The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1898-09-29
THE WARS VICTIMS.
More Soldiers Have Died of Disease
Than of Wounds Received
in Action.

The list of casualties in the army
during the war with Spain has not yet
been carefully compiled, and, in fact,
cannot be completed for months to
come, because included in it must be
the deaths from disease in camp and
hospital, which will far outnumber
those from the bullets of the enemy.
The proportion of deaths from disease
will probably be larger than in the
civil war.
In 1855 an effort was made to ascer-
tain what the proportion was. 1t re-
suited in showing that the aggregate
number of deaths among the union
troops was 359,52S. The number of
officers and men killed in action was
| 67,05S and the number who died from
wounds received in action was 43,012,
making total of 110,07O, or fraction
over 80 per cent. of the aggregate. 1t
appeared that 224, $50 officers and men,
or more than 62 per cent, died of dis
ease. The remainder of the deaths
were due to various causes. No fewer
than 100 officers and 4,S3S men were
drowned, while 142 officers and 1912
men died from accidental causes other
than drowning.
According to official and semi-official
reports, which are still subject to re-
vision and correction, the number of
officers and men of the army killed
in action since the outbreak of hostili
! 10
the number wounded 1,496. making
total of 1,778. II is probable that ad-
ditions will be made to the list of
killed by subsequent reports. Of
course, most of the casualties occurred
in the fighting around Santiago, but
even there the number was not ex-
cessively large, considering the stub
bornness of the defense and the fact
that infantry, not backed by a sutfi
Gent amount of artillery, was led
against the enemy, who were strongly
lintrenched. Most of the fighting was
with small arms and few men in the
| American army. at least, were killed
or wounded by shells.
The Spanish troops generally were
| armed with Mauser rifles, d weapon of
long range. They used smokeless
powder and had the advantage of po-
sition and local knowledge, and made
the most of them. According to all
theory, the mortality among the
American troops should have been
much heavier. In fact, one might have
supposed that superiority of weapons
alone, as compared with those used
by infantry 100 years ago, or even IS
years ago, would have produced the
result.
The battle of Breeds Hill-popular-
ly called the battle of Bunker Hill
was fought in the days of the flint
lock musket and when smokeless pow
der was unknown, but the casualties
ON both sides were relatively much
heavier than in the battles around
Santiago. The Americans at that time
cid not have more than 1900 men ac-
tually engaged and the British about
twice as many. The American loss
was 145 killed and 3O4 wounded. and
the British 226 killed and S2s wounded
At the battle of New Orleans the
American strength engaged was about
5000, and the loss only eight killed
and 10 wounded, while the British loss.
with about 10000 men engaged, was
700 killed and twice as many wounded
"a much heavier total loss than that
of Skaters army before Santiago.
At New Orleans the British infantry
attacked an intrenched position, as
it also did at Breeds Hill. At the
battle of Belmont, in 1861, the number
of union troops actually engaged was
$500 and the number of confederates
between 1000 ard 5000. Neither side
fought behind intrenchments. The
union loss was 4S5 killed, wounded
and missing, and the confederate loss
was GAG killed, wounded and missing
Smokeless powder had not yet been
invented and muzzle-loading guns were
used by both sides.-Chicago Post.