lit in the lobe of the right ear.

The injury was followed by no signs of orbital concussion, and
no loss of consciousness. There was free bleeding from both
external wounds and from the nose. The sense of smell was
unaffected, but taste was impaired, and there was loss of
tactile sensation in the teeth on the left side also on the
hard palate. There was no evidence of fracture of the neck of
the mandible, nor of the external auditory meatus, but there
was considerable difficulty in opening the mouth widely or
protruding the teeth. The latter difficulty persisted for some
time, and was still present when I last saw the patient.

_Mandible._--Fractures of the lower jaw were frequent and offered some
peculiarities, the chief of which were the liability of any part of the
bone to be damaged, and the absence of the obliquity between the cleft
in the outer and inner tables so common in the fractures seen in civil
practice.

The neck of the condyle I three times saw fractured; in each instance
permanent stiffness and inability to open the mouth resulted. This
stiffness was of a degree sufficient to raise the question whether the
best course in such cases would not be to cut down primarily and remove
a considerable number of loose fragments, and thus diminish the amount
of callus likely to be thrown out.

Fractures of the ascending ramus and body were more frequent. They were
accompanied by considerable comminution, but all that I observed healed
remarkably well, and in good position, in spite of the fact that many of
the patients objected to wear any form of splint.

The most special feature was the occurrence of notched fractures,
corresponding to the type wedges described in Chapter V. When these
fractures were at the lower margin of the bone, the buccal cavity
occasionally escaped in spite of considerable comminution, the latter
confining itself to the basal portion of the bone.

When the base of the teeth, or the alveolus, was struck, a wedge was
often broken away, and from the apex of the resulting gap a fracture
extended to the lower margin of the bone.

When fractures of the latter nature resulted from vertically coursing
bullets, much trouble often ensued. I will quote two cases in
illustration:--

(82) Wounded at Rooipoort. _Entry_ (Mauser), through the lower
lip; the bullet struck the base of the right lateral incisor
and canine teeth, knocke