The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-10-09
Views OF Captain BaIdridge, One of
General Lees COmmissaries at
Camp Scuba Libre."
OvERRIPE FRUIT AND BEER
SAID TO HAVE CAUSED ILLNESS IN
SOME OF THE REGIMENTS.
Army Investigation Commission to
Leave Washington for an In
spectiOn of All the Camps

WASalNGION, OCT. 6.-Ine war 1nVeStl-
eating commission examined two witnesses
to-day. They were DR.. Giffin, who is in
charge of the Sternberg Hospital at Camp
Thomas, Chickamauga Park, Ga, and Cap
tain Baldridge a brigade commissary of
subsistence at Camp Cuba Libre, Jackson
vile. The commission has practically de-
cided to start on the night of the 10th on
its round of the various camps. They will
go either to Camp Meade or to Jacksonville
first. All the camps will be visited in sue
cession. but the understanding is that the
trip to Camp WiKoff will not be made until
some time in November. Next week will
be given largely to the inspection of official
reports and to other statements that have
been furnished in reply to letters from the
commission. Major Herzy was quoted yes
terday saying that Mr.. Wrenn, of the
Rough Riders, as we'll as Mr.. Tiffany, had
died. The statement was an inadvertence,
and was due to the coupling of the two
names and to the fact hat Mr.. Wrenn was
ILL.,
Major Emmett Giffin, chief surgeon at
Camp Thomas, was the first witness to-
day. He told of his visit to the Second
Division hospital in July last, when, he said,
it was overcrowded. In each tent and under
its flies there were eight or nine men, when
there should have been but from four to
six. There was sufficiency of physicians,
and Major Gif1in was sure they were compe-
tent men. The majority of patients were
suffering from typhoid and venereal dis
eases, about 20 per cent. being of the latter
class. He thought the crowding of the hos
pital was from lack of sufficient tentage, a
fault due to the surgeon in charge. DR..
Gifhn made his visit to the division hospital
TO see man of his brigade who had been
shot in the leg. He found him in a tent
with typhoid-fever patients, and conse-
quently had him removed.
DR.. Giffin advocated regimental, rather
than division, hospitals. He said there
would be the advantage of classification in
the larger hospitals If the classification was
made, which it was not as a rule, as the
men were brigaded then. The division hos.
pital surgeons were competent in their pro-
fession, some of them being the most COM
not men of executive ability. He consid-
cred the water supply good. The sinks were
poorly located. They were too near the
kitchens, and were too shallow. Many of
them were only seventy-fve feet from the
company kitchen and were open when he
arrived. He then had them moved farther
back and gave directions for daily disin-
fection and covering. BY this time, how
ever, the regiments were all infected as he
thought, by the flies going from the sinks
to the mess tables.
DR.. Giffln was given charge Of the con-
struction Of the Sternberg hospital on the
1st of August, and after the hospital was
constructed was the chief surgeon there.
He said the tents comprising this hospital
were AXIS feet, fioored and supplied with
four beds each. There were 100 tents and
a number of wooden buildings. Five hum
dred and thirty-three was the largest num-
ber of men at the hospital at one time, eand,
all told, 1,127 men had been healed there
up to the 9th inst. OF these Sc per cent
were typhoid fever, the next most prolific
cause being yenereal troubles. There had
been sxty-seven deaths at the institution.
The cases sent to him were generally the
most dangerous. He had twenty-five con-
tract surgeons and two regulars, and 167
female nurses and 15S members of the hos
pital corps acting as nurses.
He had received no complaints and he
was sure the attendants were efficient. His
requisitions were sent direct to the surgeon
general at Washington, often by wire, and
there was never any delay, often being di-
rected to purchase at Chattanooga. Many
articles were sent to the men from the
North, but, as a rule, they spoiled before
they arrived and could not be used When
patients began to- convalesce they were put
on a special diet for week, and then fur
loughed and sent home. He was particular
not to allow any of the patients to leave
for home until they were sufficiently re-
covered to render it safe for them to do so.
He related how Governor Bradley, of Ken
tucky came to the hospital, saying he was
going to take the Kentucky sick home DIR.
Giffin refused at first, but afterwards he
consented to leave the matter to the pa
tientc themselves. Out of sixteen only one
said he wanted to so, and he was insane.
Dr. Giffin had no complaint of neglect or
insufficiency to make against any of the
bureaus of the War Department, and he had
heard of only one complaint. There were
no watches for twenty-four hours. He
thought the contract surgeons should have
been examined before they were appointed
They were not so examined to his knowl-
edge. The doctor expressed the opinion that
the complaints of starvation had arisen
from the fact that It was necessary to put
convalescents from typhoid fever on a
sparse diet. He thought many deaths had
been caused by overfeeding after GONZALES
cents returned to their homes.
Orders were given to his knowledge for
prompt measures looking to the suppression
of the fever when IT. broke out, but the or
ders had nat been obeyed. He knew OF more
cases in which the sinks were, to the last
within twenty feet pf the kitchens. and in
the cases of the Fourteenth Minnesota and
Ninth Pennsylvania Regiments the sinks
were crowded near the kitchens when there
was quarter Of nlile Of open field behind