Evening journal., 1898-10-20
THE ARMY INQUIRY.
a Large Number of Witnesses
Examined.
DR.. FRYE ON HOSPITAL SERVICE.
Says Contract Surgeons Were Very
Incompetent - Deficiency of Bed
Linen In HOspitaIs-AIen COM
PEELED To Lie on Bare Ground.

PEELED To Lie on Bare Ground.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla, Oct. 20.-The
war investigating commission held its
session in the city hall yesterday. ex-
amning a large number of regimental
and other officers. One of the most
0utspoken witnesses Of the day was DR..
Frye of the Third division hospital. He
condemned some Of the methods in
vogue IN the hospitals and said that in
many cases the contract physicians and
members Of the hospital corps were in.
competent.
The commission has decided that one
Of It's members should be in the com
mission office at Washington, and Colo
mel DENLY has been selected for this
service. He was selected partly for the
reason that his health has not been as
robust as when I'm Washington.
AT the afternoon session DR.. Frye
spoke Of the causes for the prevalence
Of typhoid fever in the Jacksonville
camp He attributed IL largely to the
age OF the men. young people being
more susceptible than those more ad-
vanced in age to the disease. He also
thought much was due to the careless
ness Of the men themselves.
DR.. Frye said that in all the hospitals
with which he had been connected there
had been a deficiency of bed linen. This
had been especially true at Fort Nc
PhersOn. There had been orders to pre-
pare beds for 1000 patients, but this de-
mand had by no means been met The
hospital here had also been short OF
lighting facilities. There was not a suf-
fciency Of candles or lanterns. Requl-
sitions had been made for them, but
they could not be secured from the gov
ernment stores owing to the construc-
tion of orders. Hence 1t was necessary
to depend upon the Red Cross for these
articles. DR. Frye expresses the opin-
ion that in several instances convales-
cents had been sent away from the hos
pitfalls with which he was connected be-
fore they were sufficiently advanced TO
permit them to go in safety. He had
no personal knowledge of any individ-
ual cases of this kind, but was satisfied
that such cases had occurred. He
thought these instances due to INSULT
cient supervision, to ignorance of ply
sicians and to a desire to clear the
wards Of the hospitals for new patients.
DR.. Frye spoke in very uncompl-
mentary terms of the men engaged in
the hospital corps, saying they had
been picked up at random over the
country and were generally a scabby
looking lot" not fit to adorn any walk
of life. He also spoke deprecatingly OF
the contract surgeons, saying that he
would not be willing to trust his family
or friends to so per cent Of them.
In reply to a request from General
Dodge. DR.. Frye gave his opinion as to
the origin of the popular excitement
concerning conditions at Montauk Point
while the troops were stationed there.
He said that from so to IS per cent of
the men were sick when they landed
there and that insufficient provision
had been made for them. AS a conse-
quence many We're compelled to lie upon
the bare ground, and they naturally
suffered from exposure. He also as
serted that reporters from many news
papers had been sent to the camp under
instructions to find all that was bad
and nothing that was good.
Colonel Dows of the Forty eighth
Iowa regiment followed DR.. Frye, and
he was in turn followed by various
members of his regiment. Colonel Dows
said there had been no deficiency in the
commissary supplies. THE men have
the regular army rations," he said,
"and II they have not had enough the
fault is theirs"
He had had some complaints against
the meat, and in all cases the undesira-
BILE article was exchanged upon appli-
cation and without going through the
form of condemnation. Speaking of the
medical supplies, Colonel Dows said
that a physician whom Governor Raw
had sent to the camp had spoken with
surprise of the variety and the quality
Of the medicines and medical supplies
and appliances on hand.
General E. B. Williston, in command
of the First brigade of the Seventh
corps, was questioned about various
points, having been stationed at Camp
Thomas, Montauk Point, Admission and
other points before coming to Jackson
Vile. He said the principal objection
to Camp Thomas, in Chickamauga
park, was the fact that It was impossi-
BILE on account of the formation of the
ground to have sinks more than two OF
three feet in depth. There had also
been an insuficiency of water in the be-
ginning of the history of the camp. The
water was taken from wells, and while
he did not believe the water was con-
tamlnated from the surface he thought
It had too much magnesia in it to be
wholesome. He had found difficulty IN
getting sufficient water for stock at
that period. but General Boynton had
aftarward constructed two wells in the
vicinity of this camp, thus removing
this objection.
Speaking of the conditions at Jack.
sonville. he said he did not see that
any fault could be found with either
the administrative officers or the serv-
ice performed by them in either the
medical. commissary or quartermas-
ters departments Most of his staff Of
fcers were volunteers. but he had found
them very efficient. He had also found
the troops in his command splendidly
equipped and had found the regimental
officers especially jealous TO maintain
the best sanitary conditions possible
General Williston had been at Montaub
from the 1st of August to the 18th OF
September and had superintended the
debarlSation Of the troops and the loca-
tion Of the infantry regiments in caml
Never" said he, was a prettieI
ramp pitched in the United States thar
was that camp at Montauk."
He said tents were erected for TO-
500 men before the troops arrived, and
all they had to do was to walk into