The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-09-17
The indianapolis Minister Doesn'&
Seem to Think an Interview of This
Kind n COurt-HartinI OGense.
EvHSIvE WHEN QUESTIONED
SURGEON GENERAL STERNBERG'S
ESTIMATE OF THE aIALIGNED MAN.
officers of 15Sth Regiment Indignant
M. j. Treacy, of the sth Cavalry,
Talks of the Case.

Unless he repudiates an interview pub
lished in the Sentinel Thursday and accred-
tied to him, Chaplain Christensen, of the
Northumberland and-fifty-eighth Regiment, is
in danger of being court-martialed. When
the interview appeared. a regular army offi-
GER stationed here telegraphed portions OF
it to President Mckinley. and yesterday
the War Department asked for a statement
from the chaplain. AS soon as he makes
bis written statement concerning the inter-
view, clippings of which are attached to
the demand for an explanation, it will be
forwarded to Washington. Other officers of
the regiment expressed themselves as be-
lieving that court-martial would certainly
be ordered. In the alleged interview, the
chaplain was quoted as saying that the gem
eral-in-chief of the medical service at
Chickamauga was a horse doctor, who had
never had any experience in practicing
medicine. He charged in the interview
that the President was responsible for this
horse doctor being in charge of the medi-
cal service of thirty-five thousand men.
Portions of the interview telegraphed to
Washington read as follows:
I'VE of the MISUNDERSTANDING
eighth Indiana Regiment did not object to
ordinary hardships and privations. We
prided ourselves on not being feathef-bed
soldiers. We were willing to sleep any
where or not at all, to eat anything or
nothing at all, but we did object to being
PUT down there and weakened. debilitated
and invalided for life all on account of the
criminal incompetence of certain brigade
and division 0uartermasters and commis-
saries.
1T was as bad or worse in the medical
department. When we went to Chickamau-
ga we found that our corps surgeon, the
nan who was the general-in-chief Of the
medical service of $1,000 men, the man who
was charged with the immense responsible
ity of caring for the health and fighting Off
disease from that many men, was a veteri-
nary surgeon, who had devoted all his life
to doctoring horses and mules and had
never practiced among human beings. Who
was responsible for this appointment?
President Mckinley appointed him.
The interview was followed the next day
with others along the same line, in which
the name of the so-called "horse doctor
was given by the chaplain as being Colonel
Rush Huidekoper, chief medical director
of the First Army Corps, at Camp Thomas
The charge that the colonel nothing
but a horse doctor is denied by M. j.
Treacy, veterinary surgeon of the Eighth
connected with the recruiting Office here. as
we'll as by officers of the observation-disclosures
ffty-eighth Regiment, who say that Colonel
Huidekoper is a physician of established
reputation, gained by years of experience
NJ. ]. Treacy says that he knows DIR. Hui
dekoper Mr.. Treacy says that while he is
a Democrat he cannot keep still when he
sees a man like DIR. Huidekoper slandered
fer political effect.
While refusing to permit themselves to
be interviewed with reference to Dr. Cars
tensen's strange misstatement Of facts with
reference to the "horse DOCTOR" the other
officers of the staff of the -hundred-and-
ffty-eighth characterize the interview as
infamous in its attack on the President for
appointing a 'horse DOCTOR" when he did
nothing of the sort. DR.. Huidekoper had
nothing to do with attending the sick. His
duties were of an executive character. DR..
Charlton, of the Northumberland fifty
eighth Regiment, was in one section of the
hospital, where nearly nine hundred men
were cared for, with but fourteen deaths,
One of these died of broken neck and
there were two other similar cases, so that
the number of deaths was actually but
eleven out of this large number. Concern
ing the statement that flies filled the
mouths of the sick because there were none
to brush them away, this. the officers say,
is preposterous, as the men were furnished
with fly nets, more than enough of which
were on hand all the time.
THE CHAPLAIN EVASIvE.
Chaplain Christensen was seen last night.
He said that he had not received any tele-
gram from the War Department, but ad-
mitted having received a number of COM
munications, the contents of which. he said.
he considered personal and of no interest to
the public. He left Camp Mount at o'clock
yesterday afternoon, and no telegram had
been delivered to him at that time at the
camp. He did not care to say, in anticipa-
ton of receiving a demand from the War
Department for statement to the
thenticity of the Sentinel interview. what
his reply would be in case he found such a
demand awaiting him at Camp Mount this
morning. He spoke of the statements ac-
credited to him as ''the alleged interview"
When his attention was called to state
ments made by NJ. ]. Treacy TO the effect
that Colonel Huidekoper had been a prac-
ticng physician for several years. the chap
lain said:
Does this veterinarian say where and
when and how long Colonel Huidekoper
practiced medicine? Suppose you ask him
those questions"
He was equally evasive when asked con-
cerning other things. When asked II he had
reason to apprehend a court-martial he re-
Piled
'Court-martial for what?"
For the Sentinel interview"
did YOU ever know any one being court
martialed for an interview
He seemed to think the idea too ridicu-
lous to deserve serious answer. When