CHAPTER XII First Aid

 As soon as Barbara reached the scene of the wreck¹ she turned to seek Nona’s advice and aid. But to her amazement² there was no evidence of her companion. Stupidly she continued to stare. It was impossible to conceive what could have become of Nona, yet the last quarter of an hour had been so full of strange happenings that there was small wonder at Barbara’s bewilderment.

A moment later, a few yards from where they had first begun to run, she saw Nona’s figure lying in a crumpled³ heap upon the ground. Yet was it imaginable that this could be Nona? Had she fainted or stumbled? The recollection of the suffocating⁴ gas about them really did not occur to Barbara, as she had felt its effects so slightly.

Yet here she stood torn between two duties. Should she return and find out[162] what had happened to her friend or try first to release the man?

Barbara suffered only a brief indecision. Though she may have failed in her first week’s work at the hospital, her training as a nurse now asserted itself. And one of the supreme⁵ requisites⁶ of the successful nurse is that she use her judgment⁷ without unnecessary delay.

Straightway Barbara attempted dragging the unconscious man from his seat in the wrecked⁸ aeroplane, it being, of course, out of the question to move the machine itself. But the body felt as heavy and inert⁹ as if there were no life inside. Still she tugged¹⁰, and though so miniature a person her muscles and nerves were for the time at least strong and steady.

The man was tall, an Englishman Barbara guessed him to be, but happily he was thin. Many months devoted¹¹ to war’s service leaves little flesh upon a soldier, and these modern soldiers of the air bear perhaps the most terrific strain of all.

But once the man’s head was in the open air Barbara knelt beside him. So far as[163] she could discover he did not appear to be wounded; there was no blood upon him anywhere. Holding her smelling salts under his nose, he showed no sign of consciousness. Then she worked his arms back and forth¹², so as to stimulate¹³ the action of the heart, used every first aid method that her three years of study had taught her. This case was unlike any she had ever known. As she worked an idea came to Barbara. Once she recalled a man having been brought into the hospital overcome by the fumes¹⁴ of gas. Such a possibility was absurd with this case and yet the face had the same dark, frightful¹⁵ look.

Nevertheless, Barbara Meade was not in the least hopeless, nor did she for an instant cease to work, though now and then she was forced to glance toward the spot where Nona remained so quiet. What could be the matter? Why did she not come to her aid?

All this, of course, took place in a very few minutes. A little later when Barbara gave another frightened look across the fields, she discovered that Nona had gotten[164] up and was walking toward her. She seemed dizzy and uncertain, but there was evidently nothing serious the matter.

Moreover, there was no time for inquiries¹⁶, for just as Nona reached her, Barbara’s patient stirred, coughed and struggled to regain¹⁷ his breath. Then for the first time the nurse put her arm about her friend. The air would do more for the stupefied man than she could.

Soon after he opened his eyes and in an incredibly short time pulled himself out from beneath his aeroplane. He then stared in a dazed half-blind fashion at the two girls standing¹⁸ near him in nurses’ uniforms, in the center of a ploughed field.

But war admits of no surprises. Only the two American Red Cross girls had not yet grown accustomed to the possible strangeness of their adventures. Moreover, they were frightened at the appearance of their first hero. He was not in the least what one would expect an aviator¹⁹ to be. This man was not young according to Nona’s or Barbara’s ideas. He must have been about thirty, his hair and eyes[165] were dark and the lines of his face stern and severe. His skin was now a queer mottled color, with ugly blue splotches.

However, he began struggling to speak. But his tongue was so swollen²⁰ that he choked and coughed, neither did he seem able to see clearly.

Meanwhile Nona Davis, although considerably²¹ less affected²², was also plainly not herself. She too coughed uncomfortably and seemed weak and stupid. She expressed no surprise over what had just taken place and offered her friend neither advice nor assistance. But Barbara had already made up her mind. They must get back to the hospital and as soon as possible. Yet her patient could not walk, Nona could not help, and Barbara did not wish to leave them while she went for assistance.

Fortunately, however, in looking about she discovered that Anton, the boy whom they had been endeavoring to escape, had been attracted by the vision in the air. Or if he had not seen it, he was now plainly visible not far away, staring in a bold, half-terrified fashion at the scene, which was past his understanding.

[166]

Barbara summoned him imperatively²³.

Between them they then managed to get the air man clear of his machine. As soon as he was on his feet, with Anton’s and Barbara’s arms grasping his, he stumbled on for a few steps. Afterwards he found himself better able to walk.

“Extraordinary thing,” he began, and Barbara immediately thought his words and manner so intensely English that she wanted to laugh. Would any American man under the same circumstances remain so coldly dignified²⁴ and superior as this one appeared?

“I am not in the least hurt, you know, only confoundedly weak and suffocated,” he said finally. “New trick, that of our enemy’s; they have been using their asphyxiating²⁵ gas on our soldiers in the trenches²⁶, but this is the first time a gas bomb has been thrown from a Taube aeroplane. Lucky thing for me the gas was too heavy to stay long in the upper air.”

This speech was made thickly and with a great deal of effort, but both Nona and[167] Barbara were able to understand. They knew, of course, of the use of the chlorine missiles, Germany’s novel weapon of war, which had lately been thrown into the trenches of the Allies. The papers had been full of the mysterious effects the gas had upon the soldiers. How stupid not to have dreamed of this! Of course, the situation was now explained, even Nona’s odd share in it. Evidently the poisonous gas which they had seen in a greenish yellow cloud encircling the aeroplane had fallen to earth and Nona had been wrapped in its fumes. But it had been too diluted²⁷ with air to have done her serious harm, and after her fall a favoring wind must have blown it away.

By the time the second field was reached Nona was herself again. Indeed, it was she who decided²⁸ to hurry on to the hospital and send back aid. They were finding the way too long for the still stupefied man, who could only see dimly and was still suffering as if he had been recently paralyzed.

The two nurses had been missed at the[168] hospital and Nona felt the atmosphere of disfavor as she entered the great stone house.

Fortunately, however, she found their Scotch²⁹ friend, Alexina McIntyre, waiting in the hall for the arrival of a fresh ambulance of the wounded. The ambulances brought the men from the battle front to this hospital only a few miles away. A few moments later help was dispatched to Barbara.

1 wreck   

n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难

参考例句：

• Weather may have been a factor in the wreck.天气可能是造成这次失事的原因之一。
• No one can wreck the friendship between us.没有人能够破坏我们之间的友谊。

2 amazement   

n.惊奇，惊讶

参考例句：

• All those around him looked at him with amazement.周围的人都对他投射出惊异的眼光。
• He looked at me in blank amazement.他带着迷茫惊诧的神情望着我。

3 crumpled   

adj. 弯扭的, 变皱的 动词crumple的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• She crumpled the letter up into a ball and threw it on the fire. 她把那封信揉成一团扔进了火里。
• She flattened out the crumpled letter on the desk. 她在写字台上把皱巴巴的信展平。

4 suffocating   

a.使人窒息的

参考例句：

• After a few weeks with her parents, she felt she was suffocating.和父母呆了几个星期后，她感到自己毫无自由。
• That's better. I was suffocating in that cell of a room.这样好些了，我刚才在那个小房间里快闷死了。

5 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

6 requisites   

n.必要的事物( requisite的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• It is obvious that there are two requisites. 显然有两个必要部分。 来自辞典例句
• Capacity of donor is one of the essential requisites of \"gift\". 赠与人的行为能力是\"赠与\"的一个重要前提。 来自口语例句

7 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

8 wrecked   

adj.失事的，遇难的

参考例句：

• the hulk of a wrecked ship 遇难轮船的残骸
• the salvage of the wrecked tanker 对失事油轮的打捞

9 inert   

adj.无活动能力的，惰性的；迟钝的

参考例句：

• Inert gas studies are providing valuable information about other planets,too.对惰性气体的研究，也提供了有关其它行星的有价值的资料。
• Elemental nitrogen is a very unreactive and inert material.元素氮是一个十分不活跃的惰性物质。

10 tugged   

v.用力拉，使劲拉，猛扯( tug的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• She tugged at his sleeve to get his attention. 她拽了拽他的袖子引起他的注意。
• A wry smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. 他的嘴角带一丝苦笑。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

12 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

13 stimulate   

vt.刺激，使兴奋；激励，使…振奋

参考例句：

• Your encouragement will stimulate me to further efforts.你的鼓励会激发我进一步努力。
• Success will stimulate the people for fresh efforts.成功能鼓舞人们去作新的努力。

14 fumes   

n.(强烈而刺激的)气味，气体

参考例句：

• The health of our children is being endangered by exhaust fumes. 我们孩子们的健康正受到排放出的废气的损害。
• Exhaust fumes are bad for your health. 废气对健康有害。

15 frightful   

adj.可怕的；讨厌的

参考例句：

• How frightful to have a husband who snores!有一个发鼾声的丈夫多讨厌啊！
• We're having frightful weather these days.这几天天气坏极了。

16 inquiries   

n.调查( inquiry的名词复数 )；疑问；探究；打听

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending further inquiries. 他获得保释，等候进一步调查。
• I have failed to reach them by postal inquiries. 我未能通过邮政查询与他们取得联系。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

17 regain   

vt.重新获得，收复，恢复

参考例句：

• He is making a bid to regain his World No.1 ranking.他正为重登世界排名第一位而努力。
• The government is desperate to regain credibility with the public.政府急于重新获取公众的信任。

18 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

19 aviator   

n.飞行家，飞行员

参考例句：

• The young aviator bragged of his exploits in the sky.那名年轻的飞行员吹嘘他在空中飞行的英勇事迹。
• Hundreds of admirers besieged the famous aviator.数百名爱慕者围困那个著名飞行员。

20 swollen   

adj.肿大的，水涨的；v.使变大，肿胀

参考例句：

• Her legs had got swollen from standing up all day.因为整天站着，她的双腿已经肿了。
• A mosquito had bitten her and her arm had swollen up.蚊子叮了她，她的手臂肿起来了。

21 considerably   

adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上

参考例句：

• The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
• The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。

22 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

23 imperatively   

adv.命令式地

参考例句：

• Drying wet rice rapidly and soaking or rewetting dry rice kernels imperatively results in severe fissuring. 潮湿米粒快速干燥或干燥籽粒浸水、回潮均会产生严重的裂纹。 来自互联网
• Drying wet rice kernels rapidly, Soaking or Rewetting dry rice Kernels imperatively results in severe fissuring. 潮湿米粒的快速干燥，干燥籽粒的浸水或回潮均会带来严重的裂纹。 来自互联网

24 dignified   

a.可敬的，高贵的

参考例句：

• Throughout his trial he maintained a dignified silence. 在整个审讯过程中，他始终沉默以保持尊严。
• He always strikes such a dignified pose before his girlfriend. 他总是在女友面前摆出这种庄严的姿态。

25 asphyxiating   

v.渴望的，有抱负的，追求名誉或地位的( aspirant的现在分词 )；有志向或渴望获得…的人

参考例句：

26 trenches   

深沟，地沟( trench的名词复数 )； 战壕

参考例句：

• life in the trenches 第一次世界大战期间的战壕生活
• The troops stormed the enemy's trenches and fanned out across the fields. 部队猛攻敌人的战壕，并在田野上呈扇形散开。

27 diluted   

无力的，冲淡的

参考例句：

• The paint can be diluted with water to make a lighter shade. 这颜料可用水稀释以使色度淡一些。
• This pesticide is diluted with water and applied directly to the fields. 这种杀虫剂用水稀释后直接施用在田里。

28 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

29 scotch   

n.伤口，刻痕；苏格兰威士忌酒；v.粉碎，消灭，阻止；adj.苏格兰(人)的

参考例句：

• Facts will eventually scotch these rumours.这种谣言在事实面前将不攻自破。
• Italy was full of fine views and virtually empty of Scotch whiskey.意大利多的是美景，真正缺的是苏格兰威士忌。