The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-11-08

4
opinion OF tho doctor was the laxity
shown in issuing passes to the men and
allowing them to visit other camps.
ssFifty per cent of the Sickness" said
\ the doctor would not have been ID ex-
istence had not the men been allowed to
leave Chickamauga Park on passes.
! He gave as his opinion that the medical
officers were ham pered too much by Off
| GERS of higher rank. but who had no
| medical training. When questioned as to
| the lack of nurses, the doctor said that ne
thought both the nurses as we'll as the
| O Ulcers were overworked.
Mrs. Virginia +. Betse OF chicago. was
the next witness. She entered complaint
| in regard to the death of her son, Frank
| r. who enlisted with company L, first
/ JIIinois volunteers. He became sick at
4 Santiago and was taken to Montauk on
| the transport Berlin. From there he was
allowed to go home on furlough when
he should have been sent TO the hospital
He was sent home unattended and was
compelled to ride in day coach instead
i of being provided with berth in Sleep
er. He arrived home on September /, and
/ on September 10 he died.
DR.. Milo B. Ward of Kansas City, who
was a brigade surgeon at Camp Thomas
/ from July IL to Septem Der 10, when ques-
tioned as to the condition of the hospital
said that there was a great lack of medi-
cines. s.The food which was furnished
the men, said he, "I could not want to
| give to my pet dog. =
| The doctor was then questioned as to
| the lack of attention shown patients just
| coming down with disease. He stated
that he knew of several cases where the
patients were allowed to lie out on the
ground the whole day and also during the
night before being taken to the hospital.
| He said the hours of duty were from a.
m, until p.m.. in this way the patients
were without medical attendance during
the night.
SIS it possible that better care could
have been secured if night calls had been
madeP" was asked.
| "No sir. There was nothing to see
them for except to give them medicine
Seventy-five per cent of the patients were
| on cots and the other 25 per cent were on
were from four to six inches from the
/ ground. Some of the men were put on
| the bare ground, but within few hours
they were always put on cots or stretch-
| ers I"
DR.. Connor-Did you ever see man on
the bare ground propped up againse& & q 5lee
| in dying condition, who died w1Unln
| two or three hours after he was put thereY
| DIR. Ward-I never saw such thing;
but often heard of it. I don't bell eve It
ever occurred.
| DR. Connor-What was the reason that
l the 66COnQ ulV1SlOu uVbplb1A u uiO w - -
army CORDS had the worst reputation OF
any hospital during the war?
| DIR. Ward--The first reason In my Juog-
ment is that the hospital had for its corps
surgeon q man who never paid any atten-
tion to it whatever. His name was Holt
The next reason is that the man IN
charge of the hospital, the division
surgeon, very seldom visited the hospital
or raid any attention to it. His name
| was Jenny. The next reason is that ther g
were not enough doctors at any time TO
| take care of the patients without over
working the doctors and making them
| too iii to get out of bed. For the first
two weeks that I was there, there was
not man on duty who was ply sicaiiy NJ
| for duty The next reason Is that the
| nurses were never competent in sny sense
of the word but they did the best they
could when you consider their Ignorance.
| Some of them could not even read.
! They were forced to do this work under
protest and of course did only what they
| we're obliged to- One day visited the
tyuhoid ward and found all the men spit
ting on the ground. said to the men in
charge that I would have them all ar
rested if they did not provide some paper
| or something on the ground for the men
| to spit on. But the next day Things were
Just as bad as ever.
Hoff had no respect for individuals. 1t
| made no difference what an 1nd1vldal
wanted, he was only one out OF thousands;
lOnly when / was physically exnausbeqq q
and not able to do the work he said;
| don It care a damn for you, s1r, you are
| only one man. you are invaluable In tne
| hospital and I cannot spare you
| But told him was not able TO CON
| tinue the work and must be renewed Ior
! two weeks. Jenny left everything with
the men in the hospital. know that the
regulations made for gooos ana suppues m
i - a 11xy ta
| were not brought to the grounds because
of the fault of somebody else | think
1 that was the fault of the doctors in charge
| of the hospitals. the corps doctors, une
division doctor and the doctor IN lmmedl-
| ate charge of the hospital. They made
requisition but 1t Is necessary 70 u1 nole
| than that: q man had to get horse,
| take six shooter and demand those
necessary supplies from the quarter
m aster W.,
said: "Ihe necessities were not available
from the army supplies and had 1t not
heen for the Red Cross some of the
soldiers would have starved. Requisition
after req uisition WAS forwarded and yet
no relief came. The nurses as rule were
incompetent and Indifferent, though some
we're more faithful than others. This was
not remedied Because we had to oEey
army regulations as to detailing men Ior
nursing duty.
When asked as to his opinion OF the re-
sponsibility for the conditions at Camp
Thomas, DR.. Ward said: "The condition
of the camp-First the man who insisteu
that the camp was perfect and that 6ne
hospital was we'll run. ina0 niau "as
General Boynton.
7 DR.. Connor-iiad General Boynton any
/ thing to do with the quartermaster u
commissaries departments
DR.. Ward-I say he was responslble lol
keeping the army there when tnat army
ought not to have been kept there Ins
4 want Of supplies was due to the fact tna'
i the uuartermaster' and commissary oe
nartments were mot houndeo enough
FOR supplies-not followed up enough.
When questioned again as TO tne con, y,
dition OF the water he said that when ne
saw what kind of water She men m mMers
usine he spoke to General boynton apout % J
II, and asked him why he brought tna0
water from where he did. General boyn
ton replied that the water IN quesgio9I
was nsyer intended for the use OF TN
men. for drinking but that 1t was mean
simply for watering the STOCK ana suoi
purposes. .r,so,, snroeon of th.
IL. Nv - II