give him drink. We confer over his body and he hears us. We discuss his different parts in terms that he does not understand. … … … His body does not belong to him. It belongs to us for the moment, not for long. He knows [he is going back to the Front.]”

Thanks for mentioning Diary of a Nursing Sister. It looks like a good one to add to my reading list.

[seaforths]

Margaret Higonnet has compiled representative selections from Borden's Forbidden Zone and from Ella La Mott's The Backwash of War in one book called Nurses at the Front. It might be a good option if you want just a taste of Borden...

Thanks for mentioning Diary of a Nursing Sister. It looks like a good one to add to my reading list.

Thank you for the extracts. It has given me an idea of what I am in for as a reader. Luard's Diary of a Nursing Sister is available as a download from the Archives site: https://archive.org/details/diarynursesisterwestfront00blacuoft

It is only from 1914-1915 but as Sue has pointed out her second book is about to be re-released very soon (Unknown Warriors). I have a first edition of the latter but because of the extra information added for the reprint, I will probably get it when it is published. More information available here: http://kateluard.co.uk

I don't know if this is one you have seen or whether it is within the scope of your research but I found it very interesting as there seems so little information on the part of the Belgians. 'The Cellar-House of Pervyse...' The writings of two British women working as independent nurses to the Belgians and a fairy tale ending as one of them finds their prince! I'm surprised someone hasn't seized this one for the big screen already but they would probably make a pig's ear of it unless it was taken on by a smaller production company such as the one that made Joyeux Noël: https://archive.org/details/cellarhouseofper00mittuoft

[Sue Light]

-91 “At midnight I will get up and put on a clean apron and go across the grass to the sterilizing room and get a cup of cocoa. At midnight we always have cocoa in there next to the operating room, because there is a big table and boiling water. We push back the drums of clean dressings and the litter of soiled bandages, and drink the cocoa standing round the table. Sometimes there isn't much room. Sometimes legs and arms wrapped in cloths have to be pushed out of the way. We throw them on the floor—they belong to no one and are of no interest to anyone—and drink our cocoa.”

Thereby hang the differences. I tend to think that Kate Luard would have cleared the table, washed the bandages, arranged for the orderly to dispose of the legs and arms, and only then have her cocoa. Very much a case of the professional versus the amateur.

[catfishmo]

I don't know if this is one you have seen or whether it is within the scope of your research but I found it very interesting as there seems so little information on the part of the Belgians. 'The Cellar-House of Pervyse...' The writings of two British women working as independent nurses to the Belgians and a fairy tale ending as one of them finds their prince! I'm surprised someone hasn't seized this one for the big screen already but they would probably make a pig's ear of it unless it was taken on by a smaller production company such as the one that made Joyeux Noël: https://archive.org/details/cellarhouseofper00mittuoft

It is not in the scope of my research, but definitely in the scope of my interest. I had to stop myself from reading past the introduction as I have too many books going now! Thanks for posting the link; I have added it to my 'to read' list. And I agree--it would make a great movie.

Regarding Belgians: Early on in my research I came across a tale of a journalist lending a hand at an early type CCS in Belgium. This riveting tale was instrumental in igniting my interest in WW1 beyond a topic of research. The excerpt, here, is from Soul of War by Gibbs (available free here).

At the time I read it, I did not understand the context (a private hospital staffed by English serving the Belgians out of a convent). But as a newbie to WW1, it provided a treasure trove of visuals to help me get a sense of camaraderie and cooperation among medics, see/hear the sounds/sights of shells bursting destroying a town, the danger, and utter chaos brought on by war. Gibbs, a journalist, is an engaging writer, and at some point I plan to read the entire book.

[seaforths]

Thanks for that one and likewise I will add it to my ever growing list in between my ever growing list of research and taming a dragon!

[seaforths]

So far, I've had no luck getting the Mary Borden and Helen Zenna Smith books from a library. They told me to buy them on Amazon

I'm going to try one more library today and if not successful, I guess Amazon it will have to be.

[catfishmo]

Our library has something called interlibrary loan where they will borrow the book from another library in the country and you check it out from your local library like a regular book. Might be worth asking... It has been great for me since all these diaries of WW1 Brits are not exactly everyday reading.

~Ginger

[seaforths]

Our library has something called interlibrary loan where they will borrow the book from another library in the country and you check it out from your local library like a regular book. Might be worth asking... It has been great for me since all these diaries of WW1 Brits are not exactly everyday reading.

~Ginger

Thanks Ginger,

The library I visited today told me that the other library I was at should have offered to get the books for me on an inter-library loan but they probably didn't because it will cost them money. I will go back and ask them to get it for me via that route. The library I was at today is quite a distance from me and is a bigger city library. I don't visit the city so often and I had gone there for a few reasons and thought they might know differently or better still, have the books. They didn't have the books but gave me the same advice as you. It is some years since I have used the inter-library service and thought maybe they had stopped it...seems they haven't. They've just stopped admitting to it (in some cases).

[catfishmo]

We can place an interlibrary loan (ILL) request online. It is helpful since the ISBN if often needed. To know what libraries throughout your country (or the world) have a particular book, go to the World Cat at http://www.worldcat.org/. Be sure to type in exact title (ISBN is better). When you find the title, click on it to go it the book's 'page'. Scroll down, put your zip code or country into the search box--it will tell you every library in that place that has the book.

There were a few books by Australian authors I was eyeing, but looking at the World Cat saw that they were only available in the UK and Australia, so I didn't bother putting in a request. If the book is in libraries an adjacent county or state to mine, I can sort of assume I will get it quicker than ones across the country. Helps me pace my requests : )

[seaforths]

The librarian I spoke to yesterday did an integral search on the British Library website and found the books there and from that she was able to tell me that an inter-library loan will be possible. It was something that the librarian here didn't do. When she couldn't find it listed here, she searched Amazon and told me they had copies for sale and I would have to buy it from them or another bookseller. I will find the books and their references later on the British Library website and take that with me tomorrow to the library and ask them to arrange the loan.

The librarian told me yesterday that it costs a library about £12.50 to arrange an inter-library loan and from this they charge the customer £2.50 so they are losing £10 per book so hardly surprising they are reluctant to do it. From my point of view, it would cost £2.50 postage from Amazon (or the like) and then the cost of the book on top of that so as the customer, it is more cost effective for me to go through the library.

[Sue Light]

The librarian I spoke to yesterday did an integral search on the British Library website and found the books there and from that she was able to tell me that an inter-library loan will be possible. It was something that the librarian here didn't do. When she couldn't find it listed here, she searched Amazon and told me they had copies for sale and I would have to buy it from them or another bookseller. I will find the books and their references later on the British Library website and take that with me tomorrow to the library and ask them to arrange the loan.

The librarian told me yesterday that it costs a library about £12.50 to arrange an inter-library loan and from this they charge the customer £2.50 so they are losing £10 per book so hardly surprising they are reluctant to do it. From my point of view, it would cost £2.50 postage from Amazon (or the like) and then the cost of the book on top of that so as the customer, it is more cost effective for me to go through the library.

It would, of course, be cheaper for the library to take their own advice and buy a copy rather than spend the money on a three week loan.

Sue

[seaforths]

I didn't manage to get out today (waiting for a delivery man) but I also found while searching for the references on the British Library site, a sequel to Smith's 'Not So Quiet' so I have made a note of that one as well! Hopefully, tomorrow will see me out and about again on my library mission.

[seaforths]

My library quoted me £7.70 per book so £23.10 for three books. I was told it was to cover the cost of postage and staff doing a search for the book - they don't need to search I already did that and had screen shots of the British Library details for each book on my iPad. I guess an inter-library loan is not the cheapest option.

[catfishmo]

I was just reading a bit of Katherine Evelyn Luard's Diary of a Nursing Sister on the Western Front, and she mentions being at a chateau... that sounded an awful lot like the chateau mentioned in Tale of a CCS! Anyone know if they were both at the same CCS chateau? Both were around Ypres in 1915...

Here are the details that caught my attention:

Luard: "..In bed—in my tent, not a bell, but an Indian tent big enough for two comfortably...." "Five Canadian officers came in last night...." "It [the CCS] is in three Divisions—the house for the worst cases—and there are tent Sections and the straw-sheds and two schools in the village."

Tale CCS: "A small indian marquee was at his disposal." "So now added Straw shed, Canadian section, tent section and officers' section." "The descent from a building accommodating many hundreds of wounded to the meagre shelter afforded by a couple of village schoolhouses was not easy to bear with equanimity."

~Ginger

[Guest Richard186]

I'm not sure if this might help, but while researching family history on Bernard Forde, I've now become interested in the CCS. In particular the 6th CCS. Col. B Forde was the commanding officer of the 6th from it's inception till 5.4.15 when it was taken over by Col HH Norman.Trying to uncover more about the 6th, I have fouind two sources of information in the Wellcome Library. ( http://wellcomelibrary.org/ ) One is a draft history of the 6th and notes Sister K E Luard joining on the 9.10.15 ( http://wellcomelibrary.org/player/b19159146#?asi=0&ai=20 ) and the other a series of photos of the 6th ( http://wellcomelibrary.org/player/b19604166#?asi=0&ai=0&z=0.4655%2C0.0318%2C0.8056%2C0.3904 ) Hope this might be of interest and help

Richard

[seaforths]

I was just reading a bit of Katherine Evelyn Luard's Diary of a Nursing Sister on the Western Front, and she mentions being at a chateau... that sounded an awful lot like the chateau mentioned in Tale of a CCS! Anyone know if they were both at the same CCS chateau? Both were around Ypres in 1915...

Here are the details that caught my attention:

Luard: "..In bed—in my tent, not a bell, but an Indian tent big enough for two comfortably...." "Five Canadian officers came in last night...." "It [the CCS] is in three Divisions—the house for the worst cases—and there are tent Sections and the straw-sheds and two schools in the village."

Tale CCS: "A small indian marquee was at his disposal." "So now added Straw shed, Canadian section, tent section and officers' section." "The descent from a building accommodating many hundreds of wounded to the meagre shelter afforded by a couple of village schoolhouses was not easy to bear with equanimity."

~Ginger

I have KE Luard with 5 Ambulance Train in March 1915 and 4 Field Ambulance, 2 Division in May 1915. Then; 16 General Hospital June 1915, and 6 CCS December 1915. Hope this helps.

[catfishmo]

I have KE Luard with 5 Ambulance Train in March 1915 and 4 Field Ambulance, 2 Division in May 1915. Then; 16 General Hospital June 1915, and 6 CCS December 1915. Hope this helps.

I was unaware nurses had any real association with Field Ambulances. Do you know what her role was?

Thanks,

~Ginger