The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1898-08-09
nITGER OF OUR ARMY At
SANTIAGO EXPOSED.
,, dig LIKE SHEEP IF LIFT
TzFRE AFTER GENUINE YEL-
low FEVER EPIDEMIC
SETS IN,

z,ssh in Regard to the Value Of the
cough Riders and Gets Called Down
nv the Secretary of War.
WASHINGTON, Aug. the War De-
,ortment was unusually stirred up TO-
EEov bv the recent acts of Skater and
poosevelt, and these officers have in
onrred the severe displeasure of Secre,
try AIger and, presumably, the Presi,
dsnt. Skaters offence is his action in
making public K9nt's report, describ-
mo the conduct Of his division, and
letters written by Roosevelt and divis-
inn and corps commanders, appealing
70 the commanding general for the
withdrawal of their troops from Cuba.
R}osevelt has offended the Secretary
Of War by writing him a personal let
ter in which he compares the Rough
Riders to State troops, to the lstter's
Encouragement. Both Shafter and
Roosevelt have been severely rebuked
and censured by the Secretary OF War.
The letters referred to came in q dis
patch to the War Department today,
and council of war was held. 1t had
been intended that Santiago troops
should be withdrawn as oon as the
yellow fever was stamped out, but
now steps have been taken for the i'm
mediate movement of part of the troops
to Montauk Point without delay, and
in view OF the revelations made by
Roosevelt and other officers, other
forces will be brought north with as
little delay as possible.
Roosevelt's letter and that Of other
commanders at Santiago said that the
army must be moved at once or perish.
Yellow fever was not epidemic, but
soldiers were wasted by malariel fever
and would be unable to withstand an
epidemic of yellow fever which would
probably come.
The following are portions Of Rose
velt's letter to Shafter: There is no
possible occasion for not shipping prac-
ticalIy the entire command north at
! Yellow fever cases are very few
10 the cavalry division, where I COM
mand one Of the two brigades, and not
che true case Of yellow fever has &C
Cured in the division except among
men sent to the hospital at Siboney,
where they have, / believe, contracted
{. But in this division there have been
| 800 cases of malarial fever. Not a
man has died from it, but the whole
command Is go weakened and shattered
as to be ripe for dying like sheep when
areal yellow fever epidemic, instead
Of a fake epidemic like the present,
strikes us, as it is bound to If, we stay
here at the height of the sickly season.
Quarantine against mRlarial fever
is much like quarantining against
toothache. All of US are certain, as
soon as the authorities at Washington
appreciate fully the condition Of the
army, to be sent home. If we are kept
here it will, in all human possibility,
mean appalling disaster, for the sur
geOns here estimate that over half the
army, if kept here during the sickly
season, will die. We can be moved
north, if moved at once, with absolute
safety to the country, although, of
course, it would have been inf 1itely
bitter if we had been moved north or
to Porto Rico two weeks ago. If there
were any object In keeping US here we
would face yellow fever with as much
Ind ference as we faced bullets. But
there is no object in it. 1 write only
because Icannos see our men who have
fought so bravely and who have en-
dIred hardship and danger so uncom
plainingly, go to destruction without
striving, as far as lies IN me, to avert
a doom as fearful as it is unnecessary
and undeserved."
In a petition signed by commanding
eff GERS, it is stated that they are Of
the unanimous opinion that this army
should at once be taken out of the
island of Cuba and sent to some point
on the northern ~seacoast Of the United
States; that it can be done without
danger to the people Of the United
SAFES; that yellow fever In the army
at present is not epidemic; that there
are a few sporadic cases; but that the
army is disabled by malarial fever to
an extent that its efficiency is de
s-royed, and that it is IN condition to
be practically destroyed by an cpl
d-nic of yellow fever, which is sure to
come in the near future. This army
must be moved at oDce or perish. AS
the army can be safely moved now,
persons responsible for preventing
such will be responsible for unneces
sary loss of many thousands Of lives.
Our opinions are the result of careful
D~eFg00al ObaorvasSOD and thew ara