ers to man the chain of canteens for the Red Cross just north of Venice. Hemingway quickly signed up because he knew the war was getting intense along the Piave River (Lynn 77-78).
             While he was passing out chocolates and cigarettes to soldiers in the canteen, a trench mortar shell exploded some three feet away and instantly killed a soldier next to him. He was left with severe wounds in his knee and right foot. Desperately, he tried to help the other soldiers even though he couldn't walk himself. He later declared that what happened to Lieutenant Henry in A Farewell to Arms was an accurate description of what happened to him (Lynn 79). He was sent to the American Red Cross Hospital, and received the Italian Silver Medal for Valor because of his courage and brotherhood. In letters home, he proudly announced, "I'm the first American wounded in Italy," even though he really wasn't. It took him about ten days to recover in the American Red Cross Hospital, and he was soon abl
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