The Journal of a Civil War Surgeon.The Journal of a Civil War Surgeon. By J. Franklin Dyer. Edited by Michael B. Chesson. (Lincoln and London: University of Nebraska Press, c. 2003. Pp. xxxvi, 317. $25.00, ISBN ISBN abbr. International Standard Book Number ISBN International Standard Book Number ISBN n abbr (= International Standard Book Number) → ISBN m 0-8032-6637-5.) At first glance, this book might attract only nominal attention. Such would be a mistake. Jonah Franklin Dyer was surgeon-in-chief of the Second Division and acting medical director of the II Corps, Army of the Potomac This article is about the Union army. For the Confederate army of the same name, see Army of the Potomac (Confederate). The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. . He served from July 1861 to August 1864, treating soldiers from numerous significant battles--Second Bull Run, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Wilderness, and Petersburg--as well as the Peninsula campaign For the campaign of the Napoleonic Wars, see . The Peninsula Campaign (also known as the Peninsular Campaign) of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the . The publication of his journal is important because there are but a limited number of available works by Civil War surgeons, and his letters are well written with apt descriptions of battles and leaders of the war. The book contains very little information on the medical procedures Dyer used to save lives, however, and therefore might have limited appeal to those interested in the medical profession. More often than not, Dyer's entries are personal observations of camp life and the abilities, or lack thereof, of general officers and politicians alike. For example, in the summer of 1862, Dyer complained frequently about the lack of fresh vegetables that led to an outbreak of scurvy scurvy, deficiency disorder resulting from a lack of vitamin C (ascorbic acid) in the diet. Scurvy does not occur in most animals because they can synthesize their own vitamin C, but humans, other primates, guinea pigs, and a few other species lack an enzyme . Later, on the Peninsula, he performed amputations on barren ground Barren Ground novel portraying a woman’s emotional sterility and her harsh labor on a farm. [Am. Lit.: Barren Ground] See : Barrenness Barren Ground by candlelight. In April 1863 President and Mrs. Lincoln reviewed troops, and Dyer commented that she was a "fat-faced, comfortable-looking woman," while "the president looked thin" (p. 69). Upon seeing Ulysses S. Grant for the first time, Dyer noted "nothing very remarkable in General Grant's appearance ... you would not pick him out of a crowd of officers as a remarkable man" (p. 144). But Dyer was particularly critical of George B. McClellan For the 1960s commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, see . For the mayor of New York City, see . George Brinton McClellan (December 3 1826 – October 29 1885) was a major general during the American Civil War. , explaining "If I thought we had no man in our country but McClellan fit to lead our armies, I would pack up and leave..." (p. 47). His July 4, 1863, entry recorded the Union victory at Gettysburg: "Never in the history of the war has been known such a fiercely contested fight, or such slaughter" (p. 93). Later he added that "There were none of us who did not fully appreciate the magnitude and importance of the engagement. Men fought with desperation, and each seemed to feel that here on the soil of the North was to be decided the great contest between freedom and slavery" (p. 98). After being mustered out of the army in August 1864, Dyer applied for a number of local government positions. He served variously as coroner, medical examiner A public official charged with investigating all sudden, suspicious, unexplained, or unnatural deaths within the area of his or her appointed jurisdiction. A medical examiner differs from a Coroner in that a medical examiner is a physician. , city alderman, and mayor of Gloucester, Massachusetts, prior to his death in 1879. Editor Michael B. Chesson omitted no words penned by Dyer. There was no need. The entries are thoughtful and lucid, providing a rare glimpse of the Civil War through the eyes of a man who came face to face with death and used his considerable medical talents to try and defeat it. C. DAVID David, in the Bible David, d. c.970 B.C., king of ancient Israel (c.1010–970 B.C.), successor of Saul. The Book of First Samuel introduces him as the youngest of eight sons who is anointed king by Samuel to replace Saul, who had been deemed a failure. DALTON College of the Ozarks Enrollment is 1,500 to 1,600, and all tuition costs for students are covered by a workstudy program. Students put in 15 hours a week throughout the semester at a workstation, and one 40-hour work week is required outside of the semester. |
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