Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1888-09-06
YELLOW JACB.

sets in.
This much is now conceded and all that
can be done is to keep up the fight.
The condition of the camps of refuge ID
causing great anxiety. A correspondent
who has visited Camp Perry, near this
city, gives the following description Of
affairs there:
The camp is on hill, fine and airy
spot, surrounded with pines. There are
132 old army tents, six feet by five, with
two stretcher cots in each. A band oi
canvas, raised on two elevated wires, serves
for pillow, and horse rug for cover.
To the men are given single, and to the
women q double blanket each. This il
all the furniture in the tents, as there are
two cots in each, there Is no room for more.
Ninety per cent of these tents are leaky,
and as it has been raining heavily fol
three days, LAST night every one was abou,
as miserable as possible. The food is fair,
but the cooking wretched, and the dining
accommodations are not half sufficient.
Certain regulations as to allowing ladies to
be served first, have at last been made,
but I am informed that at first there was q
regular rush and scramble as between a
pack of wolves. There is q very large
crowd of low negroes in camp, and loud
complaints are made Of their being allowed
to cit at the same table as the whites.
Certainly it is not pleasant experience to
have such negroes as your next door neigh
bors. DR.. Guiteras, however, is an equal
rights man, aud, though q petition has
been presented, he has not acted upon Il.
There is sanitary guard, but guard
room there is none, and all disorderly
characters, instead of being kept in guard
room until their quarantine is out, are
sent back to Jacksonville and the yellow
fever. If the camp is to be kept from turn.
ing into camp for negro loafers, a com.
missioned officer should at once be sent
down to take charge, proper wall tents
supplied and strict military discipline en-
forced. Rather than delicate women and
children should 90 there it were better
they remained in Jacksonville and risked
the fever. If they 90 they may expect to
spend their first night in their clothes,
sleep in leaky little tent into which they
must crawl over the foot of their cot, AZ
the two cots take up all the room of the
tent, undress as best they can, have for
tent mate Heaven knows who, and, az one
gentleman in forcible language put it:
Make up their minds for ten days to put
on their old clothes and live like hogs"
There are at present 1853 people there,
about 80 Of whom are colored, and there
was not contented man or woman in the
crowd. Surely" they say, 'some ar
rapgement might be made 80 that lady
could get her night clothes, brushes and
towels, and have a comfortable nights
rest. That is all we ask for; but when it
comes to sitting mp all night with your
clothing on and your umbrella up in a
dripping tent, as we hsve@ione, we think
it little too much" The farce of the
whole affair is that while their night
clothes are kept fumigating, people keep
on unfumigated clothes.
About three hundred yards from the
main camp is the hospital, in which there
is at present only one case, a Mrs. Mckee,
who is doing well. A large wall tent,
which holds four beds very comfortably,
has been erected, and Mrs. Mckee will be
moved from the little tent. where she has
been lying, into the new tent to-day. DR..
Wise arrived while was there TO take
charge of the hospital camp, and he GER
tainly seemed to be the right man in the
right place, He intends to have what is
necessary and will stand no nonsense. He
is, at the same time, a worker, and as the
negroes up there, who are living free, re.
fused to work for fifty cents day, he,
with his own hands and the assistance OF
his three nurses, is building q wooden cot
tage on the grounds.
Another example of Government mis-.
management X that the three professional
nurses from Pensacola were all males,
though female was also requisitioned for,
and the only patient there is female
One good effect of the establishment of this
part Of the camp will be that in the event
Of any being taken sick they will fare bet
ter than young Pollard. From inquiries
made it appears that Pollard was taken i'll
slightly with yellow fever and was or
dered to Jacksonville. He walked down
to the train and was quite cheerful
and Jolly, but they refused to take
him without Government orders. He
was then taken back to camp and into an
isolated tent-one Of the miserable, con-
demned army ones, such as are at present
being used. The next day he was again
taken to the train. He was then much
worse. He was again refused transit, and
WAS taken back to the camp. The follow
ing day he was seriously i'll, but was car
ried to the train and brought down in q
baggage car, only to die at once. Many
people who were present told me the facts
and said that if he had been treated on the
ground or taken to Jacksonville the first
day there is probability he would have
been saved.
Surgeon General Hamilton has been
seen and conferred with, and has gone
away, but the people of Jacksonville are
Just where they were before, except that
they have secured some promises. No
trains out, except to the health camp, will
be run. He did promise, however,
that if the deputation would telegraph
the Governor and the President Of the
Board of Health of North Carolina, and
find out what places were open to refugees
and communicate with him, he would
then consider whether, In his opinion,
the places named were safe. When
the camp question, on which the deputa-
ton had foil information from me, was
broached, Surgeon General Hamilton
warmed up and said be had not como there
to be bulldozsd. He promised, however,
10 provide better tents and that barrack
should be built for the white women, bet
ter kitchen arrangements and car accom-
modatious, and acknowledged that the
camp was very bad. This is the sum total
of what the anIiously looked for confer.
ence has done. What should be done 10
to leave the camp, NJ ii Is, for the low class
of blacks, and have another on the oppo-
site side of the railroad track for the
whites.
Seven Cases at Tampa
WASHINGTON, September 5.-Tbe fol-
lowing telegram was received at the Sur
geon- Generals Office this morning:
"TAMPA, FLA, September 4.-Seven
eases yellow fever reported In the Last two
days, four positive, mostly mild type. No
details.
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