The age-herald., 1898-08-02

adopt for the purification of the same and ar if he would assits me in procuring
 snniis,nees ts Snr boiling the water for the
 ameiioratfoh of heaIrn yS~,tions. yS,.r. lie in-
 formed me that he could not. and fur,n-s-- more that he expected that the everglade water supply would be furnished us Tn about thirty-sx hours.
 In view of the great responsibility which rests upon the medical officers, and as the
 health of the men depend upon the sanl- tary measures adopted, or neglected, con- sider 1t my duty to inform you of the nec- essary measures of prophylaxis and the serious results which invariably follow a
 neglect of these measures, especially when troops are in camp, in a semi-tropical coun- try during the sic1xly season.
 l am informed by Dr. Appel and MT. | Mcdonald CF1aglers agenD, that the pres ent water supply is drawn from the ever glades, but investigation discoses the source to be so mysterious that neither the contractors nor the residents can give any l information of it's origin, and unhesitat- ingly give 1t as my opinion that it is surf ace water from the everglades and that it is filled with vegetable matter.
 beg to remind you, sir that at a recent. investigation that investigation came from
 MT. Mcdonald (Flagler's agenD that the supply of water then in use was from the everglades. A subsequent research de- cided the fact that this information was in- correct. Men are dying in this camp every day-the lives of men cannot be made to depend upon doubtful opinions and unrelia- 1 ble information, and the time has come | when the true condition of affairs must be l known
 This condition has been aggravated by l the absolute refusal of the division surgeon l to take official notice of the reports of the 1 various regimental surgeons As medical l officer of the day, in my written report l to the division surgeon on July 3, and other l reports since, I laid particular stress upon 1 the water supply, pointing out the dangers | of contamination. To this no attention was 1 given, or, at any rate, no preventive action l was taken. Typhoid fever has been de- l velopng since and men are dying of it. l The division surgeon either does not know 1 the cause, or is withholding his knowledge 1 for reasons I will not stop to inquire into | now. The emergencies of the time require my attention to the removal of the cause, I which I unhesitatingly charge is the water l supply I view of this opinion. I earnestly l and strongly advise that a board of three surgeons from the brigade be appointed to l locate the source of the water supply, and l further suggest that the water for drink 1 ing purposes be boiled for al least one hour l this in view of the reports I enclose. | further advise that samples of the water l be sent to the nearest reliable bacteriolog- 1 ical and chemical laboratory for analysis Respectfully submitted,
 d.. Major and Surgeon Second Brigade. Others Not So Outspoken There is not one regimental surgeon in camp who does not applaud the manly course of Dr. Archinard in boldly declaring himself against the shut-mouth method employed by the menat the helm. Court | martial proceedings may ensue. Thus the whole matter will be sifted and the ugly | methods of certain men in confining sol diers in camp where the very air is filled vegetation will be known. The wa ter they are forced to drink comes miles and miles through iron pipes not laid low enough to escape the rays of boiling tropical sun. This the men drink after hard drills through inches of sand and
 when overcome from sheer exhaustion. This water stands in muddy pools-a mix ture of mud dead fish and every conceiva- ble nauseating character of rottenness The natives will not eat fish caught in these pools for fear of sickness and death. They pronounce it almost certain suicide and yet every faint soldier who shakes his thirst drinks his own doom
 Major Archinard may be court-martialed, discharged from the service and even inn prisoned, yet he has shown himself a man. The regimental surgeons know how their reports on unsatisfactory sanitary condi- tions are pigeon-holed. An instance of this came up in the first Alabama. Running down the main street. through this camp
 
 up, emitting a stench that drove the men from their tents near by. In vain did Major Kernachan report this menace to the health of his men, only for the same old course to be pursued and the nuisance went unremedied. Finally Colonel Higdon grew desperate and an urgent letter was addressed to brigade headquarters to go up through military channels. Enough is known of military channels and army red tape and scores of men may have breathed the air that breeds disease until thrown on their death beds before relief was found. Another sewer was found in the same condition near the camp of the Second Texas. It was week before either were repaired
 Procrastination means murder. Officers and men are in a common cause, fighting common enemy-F1agler-and last night dispatch was addressed to this gentleman which read thus:
 "How much will you take to let the Ala bama troops out
 THE ALABAMA REGIMENTS" The men know they have orders to move but they should become effective at The Camps in the Sonth It appears that Secretary Alger is out
 of humor because of the criticism heaped upon his head owing to his unfortunate selection of camp grounds. It is understood that he has even gone so far as to assert that all troops now in the south will be transferred to northern camps. The trou- ble is that MT. Alger or whoever had the power of locating camps has been inf1u- enced too much by people who wanted the soldiers as an advertisement Where bad selections in grounds have not been made men have been piled together in such large numbers that it was impossible to care for them properly.
 There are any number of localities in the south suitable for camping grounds. Tn no Alabama.