502  Reconstruction  of  Crippled  Soldier.  { Am'^*\^i*m' 
The  disability  of  some  crippled  soldiers  is  no  bar  to  returning  to 
their  former  trade,  but  the  injuries  of  many  disqualify  them  from 
pursuing  again  their  past  occupation.  The  schools  of  training  pre- 
pare these  men  for  some  work  in  which  their  physical  handicap  will 
not  materially  interfere  with  their  production. 
The  education  of  the  adult  is  made  up  largely  of  his  working  ex- 
perience. The  groundwork  of  training  in  his  past  occupation  must 
under  no  circumstances  be  abandoned.  The  new  trade  must  be  re- 
lated to  the  former  one  or  be,  perhaps,  an  extension  or  specialization 
of  it.  For  example,  a  man  who  had  done  manual  work  in  the  build- 
ing trades  may,  by  instruction  in  architectural  drafting  and  the  inter- 
pretation of  plans,  be  fitted  for  a  foreman's  job,  in  which  the  lack  of 
an  arm  would  not  prove  of  serious  handicap.  A  trainman  who  had 
lost  a  leg  might  wisely  be  prepared  as  a  telegrapher,  so  that  he  could 
go  back  to  railroad  work,  with  the  practice  of  which  he  is  already 
familiar. 
Whatever  training  is  given  must  be  thorough,  for  an  adult  cannot 
be  sent  out  to  employment  on  the  same  basis  as  a  boy  apprentice. 
He  must  be  adequately  prepared  for  the  work  he  is  to  undertake. 
The  one-armed  soldier  is  equipped  with  working  appliances 
which  have  supplanted  the  old  familiar  artificial  limb.  The  new  ap- 
pliances are  designed  with  a  practical  aim  only  in  view ;  they  vary 
according  to  the  trade  in  which  the  individual  is  to  engage.  For  ex- 
ample, the  appliance  for  a  machinist  would  be  quite  different  from 
that  with  which  a  wood  turner  would  be  provided.  Some  appliances 
have  attached  to  the  stump  a  chuck  in  which  various  tools  or  hooks 
can  interchangeably  be  held.  The  wearer  uses  these  devices  only 
while  at  work ;  for  evenings  and  holidays  he  is  provided  with'  a 
"  dress  arm  "  which  is  made  in  imitation  of  the  lost  natural  member. 
An  important  factor  in  the  success  of  reeducational  work  is  an 
early  start,  so  that  the  disabled  man  shall  have  no  chance  to  go  out 
unemployed  into  the  community.  In  even  a  short  period  of  exposure 
to  the  sentimental  sympathy  of  family  and  friends,  his  "  will  to 
work  "  is  so  broken  down  that  it  becomes  difficult  again  to  restore 
him  to  a  stand  of  independence  and  ambition.  For  this  reason, 
therefore,  the  plan  for  his  future  is  made  at  as  early  a  date  as  his 
physical  condition  admits,  and  training  is  actually  under  way  before 
the  patient  is  out  of  the  hospital. 
In  the  readjustment  of  the  crippled  soldier  to  civilian  life,  his 
placement  in  employment  is  a  matter  of  the  greatest  moment.  In 
this  field  the  employer  has  a  very  definite  responsibility. 
