Fencer Suffers Shoulder Wound, Waits 30 Minutes for Medical Aid

In the second fencing accident requiring hospitalization this year, Eugene M.A. Gervasi '59 was stabbed in the shoulder with a broken foil at the I.A.B. yesterday, while providing sound effects for a recording of a WHRB broadcast.

Gervasi was not wearing a fencing jacket and there were no trainers in the building when the accident occured. The trainer assigned to duty in the fencing room was sick yesterday, it was learned, and could not be replaced.

Daniel J. Gillis '57, manager of the Fencing Team, was making a five-minute tape-recording for last night's radio program on intramural sports and asked the two freshmen to make slashing noises for background. Gillis who was in charge of freshman intramural matches yesterday afternoon, said that jackets are not required to be worn during practice.

Foil Had Broken

Gervasi received the wound from Eliot F. Morrison '59, whose foil had imperceptibly broken during the bout. Dr. Augustus Thorndike, chief surgeon of the Hygiene Department, reached the scene at 6 p.m., thirty minutes after the accident, Gillis said.

Dr. Dana L. Farnsworth, director of the University Health Service, blamed antiquated facilities in the Hygiene Department setup and the weather for the delay. Five phone calls had to be made, according Gillis, before a doctor could be reached. All intramural epee matches scheduled for today have been cancelled, Gillis stated, because of an inadequate number of uniforms.