Earl Wharton

The Sword and the Scalpel Earl Wharton

This story is a historically factual depiction of the suffering sustained by both sides during the Civil War as seen through the eyes of typically selected characters. Jonathan Carter, a young man from Virginia is about to graduate from a prestigious medical college in Philadelphia when the war breaks out. He is forced to choose sides. Should he return to the South and protect his family home and the relative whom he loves? Or should he remain in Philadelphia and pursue a promising medical career, and continue to court the beautiful and talented girl of his dream? Which ever choice he makes he will suffer losses and heartache. Jonathan be friends a burly Union soldier from New Jersey. Jess Blackford. Using their friendship and adventures as a symbol of the divided spirit of America, the author paints a vivid picture of the agony and desperation created by the war. What particularly sets this book apart from the many other Civil War books are the authentic renditions of the injuries and suffering of the soldiers and the medical treatment they received under the most trying circumstances. The author, himself a physician is able to give meticulously accurate accounts. Medicine in America would be changed forever by the experiences on the bloody battle fields of the War between the States.