The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-11-11
HARDSHIPS OF SOLDIERS
CONFLICTING TESTIMONY GIVEN By
ARMY OFFICERS AND DOCTORS.
Volunteer Nurse who Declared Con-
ribIe and Nurses Incompetent.

JlcSStS DIT the f1OLS1 Cadillac. MAJ. y. w.
Cbrtiss, of the Seventh United States In
fantry, was the first witness During the
war the major was in camp at Chickamauga
and Tampa, went TO Cuba with the army of
occupation, was wounded at the battle of
FL Caney and returned to New York on the
transport Seneca. AT Ell Caney, he said, his
men were supplied with a fair quantity of
rations. but there was some growing. After
being wounded Major Cortiss was an in
mate of several Cuban hospitals and in all
of them he said he Jared very well. ''Ther6
were two contract surgeons on board the
| Seneca" said the major, but they could
rot get any thermometers or any delicacies
| for the SICK except a little matted milk and
cereals. Most of the supplies were obtained
| at the last moment, believe from the Re-
| lief. There was one nurse on board, Miss
| Jennings"
| DIR. Connor-Do you know whether any
| effort was made by these medical officers to
secure supplies except from the Relief?
Major Cortiss-I do not The Relief was
! asked to furnish a certain amount of drugs
when it was discovered that there was
not a sufficient quantity on board the
Seneca. The men were fairly well taken
care of, Notwithstanding the scarcity of
| supplies.
|
| to have been made by a soldier of the Sew
enth Regiment to the eject that positions
as corporals were readily obtained by pay
| ing a stipulated price.
THAT is a lie responded Major Cortiss.
| First Lieut.. o. B.. Rosenbaum, quarter
master of the Seventh Infantry, testified
| that he with the regiment in Cuba from
| the time it Left Tampa until it reached
| Montauk Point, Aug. q. He said the men
Jared fairly we'll as to food, throughout the
| campaign.
Capt Charles A. Booth, Seventh Infantry,
testified that he returned with three odd
companies aboard the auxiliary cruiser
Prairie, which had no accommodations for
carrying troops There were no regular
| nurses aboard and the two DOCTORS wit
ness considered, We're young and inexpe-
rienced and hardly qualified to cope with the
conditions, especially as one of them was
i'll. Captain Booth said the men were all
in such miserable condition from malarial
poison on reaching Montauk that their
stomachs would retain nothing.
DR.. Charles b. Nancrede surgeon of the
Thirty-third Michigan Volunteers, testified
IN relation TO conditions as he had observed
them at Camp Ager, Siboney and Montauk.
Except in reference to water, he thought
the site OF Camp Alger satisfactory. In mis-
Judgment the regimental medical officers
We're competent as class lie commended
as satisfactory the care of the wounded
curing and after the Santiago fights.
Questioned by DR.. Conner as to whether
Major Appel, surgeon IN charge of medical
work and supplies at Siboney, fully at
tended to his duties DR.. Nancrede replied
that there was great delay III transferring
the SICK ana wounded from the he hospitals
said, in nnding Or. Appel, who stayed
aboard the hospital ship Olivet. Witness
said that the sick suffered especially in the
G1rlV part of the CdmD9ign mll-
tiplicity OF duties imposed upon medical
officers. The fault was not so much the
lack of doctors but lack of proper assign
ment and management of the whole
Asked as to the efficiency of the division
as compared to the regimental system or
hospitals, the witness stated that in his
opinion the division hospital was all right
in dealing with regular troops, but that
| with volunteers there should be more than
| one surgeon with each regiment. Said he:
| Il at Montauk willful neglect, but
/ did notice inconvenience and discomforts
consequent upon the lack of division of
| labor and responsibility. Interference from
| friends and relatives was a great source OF
! trouble. and think caused the furioughing
| OF great many patients from the hospital
| before they were well enough to be moved.
DR.. Lawrence d. Knowles, of Three Riv-
! ers surgeon of the Thirty-second Michigan
| Volunteers, was heard in reference to the
| hospitals at Tampa and Fernandina. Par
metto Beach, at Tampa, was not regarded
| by him a good site. chiefly on account of
the condition of the SOIL He also said that
| at times they were short on medical sup
plies at Tampa: "Fernandina," said DR..
| Knowles was in my judgment charming
| place for camp. The site of the hospital
at Fernandina l regard proper ONE
DR.. Connor read from report of an in
| specton of the Fernandina. hospital Aug
and called attention to the criticism that
| the bed clothes We're not properly cleaned.
| DR.. Knowles said that these clothes were
| sprinlxed with chloride of lime and with BIZ
! chloride of mercury when they could get it
and after that were thoroughly boiled. He
admitted the truth of the inspectors re-
4 that the number of totally
| inadequate. He had made acquisitions to
the chief surgeon of the corps, DR.. Henley,
| for more nurses, but he admitted that he
| did not go further in his quest.
DR.. Common asked why he did not write
or wire the surgeon general of the army on
| the subject. The witness replied that if he
| did not have any better success than he had
had in applying for lime it would have been
Rev. Helen Fl. Stuart Richards, OF Bos-
| ton, testified on the condition of the hos
pitfalls at Camp Thomas, where she volun-
| June to Aug. by permission of General
| Brooke She said: I'm the Second Division
Third Corps hospital | would mention the
general dirt and disorder, the lack of quiet
| the absence of disinfectants and the horri-
BILE stencil. Patients were frequently filthy
Some with high fevers were never bathed.
not even having thir necks and arms
| sponged. found patients with their eyes,
nostrils and mouths full of horrible flies.
Mosquito netting there, but it was not
always in use. There was utter neglect to
| put the mosquito netting uOWn Wh6re 1t
would relieve the men. My opinion is that
the nurses were incompetent, but that is
not strange, perhaps in view of the fact
that they were taken from the ranks"
DIR. Connor-That is the only way they
could be provided under the army regula-
lions.
Mrs. Richards said she could not state
any special incident evidencing neglect on
the part of any doctor in the hospital.
Capt. George S. Young, Company H. Sew
enth United States Infantry, testified to
having returned from Cuba on board the
Concha, which carried IT'S sick men, No
medical officer was detailed to go with the
ship, but DR.. Lesser a volunteer doctor
from the Red Cross, was aboard and had
with him a pharmacist and eight Red Cross
women nurses, There was nothing to eat
on the boat excepting the ordinary rations
not any such food as sick people could eat
The commission tonight listened to four
witnesses, Michigan volunteer officers, but
none of them gave very material evidence
Early tomorrow morning the three COM
missioners will leave Detroit in General
Dodge's private car and will reach WASH
ington Saturday morning
Another Case Against Oil Monopoly.
CI.EV ELAND, o., Nov. 10-State Attor-
ney General Monnet announces that he has
hled another petition against a branch of
the Standard OIL Company in the Ohio Su-
IRENE Court. The case this time is against
Fw4- H.. Il 4