Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-11-22

MEN AND WOMEN CONNECTED
WITH THE RELIEF WORK, TELL
OF NEGLECT AND INCoMPE-
TENCY.
New York, November 21.-Major F.
]. Ives, chief surgeon of the Third, or
provisional, division of the fifth army
corps, was the first witness before the
war investigating commission to-day.
Replying to questions by Gen. Will
son, Major Ives said that while at
Chickamauga he saw no distress among
the soldiers for lack of medical sup
plies. He left Tampa in the transport
saltwater. with the Second cavalry.
The transport was we'll found and fair
" comfortable, but there were no suit
able accommodations aboard for the
horses.
Were the horses placed above the
men,"
"No sir. the men were on the upper
deck and the horses on the lower
deck"
Major Ives told of his experience in
attending the wounded of the Ell Caney
fight. Asked as to his previous exper-
fence in action he said he was IN the
/ Indian wars. in the Victoria war in
| 1880. the Geronimo in 1885 and 1885,
and in the Sioux wars of 1890.
! DR.. Louis A. Stimson, OF New YORK,
| testified that he had made two visits
to camp Wikoff to investigate the re-
ports of lack of precautions against an
endemic of typhoid fever. He told OF
nneanitarv conditions he found in the
general hospital The surgeon IN
charge of the general hospital told him
he recognized the situation, but was
unable to secure the necessary help to
carry out his orders.
Miss Julia Halstead Chadwick one
of the women who worked for the sick
at Camp Wikoff, submitted a written
statement of the conditions she found
there in the latter part OF August ana
told of the distribution of food and
drink to the Rough Riders, negro cav
airy and Eighth and Twenty-secona IN
sufficient supply of bed clothing and
underclothes. She heard that there
was plenty of both in store, but she
knew the soldiers did not have them.
Some of the men told her they tried to
buy clothes but they had no money.
did you hear any complaints from
the regular solCiers?"
mo, sir; they would not complain,
but any one could see that they were
| suffering. | would ask them if there
was not something we could do for
them, and they always replied, oh, we
are all right. We get along all right.
Don't trouble about u.s.. Still, l knew
those men really lacked necessaries,
not to speak of the comforts"
Miss Chadwick told of the men too
sick to stand who left the hospital at
camp and were found delirious on the
trains at the railway stations. Reply
| ing to a question as to the sympathy
| that prevailed between officers and
men, Miss Chadwick said: Among the
| officers and men of the regular army
| saw the most noble devotion. An Off
GER who looked as i'll as any of his
| men, came up to our carriage and
| thanked us for our kindness to his
men. You know he said we regu-
lars have no friends l replied that
the whole nation were their friends,
and he burst into tears and walked
away"
Miss Chadwick told at length of the
work done and attempted at Camp
Wikoff by the volunteer visiting wo-
men.
Gould the United States have done
what you ladies did so willingly and
bravely?"
why, certainly. I cannot say how,
but the resources of the United States
are surely equal to caring for its sick
and issuing food and clothing to those
soldiers who were without. That is all
we did"
DR.. Conner asked Miss Chadwick il
the condition of the sick was not made
worse by the crowd of visitors at the
camp.
NO, most decidedly not" she re-
piled. The infantry would have
starved but for the food we gave them.
They were, the majority of them, in
very poor health and could not eat the
regular army rations.'
Gen. Dodge complimented Miss Chad
wick on the work done by the women
of New York and said that the entire
country was grateful to them.
Samuel l.. Parrish, a lawyer Of this |
city. who spent the summer at South |
ampton and visited Camp Wikoff sew
eral times, told of the conditions as he /
saw them. and said that on September 2 |
there were 1SS officers ard men sick |
of the 525 of the Sever tn regiment and |
there was no hospital accommodation !,
for them Gen. Wheeler took action at |
r;-f, L.