The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-09-15
Report of the Surgeon Who Made
the Examination.
THE SITE is EXCELLENT
The Soil Is Firm, Compact and Well
Drained, and the Camp Is K pt in
Fine Condition-Little Short
of Paradise.

"ANaNSAoib SOAtiAOA Silidil vi Nlt Shlll'
tary condition of Camp wikoff. Colone
Smart is in charge of the sanitary di-
vision of the surgeon generals office and
professor of hygiene in the army medi.
cal school,. He has had great experience
an ~d.er analysis and is regarded as
an expert. He was sent by General
s%ternberg to make a sanitary inspection
of the camp and report on the condi.
tons. The conditions which General
Sternberg calls attention to are as fol-
lows:
The first subject which attracted my
attention or arriving at the hospital was
the utterly PROSTATE condition of some
of the men ~furloughed at the lnterven-
ton of friends VINO desired to remove
them to their homes. No doubt much
YiysdIe was brought to bear on the
surgeons charged with the duty of fur
Laughing by the injurious entreaties OF
friends and of the sick men themselves,
but ii appears to me that much greater
care shouid have been exercised in au-
thorizing the departure of these men on
a journey which necessarily involved
much fatigue. An hour later a telegram
from yourself to the surgeon in COM
mand explicitly forbidding the furlough-
ing of men unable to take care of them
selves appeared to be sufficient to rem
edy this evil. due not to carelessness,
but to excessive sympathy with the SOL
der and the desire to have him in the
care of his friends n relatives.
The site of the camp is an excellent
one, a firm, compact and we'll drained
grassy sod, the soil beneath the surface
being held together in the i~ntertwined
roots of the grass and forming thus a
surface which wears well under foot
and is productive of neither dust in dry
weather or mud in rainy weather. Here
and there in shallow depressions and
ravines the surface had been trodden
down to a clay bed, which supports sur
face water in pools, but in view Of the
fresh breezes constantly blowing in
from the ocean | am of the opinion that
no malarial developments need be an
ticipated from these ponds. Some of
them in rogress Of time probably would
become a nuisance and would require
to be drained and filled up, particularly
one on the north side of the general
hospital and between 1t and it's sinks.
The camp of some cavalry recruits
and of the engineer battaliOns is on the
southwest corner of Fort Pond. The
first division extends from this east
ward on "A plain skirting with its sinks
on the seward side of the mems guar
lcIS anu Ntll ItiIlONtu lIbIn iltiIl. Inc
engineers are on a high rolling ground
overlooking the ocean and the cavalry
division on the rolling ground in the
interior between the ocean and a large
body of fresh water, a great pond. The
camps are kept in excellent condition.;
al garbage is burned except some refuse
which is more conveniently disposed of
by burying. The sinks are deep, we'll
protected by buildings and also are
Sol - 1T 90
to constitute a nuisance. The streets
in front of the camp are from 20 to 25
feet wide as most of the regiments are
small. In the cavalry division they are
wider as the camps are larger to give
space to the horses.
Only two regiments. the Sd and goth
infantry. are in any way crowded. The
tents of all commands are ~wedgewall
tents, three men to a tent, each tent
well spaced from its neighbor. In a few
cases beard floors have been aid n
the lumber is being delivered to some
regiments for the purpose, but speak
ing in general terms the men sleep on
bed sacks filled with straw n hay.
These. with their blankets, are clean and
daily. Some recruits recently
are not yet provided with bed
sacks. In the interior of many of the
tents there is a lack of tidiness and SOL
ntdlneSSt uut W the WI
condition Of the men. The 10th cavalry
exceptionally good in this respect,
every tent being notably clean and new.
THE kitchens of all the commands
under tent flies and all utensils are
and waste burned. Nc suggestion
of a complaint as to the character of
the food supply could be ELECTED in any
Of the regiments. Ice, milk, eggs, mel
ons, etc, appeared TO be abundant in
- Va. $3.50 ,,.,nI,. 80 49,,
and hospital is taken from a we'll
about 200 yards from the eastern mar
gin of Fort Pond.
"A free supply is found at a depth of
10 feet below the surface. Two sheets
Of clay, one near the surface. the other
at a depth of 25 feet separated the well
from surface contamination. 1t
Is distributed by about eight miles of
pipe and is on tap in each Of the regi-
Two of the regiments. the 9Th
and 18th infantry. are provided with
filters in their company tents.
THE following tabulation shows the
result of a chemical examination of the
by myself on Thursday, Sept. s,
Immediately after the samples were
Pond Well Tap
E. .. ........ 81 3 3
Nltfdtes.. .'-"
required. . . .. 3I5 075 075
Free ammonia .........0 057 002 002
Albuminoil ammonia -. O46 DOL 001
With this showing winter quarters
be established without fear of an
Epidemic of typhoid at Camp Alger and
)ther camps.
"A well appointed hospital has been
established for each of the divisions
Inder the supervision Of Colonies
Harris and Kilbourne.
Each consists Of three tent pavilions.
ioored. with cots for 100 patients. Mrs.
Of Boston has prepared special
kitchens for these hospitals. The
first division hospital at the time of my
,isit had no ambulance wagon and the
,ots and bedding had not arrived. The
second division hospital had two ambu-
available for service and about
% patients already unde care. The cav
Try division hospital was complete in
is arrangements. Many Of the sick
nan whom | saw in the regimental
l. H. a. i