The examination of recruits in the civil war (Bartholow, 1863)

Abstract

T HE ADVENT of the civil War government officials with the raising large numbers of men and confronted need for confronted physicians--most of whom had been engaged in civil practice-with the duty of estimating physical and mental fitness for military duty. For advising his colleagues in this specialized professional task Roberts Bartholow (18311904) possessed suitable qualifications. ‘4 graduate Of the Medical Department of the University of Maryland, he entered the regular armv about 1856 and served in Utah, New Mexico and Minnesota. During the Civil War he had duty at several military hospitals, including the McDougall General Hospital and the Lincoln General Hospital at Washington. 1Yhile in charge of the former institution he wrote .4 Manual of Instructions for Enlisting and Discharging Soldiers, which was published in Philadelphia by J. B. Lippincott in 1863. This book, written in the clear, succinct style appropriate to a military manual, provides much information on the condition of medical knowledge at the time and also affords interesting incidental insights into matters of wider scope.