RULES FOR THE PRELIMINARY PHYSICAL 



EXAMINATION 



The rules governing in the examination of recruits have been revised 

 from time to time, but in the main the changes until very recently 

 have been of relatively slight importance. The preliminary physical 

 examination of the recruit is generally by a line officer, who is 

 required to proceed in the following order : 



First, test the applicant's vision; second, test his hearing; third, strip him of 

 all clothing and inspect his general physique and appearance; fourth, take his 

 height, weight, and chest measurements; fifth, require him to perform the 

 exercises prescribed in paragraphs 16 to 19, inclusive, of these rules ; sixth, 

 make a special examination of the various parts of the body in the order and 

 to the extent prescribed in paragraphs 21 to 36, inclusive, of these rules. The 

 applicant must be entirely nude during the whole of this examination after he 

 has been subjected to the tests of vision and hearing. 



As far as known, the examining officer of the line is not required to 

 undergo a course of special instruction in methods of physical examina- 

 tion, so that merely accuracy in observation, good judgment and strict 

 conformity to thoroughly standardized requirements are relied upon for 

 satisfactory results. Considering special aspects of the examination, 

 it must be apparent that in many cases an officer of the line may be far 

 from qualified to ascertain accurately the visual acuity of an applicant 

 for military service, or his hearing or his general physical proportions 

 in so far as they may possibly indicate more or less obscure departures 

 from accepted standards. The present practice is a survival of the 

 earlier methods of recruiting, when the main object of the examination 

 was to exclude applicants obviously unsuitable, often on moral or 

 intellectual grounds. Considering, for illustration, such a delicate pro- 

 cedure as chest measurement, it is required, according to the official 

 instructions, that 



The applicant will be made to stand erect with his heels together and to raise 

 his arms over his head. The measuring tape will be carefully adjusted around 

 the chest with the upper edge of the tape just below the lower angles of the 

 shoulder blades behind and the nipples in front. The arms of the applicant 

 will then be dropped to the sides and he will be directed to take several deep 

 breaths to verify the maximum and minimum measurements. Care must be 

 taken not to displace the tape and to avoid muscular contortions. Many men 

 must be taught how to breathe and to expand the che.st before the measurements 

 are taken, and consequently great care and patience are often necessary in order 

 to get correct results. 



This is merely one of many indications that the functions of the 

 examining officer of the line conform more to those of a medical 

 examiner, whose judgment would unquestionably be more conclusive 

 and trustworthy than that of even the most careful and painstaking 

 non-medical observer. 



17 



