The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-09-08
W0RMY BAREBACK.
Criminal Treatment to Which Soldiers
Were Subjected.


Great Falls, Sept. &c. o. McFar-
land. who resides in his city. has re-
ceived copies of his home paper, the
Mansfield (Ohio) Shield, in which there
is an account of some of the expert
ences of the Mansfield soldier boys who
belonged TO the regiment known as
"Mckinley's Own" Harry Mcfarland.
the youngest of the family, is a mem
Der OF the company, and while one
would naturally expect that this COM
pany, coming as ii does from almost
the very home of the president. would
receive something like decent treat
ment from the the story
told by young Mcfarland n his COM
rades does not indicate anything of the
kind. OF him the paper says:
Harry Mcfarland is in bad shape.
He was sick with yellow fever and is
yet in a serious condition. He is so
weak he can hardly get about. He is
so emaciated the he is but a shadow
of his former self. Darby Lowery, who
arrived on the same train with Nc
Farland, is not nearly in as bad shape
as his comrade, but he looks decidedly
thinner than he did when he left home
for Camp Alger, having lost "a pounds.
He had a hardy constitution and got
through pretty well. He was threat
ened with yellow fever and sent to the
hospital. He says by the aid of qui-
nine and a little decent food, the at
tack of fever was warded off. He said
he was half starved and believes that
Lad the boys been fed properly. "a
great deal of the sickness woul have
been averted.
1.-THE story told by Mcfarland was
almost pitiable. He told how the boys
were tarve Harry had been in Cuba
only 10 days when he was taken i'll
with the fever. For -four weeks he
was on his back in the hospital. Part
of the time he was in the general hos
pital and was nearly starved. A crust
of bread and a portion OF wormy rolled
oats, scarcely more than A tablespoon
full. was what he was given to eat.
Harry says he often stopped and took
out the longest worms, but many a
small one he knows he has eaten. He
was finally removed 10 the Red Cross
hospital at Santiago and there he Jared
better. In fact. he says. had il not
been for the Red Cross society hun
dreds Of soldiers would have dice from
starvation. He tells a frightful story
of starvation and i'll treatment while
on the Mohawk en- route from Santiago
to New York.
The privates were fed on wormy
bareback, while the officers lived on
the best in the land. He tells how
four members of Company NJ, iuclud-
ing himself, had paid S. on the Mo-
hawk for a sack of scraps from the
officers table. They secured the scraps
from one of the soldiers. who. watch
ing his opportunity, would sneak
them.
There is not the slightest doubt In
the world that the boys were starved
and IN treated. and il some one Is not
called to account il will forever be a
stain on the e"ScutCheon of Uncle Sam.
The ccmmissary department Is held
responsible by the starved soldiers. and
st &c tho dntu NJ the HminfGtpoftn 70
Immediately order a rigid investiga-
ton.
Charles Huston. the attorney, tells
an interesting story OF the rufiianly
conduct of a brutal officer in the COM
missary department. Huston was
weak and half starved and went into
the commissary department and asked
for a piece of bread.
Cant you id dogs get enough
TO eat? came from the officer in
charge.
with that the official brute picked
up n heavy loaf of bread and threw
II at Huston with all his force. The
loaf. which was several times as large
as the ordinary loaf Of bread. struck
Huston full in the breast, nearly
knocking him down. And Huston was
tust able to get up after a siege of yell
low fever. Huston says If he had had
a gun he believes he would have killed
the officer. He was so weak that II
was useless to do other than submit,
and he did.
con mother occasion Huston relates
that the boys were seated. waiting for
the rations for a meal 10 be brought
around. when this same brutal officer
appeared with a big basket Of pieces
Of bread. He dumped the bread on the
dirty ground with. Now. then, | hope
YOU id hogs will get enough TO
eat
"This Is the kind Of treatment the
bows Of Mansfield endured while fight
ing for Uncle Sam"
And this is the story told by boys
who fought for Mckinley in the cam
paign of 1896, and IL is printed by a
n.,rrnnnnr uhich aided in that same