Action (May 1941 - Mar 1958)

22 /Action nal waste. For no one need die with the disease today. It can be prevented and can be cured. Diagnosis and treatment for It are proved procedures. According to the figures of the National Tuberculosis Association, whose Christmas Seal Campaign appeal is again being made to you, the tuberculosis death rate has been reduced 75 per cent in the last 40 years of struggle against the disease. But the obvious fact remains that the fight must continue until the disease is completely conquered. Your sons, your brothers and your husbands who are serving overseas have seen in the countries they have freed from our enemies the awful effects of malnutrition, lack of clothing, lack of sanitation and medical care. They dream endlessly of returning home to you, but returning to a healthy and happy people, free at least of this disease from which, if treated correctly, one can recover. Education has been the chief weapon used to gain all past victories against tuberculosis. Education must continue to be the chief weapon. Last year, tuberculosis killed 56,000 people in this country; that means one person every nine minutes. It is estimated that over half a million people in the United States have tuberculosis, and of these only half are known cases. The remaining half must be located. They are losing their health, perhaps their lives, and, all unconsciously, holding back the war effort and Impeding the victory. Buy, buy all you can of Christmas Seals and you will help reach them. You will help stop the march of the White Plague that has already taken so many lives. A TRUE ACCOUNT OF A TREK BY THE "HOOF THE HUMP CLUB" In July, I got orders for an assignment that would Involve working approximately 200 miles, round trip, into the Burma Jungle and mountain country. I was to accompany a party of engineers on a reconnaissance mission. We were scheduled to go through Myitkynia on the early part of the trip and the latter part, but didn't go through on the early part, as there were still a lot of Japs there, so we went around it. Our first three days hiking was through swampy jungle, with water frequently over our knees. We all started out carrying full packs, and I carried my 4x5 Speed Graphic camera and film in addition. We were able to get 26 mules and 30 coolie porters at our first night's stop, so we all got rid of our packs. We were told then, by an American officer who has traveled these trails extensively, that no white man could carry a pack over the trails we were to encounter. He was right. During the first five days we had some of our worst hiking. The trails went from I Sgt. C. L. Zimmerman, presently stationed in India, former head of Photocopy Department at TCP, sends us an interesting account of a trek by the "Hoof the Hump Club." swampy jungle to steep, slippery mountain trails. One day we went up 3,000 feet in 7 miles. That day we were only able to walk 8 minutes, then rest 10 minutes. Have you ever been so fatigued you thought you were going to lose your cookies? It was a new experience for me. At times everything was a red haze to me and I didn't think I could make it. We perspired gallons, literally. Our fatigues could be wrung out at any time and they never seemed dry. Wet feet seemed a normal situation, as we forded innumerable streams. We ate 8 or 10 salt tablets daily. They didn't even taste like salt. Until we reached the higher country, where our medical officer was pretty sure the water would be safe, with the addition of Halazone tablets, we had to boil all drinking water, which meant filling canteens before //e broke camp in the mornings and making one canteen do all day. We really suffered from thirst. No scotch has ever tasted so good as the little sips of water I allowed myself. We would dream about cold beer. Leeches were plentiful and voracious. We were so exhausted that during the rest periods we would fling ourselves prone on the ground, making it a Roman holiday for the leeches. Every night, when we made camp, we would all strip and have a leech Inspection. There were always plenty to be found. You can't pull them off. You hold the tip of a lighted cigarette near them and they back out. Then the blood continues to flow, as they leave a secretion that prevents coagulation. Along about this time I took up smoking again, as I would be so weary when we made camp that I needed any small solace or comfort I could get. I'm back where I was four years ago, smoking a pack a day. About our fifth day out we reached a fort, the northernmost Burma frontier post of the British. It had been strongly held by the Japs until two months previous to our arrival. There was plenty evidence of Jap occupation and of the battle which took place. Until we arrived, we had felt considerable concern over the possibility of meeting Jap patrols or Japs trying to escape from Myitkynia. We were heavily armed but were instructed to avoid trouble if possible, as ours was not a combat mission. When we reached the fort, we got a detachment of native troops for security and there is no better soldier than these boys when it comes to bush fighting. They killed a beef for us there and native cooks prepared a delicious beef curry and rice. After resting for two nights and a day, we pushed on, staying in native villages frequently, but I'll tell you about only one of them. The village headman greeted, us as we arrived. He was standing on the front porch of his large thatch-covered basha, surrounded by his several wives and half dozen filthy, runny-nosed, bare-fannied children. He was very friendly and, through our Interpreter, invited us to stay the night in his basha. Our Interpreter said it would be an Insult to refuse, so we all piled info the gloomy, smoky Interior. As our eyes became accustomed to the gloom, we could see how dirty it was Inside. A favorite wall ornament is the skull and horns of water buffalo, which gave it a touch of savageness. He immediately passed around a large bamboo full of rice wine. I sniffed a little dubiously at mine, but it proved quite good. Very much like sauterne wine. A few months ago I would have hesitated even entering a place like that; now I was glad to lay mv weary head on the floor and go to sleep — proving once again to me that everything in life is relative We did our own cooking, with wood and water provided by the women. They do all the work — the men really take it easy — quite a system. After dinner, we all wanted to turn in early but were unable to get asleep until quite late, as the headman and his friends sat around the fire all night smoking opium and chattering loudly. Later in the trip, we all tried a couple of pills of opium but all I got out of it was a bad taste in my mouth. 1 think the others fared about the same, so our curiosity satisfied, we didn't try it again. When we left the next morning, we gave him (the headman) a few rupees, then added about a pound of salt — both of which we carried for bartering purposes. The salt turned out to be the most valued item. More than half the women and some of the men I saw had large neck goiters. (Continued Next Page) Floral Decorations a Specialty GOLDMAIV’S FLOWERS and Gift Shop 9780-9784 Santa Open Evenings Monica Blvd. and Sundays Beverly Hills, California Crestview 1-0915