ullets of small calibre has not
previously been afforded to British surgeons.

I think the general trend of the observations goes to show that the
employment of bullets of small calibre is all to the advantage of the
men wounded, except in so far as the increased possibilities of the
range of fire may augment the number of individuals hit; also that such
variations as exist between wounds inflicted by bullets of the
Martini-Henry and Mauser types respectively, depend rather on the form
and bulk of the projectile than on any inherent difference in the nature
of the injuries. Thus in the chapter devoted to the general characters
of the wounds, it will be seen that most of the older types of entry
and exit aperture are produced in miniature by the small modern bullet,
and that the main peculiarity of the deeper injuries is the frequent
strict localisation of the direct damage to an area of no greater width
than that crossed by narrow structures of importance such as arteries or
nerves.

It is to be regretted that I am unable to furnish any important
statistical details, but incomplete numbers, such as are at my disposal,
would be of little value. In view, however, of the considerable interval
which must elapse before the Royal Army Medical Corps is able to arrange
and publish the large material which will have accumulated, it has
seemed unwise to defer publication until the completion of a report
which will deal with such matters thoroughly.

It may be of interest to premise the opportunities which I enjoyed of
gaining experience during the campaign. I arrived in South Africa on
November 19, 1899; two days later I proceeded to Orange River with
Surgeon-General Wilson, and on the day three weeks after leaving home
performed some operations in the field hospitals on patients from the
battle of Belmont. I remained at Orange River during the three next
engagements, Graspan, Enslin, and Modder River, and on the day of
Magersfontein I went forward to the Field hospitals at Modder River,
arriving during the bringing in of the patients from the field of
battle. I returned to Orange River with the patients and remained there
a further period of three weeks, during which time the patients were
gradually transferred to the Base hospitals at Wynberg. At Christmas I
followed the patients down to the base, and thus was able to observe the
course of the cases from their commencement to convalescence. I remained
at Wynberg six weeks, d