It all depends on what they check in the physical. If Civil War recruits had a physical at all, it would have been counting the arms, legs, and eyes, and checking that the teeth were good enough to handle army chow. If the recruit looked decrepit, maybe they’d want to see him walk and run. Nothing that required disrobing, and really nothing that the recruiting sergeant couldn’t verify – if they did a physical, it was just to keep the recruiters honest. (And there still are reasons to do that. In 1978 I went through a thorough physical at the joint military intake facility in Detroit, flew to Air Force Basic Training in San Antonio, and immediately went through another physical. One man in our group of 50 was rejected there, for a heart murmur the Army medics had missed.)
As for women in disguise in the Civil War, when they were discovered, it was usually after they were carried into the hospital tent due to injury or illness. Latrines and bathing could have been a problem, but it was accepted that some boys were just shy, regular bathing was not yet required, and only rich people owned more clothes than one set for Sunday and one for working. Everyone stank, and no one commented on it.
Sisyphos almost 10 years ago
OMG! Hush, Portnoy! Don’t give away trade secrets like that!
markmoss1 almost 10 years ago
It all depends on what they check in the physical. If Civil War recruits had a physical at all, it would have been counting the arms, legs, and eyes, and checking that the teeth were good enough to handle army chow. If the recruit looked decrepit, maybe they’d want to see him walk and run. Nothing that required disrobing, and really nothing that the recruiting sergeant couldn’t verify – if they did a physical, it was just to keep the recruiters honest. (And there still are reasons to do that. In 1978 I went through a thorough physical at the joint military intake facility in Detroit, flew to Air Force Basic Training in San Antonio, and immediately went through another physical. One man in our group of 50 was rejected there, for a heart murmur the Army medics had missed.)
As for women in disguise in the Civil War, when they were discovered, it was usually after they were carried into the hospital tent due to injury or illness. Latrines and bathing could have been a problem, but it was accepted that some boys were just shy, regular bathing was not yet required, and only rich people owned more clothes than one set for Sunday and one for working. Everyone stank, and no one commented on it.