Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1898-10-18
scArHING ARRAI6NMENT
A Vivid Glimpse OF Soldier. Life
at ManIIa-ScandaIous c on
dItIon Of Affairs.

war department. officials have bsen
chagrinsd ct = letter which has been
sent from Manila BY Henry Palmer,
Psnnsylvsnia sergeant. This letter
was not designed for publication, but
has. nevertheless, been made public. 1t
gives some very interesting facts as to
the camp life of the mountain state
volunteers. with whom Palmer was in
innate. 1t also contains rather start
ling statements concerning the general
conduct Of the officers. In this letter
Sergeant Palmer says bitterly: ITO be
a United States soldier in the Philip
pines is to be slave, subject to the ca
prics and insult Of every whippsr-snap-
per who sports shoulder straps. The
volunteers have been miserabiy fed
aud at times they 20 TO bed hungry.
took my company rations to my colo
mel the other day. and said to him: i
am stout and healthy man, colonel
and good soldier. In the nam Of God
do you mean to cause the boys to mutt
ny by feeding them 10 this mannery
The celonel made reply: Sergeant, is
that really all you get at your company
mealY assured him that 1t was,
when he said: 'You bring your tent
to headquarters at once. I'll see that
you get enough to'eat, at least. There's
thousands OF pounds Of -four at the
commissary, and Ill instruct your cap
tain to see that you, at least, have plen-
ty of bread.' BY the way, we had
neither bread nor crackers for break
fast; nothing but few miserably fried
potatoes and pint Of coffee.
"The men thanked me for making
my kick, and Captain Shaaf ordered me
to my quarters, where went at once,
and was called a coward. Had ! Irefus-
ed would have been called mutineer,
and shot upon the spot as warning to
men who are SO foolish as to believe
that they have any right which politi'
clans are bound to respect.
Sand yet they call this republic Of
ours the model republic Of the world.
God pity the model! Don't dare to
term me weakling, . coward, . pol
troon, grumbler or kicker. served
three years and seven months in the
old war; / served fourteen months in
Andersonvilie, Ga. j am stout man,
mentally, morally and physically the
peer of any soldier who carries sword
or gun, and yet dare say that have
been in hades on these Philippine is
lands.
"lf held . commission to-day
would resign tomorrow and 60 home
Why2 Because am on the inside cir
Gle. and the entire plant is rotten, from
center to circumference. We are being
used as mere machines or puppets, fo-
the advancement and ACKNOWLEDGMENT
of the few. Even the. chaplains are
hot on the trail Of the all-powerfui dol
lar, and have become mere dealers in
tobacco, IS the men must have the
weed and will pay we'll for it, and the
percentage on investment is at least
| 100 per cont.
| "God help the loyal boys who came
here under the impression Of service
under Old Glory for love Of country.
The private soldier In this island ia
working for the rotten politician, the
rotten contractor, and the rottenness Of
rottcnness surrounds him on every
hand. You will be damned If you do
and you'll be damned if you don't. and
the only thing you dare say is: .Bide
| your TINA; contain yours soul in patience;
wait until you get your citizens suit on
and then you dare giyeexpression to an
opinion q
Palmer is color sergeant in the
Tenth Pennsylvania and was in that
part of the regiment which took part
along with the Colorado troops in the
battle of Malate. He is said by politi-