Imagine yourself out in a snowstorm or a lost in desert and you've somehow just suffered a bad cut on your leg. You are bleeding pretty badly and you need to stop the flow of blood. You don't have a hospital, medical equipment or even gauze bandages. You do however have an extra shirt that you can cut into strips and use as a makeshift bandage. It likely won't stop the flow of blood entirely but it will slow it significantly. In fact, it will stem the flow of blood enough that you will be able to continue on towards civilization which will allow you to get proper medical attention. The alternative is the risk of simply bleeding to death.
