ollowed I have only a hazy recollection. My brain
and body sustained during the period of danger and strain, collapsed
completely, and during the next six days I had only occasional periods
of sensibility.

I can, therefore, only recall the facts between the time of my being
picked up and my arrival at Hanover, six days later, in a disjointed
manner.

Telling only of incidents, which stand out here and there in my
memory, it must be borne in mind that during the operations of
September the 8th and 9th I had felt the weight of my responsibility;
and the great shock caused by my wound and the two days' exposure and
suffering that followed, imposed a great strain upon my system, and
reaction had now set in.

My wound had received no attention, and my right eye was hopelessly
mutilated. The optic nerve of my left eye was damaged beyond repair,
and the eye itself was obscured by an enormous swelling. My sense of
smell was gone, and my cheeks, nose, and mouth were swollen and numbed
to a painful degree.

I had lost power in my lower jaw, which would barely move. My nerves
were completely shattered, and the mere touch of a hand would make me
shrink with fright.

I had lost my voice, and during the occasional periods of sensibility,
I could only speak in a startled whisper, while my brain in hideous
delirium would constantly take me back to the scenes through which I
had just passed.

I remember my stretcher being lifted and being placed in a horse-drawn
ambulance with several others. Before leaving, the M.O. gave me a
bottle of water, and so great was my thirst that for several days I
kept this tightly gripped in my hand, and would not part with it
except to get it refilled.

I have a hazy idea of being transferred from one ambulance to another,
and several journeys. The ground was very rough, and the shaking of
the wagon seemed to cause great pain to other occupants. The bumping
to my own head compelled me to raise it from the pillow and resist the
jolts by resting it on my hand.

Where I spent Monday night I do not know, but on Tuesday night I found
myself in what must have been a small hospital in a town I do not
remember.

It seemed to me that I was in a sort of basement of a private house,
and that a man and woman were watching over me, exhibiting very great
kindness and compassion.

I seemed to awaken from my stupor, and remember some snatches of
conversation, as they bent over me, for they could both spea