The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-11-20
ROOSEVELT WILL TALK
To Give His Testimony Before the
Investigating Commission.
MRS. AllIS ON THE STAND
The Food Was Poor and Improperly
Cooked-Both Sick and Well suf-
fered Alike From a Plague
of Flies.

New York. Nov. 1s.-when the war
investigating commission met to-day.
4 General Dodge. the chairman. an
nounced that the sessions in the city
would probably continue 10 days. Gen.
eral Dodge declined to give in advance
the names of those he expected to ex-
anime. but IL is said that invitations
had been sent to Colonel Roosevelt and
other members of the rough riders.
Mrs. Edwin c. Allis of New York.
who went to Camp wikoff Sept. . to
help nurse the sick. was the first wit
ness called. She told of the conditions
prevailing there and said that some OF
the hospital wards were overcrowded.
while others were entirely empty and
shut up. Mrs. Allis' statement re-
ferred principally to the annex hos
pitsl' and to the sick of the 18th in
fantry. She complained that the food
was poor and badly cooked. that the
sanitary conditions were bad and that
as "A consequence the sick and the well
suffered from a plague Of flies.
Cross-examined by Ex-Governor
| Woodbury.. Mrs. Allis told OF the care
lessness Of the hospital nurses and or
derlies in attendance on the sick. Sum-
ming up her conclusions. Mrs. Allis
thought there were not enough attend
ants in the hospital and that no care
was taken 10 separate the dying, the
delirious and the convalescent pa
| tients.
Capt. Edward Plummer of the 10th
| cavalry, now an aide-de-camp on Gen.
eral Skaters staff, who was brigade
quartermaster with the 5th army corps
at Skaters headquarters. explained
-. lz -to
his duty to take food to the front. He
said that the transportation was I'm
tied. but he did not believe that more
wagons could have been used because
of the limited facilities for loading the
wagons in siboney and the narrowness
OF the roads over which the supplies
had to be drawn. He denied .hat the
troops suffered for lack of food.
| Major Lorigan, 9th New York. said:
There We're many complaints OF DIR.
| Hubbard He treated officers pleasant
ly. but he was rough 20 the men. The
only case l know OF was when SER
geant broke his leg I'm getting on the
train at Chattanooga. Instead Of taxi
ing the man 10 the hospital In the city,
DIR. Hubbard insisted that the man be
taken to camp. IL miles further away.
The man died on the way"
Captain Howell asked: WAS the
want of proper food the cause OF the
sickness in your regiment"
mo: the sickness was due to the
early want OF sinks and later because
they were dug inside the pipe line and
within 10 feet of the tents, whence they
drained to the tent trenches"
Miss Margaret Garrard of Norris
town, n. j.. a volunteer worker among
the sick at Camp Wikoff. was the first
witness at the afternoon session. She
visited the camp for the first time after
the arrival of troops on Sept 13. Be-
fore then she had visited the trains
carrying soldiers from Montauk Point
and found many evidences of neglect
Men too weak to help themselves were
found lying unconscious on the streets
of Long Island City. and in many in
stances where she made inquiry she
learned that there were neither doctors
nor nurses on the trains of the conval-
escents. Medical attention and nursing,
Miss Garrard said. were very good
during the 10 days she was at Camp
wikoff She found considerable fault
with the treatment of the convalescents
and complained bitterly of the lack OF
consideration shown TO the friends and
relatives of sick soldiers who visited
them in the hospital.
Was the nursing adequate?" asked
DR.. Connor.
II think there were plenty Of good
nurses after Sept. l6 but the major
portion OF the sick. convalescent and
dying were moved about. apparently
Unfortunately. and this was respon-
sible for much loss of life. When a
man was to be removed from one ard
to another. he was carelessly handled" I"
The lack OF proper clerical records at
the hospital. Miss Garrard thought.
was due To the inefficiency OF the men
in charge Of affairs.
Lieut. Charles Edwards OF che list
New York regiment. and "A professional
nurse. in reply to questions by General
Dodge, said: II was technically
starved for weeks after I recovered
from yellow fever. but that was the best
treatment for the disease. Many Of
the deaths in Cuba were due TO the
ignorance of the men affected. The
doctors told them IL you eat you die.
Still they ate. The volunteer ladies
who went to Montauk nurses did
more harm than good. Their intenti ons
were all right. but they did not accom-
. | plish their purpose. They had at their
quarters soda water. ginger ale. cham
pagne. cider. chicken and bread and
butter. They sympathized with the
men landing from the transports and
invited them TO eat and drink. OF
course the men wanted TO eat and the
volunteer ladies' gave them chicken and
other edibles. A few days later the
men would be dead and the ladies
would go around blaming the govern
ment."
At4 o'clock General Dodge adjourned
the further hearing for lack OF Wit
nesses. The commission will convene
again at $3.50 o'clock Monday morning..
|, AS soon as the ordinary witnesses sre
heard. the commission will call upon
: the higher officers OF the United States
service.