The Okfuskee County News (Okemah, Okla.), Vol. 15, No. 13, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 3, 1918 Page: 3 of 8
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THE OKFUSKEE COUNTY NEWS
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GOOD SAMARITANS TO EIGHT-
ING MEN IN TRANCE
: (By W F Bradley in Motor Age)
: - (Officially each infantry division of
She French army which consists of
' 16000 men has at its disposal one
motor ambulance section consisting of
twenty vehicles These twenty ve-
hicles are responsible for the removal
of wounded men from the regimental
first aid stations to either the (Operat-
ing tor the general clearing hospital
located from 6 to 12 miles in the rear
according to circumstances and gen-
era (conditions The work of a (Sani-
tary section is intensely variable
there are times when the divisional
work fosld be caried out with ease by
two cars and there are periods when
the whole twenty working at highest
pressure are Inadequate to deal with
the rush of wounded Thus while a
section to a division is the official)
recognized proportion in times of ac-
tivity arrangements have to be made
' for reserve sections to be placed on
the attacking front and for drafts to
be drawn from sectors which are quiet
and not likely to need ambulance as-
i sistance
Work VariM Greatly
The variable nature of the work ne-
‘ cessitates the most careful organiza-
tion if the wounded are to be attended
adequately during periods of great
i military activity The utlization has
not always been of the best as is
I proved by the discussions in official
i French circles of the manner in which
i the sanitary service has operated un-
: der periods of great stress There has
! been discussion as to whether the am-
bulances should be under the control
i of the medical staff or of the motor
I car officers acting under the direction
: of the headquarters officers The doc-
tors have claimed that motor car offi-
cers sometimes are more interested in
keeping their cars in good condition
than in getting the wounded away
quickly and have inferred that had
they the doctors had complete con-
trol the number of men carried in
any given time would have been in-
creased It is obvious too that the headquar-
ters staffs frequently have been too
much disposed to treat those of the
ambulance service as outsiders who
need never be taken into consideration
and who need never be informed until
the last moment of pending military
operations When this spirit has pre-
vailed it is evident that the ambulance
sections have not been placed to the
best advantage nor for lack of ade-
quate warning have they been able to
work at maximum efficiency
Undoubtedly the ambulance service
should be in the hands of motor car
officers and not under the direct con-
trol of the doctors The latter have
not the experience necessary to get
the best results out of a fleet of me-
chanical vehicles A medical man can
be excused for a display of annoyance
at the withdrawal of motor cars dur-
ng the height of an action but the
motor car officers may know that the
withdrawal for a few hours at the op-
portune moment may mean the saving
of a vehicle from complete mechani-
cal destruction and thus be to the ulti-
mate benefit of the entire service To
get the best results it is essential that
the ambulance service have the confi-
dence of the general staff so the ve-
hicles may be prepared for the work
about to be thrown on them
In addition to the twenty ambu-
lances each sanitary section has one
motor truck with tools for running re-
pairs and a capacity for general
stores frequently a motor car trailer
on two wheels a touring car for the
section and a motorcycle for the de-
use of the lieutenant in charge of the
spatch rider The truck and the trail-
er have a very small mileage for the
former is only used to bring up gen-
eral stores — gasoline oil food etc —
and to transport the general stores of
the section when a change of base is
ordered
Carries Sleeping Quarters
A motor ambulance section on front
line work must carry its own sleeping
quarters in the shape of light tents
though these are used only when it is
absolutely impossible to find shelter
in permanent buildings Generally
the forty-six men in a section — forty
drivers two mechanics two cooks and
two officers — can find more or less
satisfactory accommodations i n
wrecked buildings behind the positions
they are to work It is only after an
advance into country which has been
subjected to a very heavy bombard-
ment that the wholfe of the mobile
equpment has to be brought into use
Taking an avernge case the section
will select as its quarters some build-
ing or group of buildings which are
disinfected immediately If there is a
kitchen it ia made use of if not thp
chanic being responsible for their de-
tection also at regular intervals the
vehicles were laken off the road and
position and become? the mechanics’ examined more carefully than it is est gas consumption was 22 liters and
shop the touring car and motorcycle possible foi driveis to do in their daily the highest 27 liters per 100 kilo-
are garaged nearby The main duty cleaning metres This is equivalent to 103 and
of the lieutenant in charge is to keep There is no secret about the meth- 87 miles to the American gallon and
in torch with tht regimental dressing ods necessary to keep an army fleet of was considered satisfactory for the
stations from which he will have to motorcars in the best condition for it kind of work undertaken for it con-
evacuate to transfer his cars as the is the method adopted by all the big sisted of going to front line positions
action develops to the points where motor car transportation companies frequent waiting with the engine run-
their services are most required and with much of the polish and paint cut ning idle and delays on account of
to maintain a directing control over J out Nevertheless it is a much more traffic blocks
the entire organization The two me- difficult matter to get the same stan-1 jn place 0f the four-stretcher ambu-
chanics I e responsible for the me-dard in war service as in peaceful ci- lance the French have adopted a
chanieal efficiency of the section and vilian duties Experienced convoy of- standard type of five-stretcher body
in times of activity must get tempor- fleers will overlook a thick coating of j in which the center aisle is made use
ary disabled ibulances on the road mud on the outside of the underpan j of to carry a fifth man In practice
again with Che least possible delay
I Generally they take charge of tires
so that any driver coming in with a
puncture or blow-out finds another
wheel with tire mounted awaiting him
The mechanics possess nothing morejed in mud and go ungreased who has
than a good set of hand tools and loose hose connections or who does not
practically no spare parts other than
bolts nuts washers split pins etc
They are expected to do running re-
pairs and not general overhauling
An an indication of the work which
can be done by motor ambulance the
following figures taken from the re-
turn sheets of a section seen in opera-
tion on the French front are interest-
ing In a period of 24 hours the twen-
ty ambulances of this section had car-
ried 700 men or thirty-five men a car
without refilling The amount of fuel 1 minished and the cars can operate on
given out is entered up against the car grease and in snow which can be ne-
receiving it No driver is sent out I gotiated only with difficulty with tire
without a written order from the of- chains on single tires By the use of Buick dealer or battery service station
consecutive days the twenty ambu- 'fleer in charge and on returning to a light but fully inclosed wood body it or inspection This may not seeri
lances carried 8000 wounded men or headquarters each driver must report has been found possible to produce a "genV efficiency ofthe battery!
an average of sixty-seven men a car j the number of runs he has made from ‘ very successful ambulance wth an en- when the car is again taken out af-
a day The former figure of thirty- what points and the number of men'gine as small as the 80 by 140-mrr
five men a car a day was during a carried The officer calculates the dis-
period of moderate activity the sec- tance covered from these reports and
ond figure sixty-seven men a car a enters this distance in the books op-
day represented a maximum attained p0site the gasoline supply Although
during a great battle It must be re-jno ambulance goes out without an or-
membered that these two periods rep- der a certain amount of liberty of ac-
resent military activity when stretcher tion has to U left to the men when on
cases as well as sitters have to be car- front line work The dressing station 'spring making nine fit a tie rod un-
red Thus when the greatest effort is may be busy and keep the ambulance der the rear axle housing and put 3 Vi
required the number of cases carried
each journey is the lowest for an am-
bulance which will carry eight sitters
or ten in an emergency cannot accom-
modate more than four stretchers
A Normal Case
Taking the first case as normal the
700 cases represented 500 sitters and
200 stretchers this represents 1
journeys or six trips a car a day As
the hospital wa£ 8 miles behind the
fines this gives' an average of 96!
miles a car a day The greater pro-
(Portion of this front line work has to
be done over shelled roads and under
very heavy traffic conditions owing
to supplies and reserve troops being bookkeeping and yet gives accurate
j hurried to the front Thus to average j control The gasoline question has
thirty-five men and 96 miles a day been worked out so carefully that the
calls for really serious work on the officer in command of the motor car
j part of drivers It readily can be seen service for one of the French armies
that to carry this average up to sixty- J informed me he could estimate to
J seven men a day with a correspond-(within 10 per cent accuracy the gaso-
ring increase in mileage and maintain line consumption for an army divis!
this average for six consecutive days for any given month The amount
is a task of no small proportions It is varies according to weather and road
indeed very near the limits of endur-'conditions — it is not the same in Jan-
ance of the men and material French uary as in July Narrow roads and
regulations call for two drivers to a ' poor surfaces make one district show
car but to get the maximum efficien-j a higher gasoline consumption than
cy during this period of stress only another during an offensive the miles
one driver was employed during day- per gallon goes down a little owing to
light hours so that each car was run- j the greater amount of time the en-
ning without interruption for 1444 gines are running idle in traffic blocks
hours consecutively and the men av- Carried out on the big scale prevailing
erage 16 hours consecutively a day
Three Years in Service
The section from which these re-
turns are taken consisted of Rochet-
Schneder touring cars chassis with
special ambulance bodies They had
gone nto service August 1914 and
for three consecutive years had never
been away from the front all their re-
pair work being done by the mobile
workshops attached to the armies
While going over the return sheets the
major suddenly turned to the lieuten-
ant in charge of the sections and said
“If a hurry up order came along how
many of your twenty ambulances
could you send out right away?”
“Nineteen” was the answer “and
the twentieth within 24 hours"
An examination of the section at its
quarters a few miles back of the lines and mileage covered Theoretically
proved that its mechanical condition the officer should sign for every trip
wag undoubtedly high The bodies ' in practice however it is very difficult '
bore every evidence of hard work and to keep these books lip to date for the J
encounters wth bits of shrapnel Thejofficer neglects to sign and the driver
paint was certainly not of the best does not like to insist These diftieul-!
but the interiors were clean and con-j ties are not met with on the general j
siJered mechanically the motor cars motor enr and ambulance service1
were in a condition to satisfy the men however where there is a section ofti- j
who draw up lubrication charts and'cer in charge 1
write mechanical hints It-was ob- Most of the early French ambu-!
vious that the officer in charge insist- lances are slightly modified touring
ed first on perfect cleanliness of me- car chassis the modifications being a1
chanieal parte so that it was impos-' longer wheelbase and a rather big
sible for wear to set up or looseness to 1 rear overhang The section to which j
develop under a layer of greasy mud reference has been made in this story
unknown to the driver Regular and 'consisted of Rochet-Schneider four-
adequate lubrication of all parts not cylinder enrs of 95 by 140 nun about
provided for automatically was at- 37 by 55 in bore and stroke They i
tended to minor defects were treated 'were carrying four stretchers or eight !
occasionally ten sitters would
Jas they developed the two section me-
but they have no pity for the driver this center aisle never is needed for
who lets his ignition wires chafe who wounded soldiers never are attended
allows his gasoline line to get adrift unless they have gone mad and in
who runs his tires under-inflated who such a case only one patient is car-
allows steering connections to be coat- fried at a time The great majority oi
report a leak in the radiator
Vouchers for Supplies
Gasoline and oil supplies are in the
hands of the section mechanics who
only issue them on presentation of
vouchers signed by the drivers It is
customary to fill the tank at the be-
ginning of each day’s work this sup-
ply being sufficient to run for 24 hours
going trip after trip without a stop
it may be for hours on end It fre-
quently happens too when working body the cars are considered satisfac-
on shelled roads that the drivers pick tory Drivers speak well of them and
up men as they fall and hurry with claim that they can do better front
them to the nearest dressing stations line work than any other vehicle They
or they are hailed by the traffic police gre limted however to two stretchers
and loaded up with cases which will
not brook an instant’s delay This is
the unforeseen but ever-to-be-expected
feature of an ambulance driver's life
Whatever the incidents all are noted
on the back of the order form and
handed to the officer at headquarters
Little Bookkeeping
This system involves a minimum of
on the French front very valuable
data is obtained Not only does an
extravagant section reveal itself im-
mediately by comparison with its com-
'panions but the qualities and defects
0f different makes of engines and car-
buretors are revealed so accurately
that the authorities have been able to
insist on makers adopting improve-
ments and in some very important
'cases they have scrapped carburetors
originally supplied in favor of others
that proved themselves sufficiently
economical to pay for the change
Incidentally it may be mentioned
that the same system has been applied
sitters
be put in making a total load of and six sitters thus when evacuation
twelve with the two drivers — and ac-1 has to be undertaken they are hope-
cording to the return sheets their low- Iessly outclassed by the European
types
these standardized bodies are fitted to
Fiat chassis which are light truck
types on touring car lines with four-
cylinder engine of 80 by 140 mm
about 31 by 55 in bore and stroke
! four-speed gearset and steel disk
'wheels with twin tires on the rear
Providing the axle has been designed
for carrying twins these are much
more advantageous than singles for
ambulance work tire troubles are di-
inch tires on the front wheels With
these changes and a very light canvas
More
Fords
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One-half of all the cars on American roads are Ford cars
And while there are nearly 200 different makes of motor
cars in America the Ford factory produces more than
one-half the entire aggregate output thus while the
combined efforts of the other factories are turning out
one car the Ford factory turns out 200 Does that prove
anything to you? It should if you anticipate buying a
car Several different patterns and one that is sure to
please youfin every way
MODEL T I -TON TRUCK
Have you seen it? It’s in our salesroom Do you know
the requirements of a good truck? Come and look it
over let us demonstrate it — that’s all that’s necessary
It’s there It’s the best truck that can be built or Ford
wouldn’t build it It’s the Universal Truck as the Ford
car is the Universal Car- You know the advantages of
a truck over horse power for heavy hauling or field work
don’t you? You know it effects a big saving You want
to save don’t you? We have the truck you have the de-
sire — now come in and let’s get our heads together
THE CITY OARAGE
IV E McKINNEY Prop
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HOW CANADA RENTS TRACTORS
Montreal On" Dec 14-Ontario
has a deep interest in the development
of the farm tractor as it is believed
that motorized equipment for the farm
will improve the solution of farm labor
difficulties in the province Accord-
ing to the announcement by C F
Bailey assistant deputy minister of
agriculture for Ontario this province
now owns ninety-five farm tractors
which are engaged in plowing in many
districts The government charges
the farmer 45 cents an hour the farm-
er also to pay for gasoline and oil and
the board of the tractor operator The
government pays the wages of all
“tractioneers” In case of rain the
farmer continues to board the opera-
tor of the tractor which he has hired
from the government until required
work is done — Motor Age
The acid is heavier than water so a
hydrometer test of the solution tells
accurately whether the battery has a
full charge or not by showing the
specific gravity of the electrolyte This
test should be made regularly every
few weeks either in person or by the
local dealer
Keep the top of the battery wiped
clean and dry
Once or twice a season it is advis-
able to leave the battery with the
and then recharged when put in ser-
vice If this is not done before storing
the battery should be left in the car
with all connections tightened and the
acid again returns to the solution
D F Ray motored over to Prague
Thursday going over to Oklahoma
City and Guthrie to spend the week-
end at the meeting of salesmen of the
house there
than 2000000
Cars in Service
KEEI’ING THE CAR IN TP’M
Care of the Battery
The electric storage battery on
Buick cars is an excellent one and with
the most ordinary care will continue
j to give good service for an indefinite
period But from the very nature of
5
tain things that should have regular
attention in order to ekep the battery
up to its maximum efficiency
The level of the electrolyte or acid
solution in the battery should be care-
fully watched pure distilled water be-
ing added when necessary to keep the
level well above the plates The wa-
ter in the electrolyte evaporates while
' the generator is charging it and once
j a week is not too often to inspect it by
'removing the filling plugs Acid
should never be added as it will not
evaporate
When the current is discharged from
the battery the sulphuric acid in the
electrolyte combines with the material
in the plates and forms a coating of
sulphate of lead on the plates The ac-
tion is reversed in charging and the
motor run for three or four hours
care being taken to see that the elec-
trolyte gasses freely with the level up
to the base of the filling plugs When
the hydromter reading is somewhere
between 1250 and 1300 the battery
terminals may be loosened the bat-
tery removed and stored in a cool
dark place The terminals should be
greased wtih vaseline to prevent cor-
rosion The battery should be charged ev-
ery thirty days when in storage and
if the hydrometer rending is kept up
to normal the electrolyte will not
freeze in a temperature as low as 60
degrees below zero
The charging and discharging of
the battery when in service is an end-
less chain affair and only requires
these simple precautions to keep the
battery in the best condition A fully
charged battery will show a hydrom-
eter reading of from 1275 to 1300
and if watched to keep the reading up
to normal it will amply repay the own-
er by good service rendered — Buick
Bulletin
Misses Bert Chambers and Lillie
White of Quinton spent the week-end
with Mrs Jim Stone and Miss Gladys
Bushnell of this city
Do you get up at night? Sanol
is surely the best for all kidney and
blader troubles Sanol gives relief in
in 24 hours from all backache and
bladder troubles Sanol is a guaran-
teed remedy 35c and $1(C a bottle
at the drug store
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The Okfuskee County News (Okemah, Okla.), Vol. 15, No. 13, Ed. 1 Thursday, January 3, 1918, newspaper, January 3, 1918; Okemah, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc1713027/m1/3/?q=aRCHIVES: accessed June 4, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; crediting Oklahoma Historical Society.