The herald., 1898-11-21
The Subject Of a Report by the
Surgeon>General
THREE THINGS NEEDING ATTENTION
Are Camp Sanitation Sufficient Corps Of Trained Hospital
Attendants and an Available Supply Of Medicines
and Hospital Equipments

sickness in the early camps has been COM
mented upon by only few of our medical
officers. These cite the prevalence OF
drunkenness and of venereal disease due to
the facilities and temptations afforded by
the proximity of cities to the larger camps.
They hold that if the systems of the men had
not been weakened by dissipation, they
would not have succumbed SO rapidly to the
other influence which affected them.
TYPHOID FEVER
1t was typhoid fever which broke down
the strength of the commands generally, the
outbreak being distinctly manifest in July.
Sporadic cases appeared in most of the reg.
iments in May and June, the cases having
been brought in many instances from the
state camps In fact, some regiments, as
the Fifteenth Minnesota, suffered more
from this disease at their state rendezvous
than any of the regiments in the large Fed
eral camps. 1t appears from a general re-
view of the sanitary reports already filed
that the prevalence of the disease was pro-
portioned to the sanitary camp conditions
which have referred to. The probability
of its communication to soldiers in camps
through the agency of flies was pointed out
as reason for insisting on sanitary policy
of the strictest character.
1t is well known to the medical profess
sion that this fever is propagated by q
contaminated water supply and it is now
recognized that the great prevalence of this
disease in an aggravated form in the camps
of the civil war was due to the use of sur
face and shallow we'll waters infected by
typhoid excretia. To prevent the transmits
sion by the water supply recommended the
use of boiled and filtered water when a
| nure sDripu eunp1v could NOT bo obtained
and to enable an efficient filtration of sus-
pected waters to be made, field filters of
approved construction were issued on my
recommendation by the quartermaster' de-
partment.
CARE OF SICK AND WOUNDED
J The seriously sick were to be treated in
their division field hospital unless their
transfer to the general hospital was advisa-
BILE, under the care of the most experienced
l physicians and able surgeons on duty with
each division. Medical officers left on duty
with their regiments were to exercise SAN
itary supervision over the well men and to
determine whether a soldier reporting him
self sick should be sent to the hospital or
remain as trivial case under treatment in
quarters. The consolidation of the medical
force by divisions implying, as it did, the
breaking up of the regimental hospitals,
met with strong opposition from reg-
mental medical officers, particularly from
those who were not detailed for special SER
vice at the division hospitals.
THE FIFTH ARMY CORPS
Long before this corps embarked for Gu
ba its field hospitals were in condition for
efficient service. Subsequent events have
rendered valueless these preparations Of the
mdical department. When the command
embarked on transports the baggage wagons
and mules were left behind. The ambu-
lance trains of all the divisions, with
large part of the outfit of each of the hos.
j., pitals, were also left behind. Three ambu-
lance wagons were taken apart and stored
; on one of the vessels. These did excellent
service at San Juan and Ell Caney. Ten of
the ambulances of the Third or reserve di-
vision hospital were subsequently shipped
to Cuba, where they arrived July I'd and
were of value in moving the sick and
!, wounded to the hospital at Siboney and to
, the hospital ships and transports. OF the
property and supplies carried to Cuba,
;, portion was not available for service at
the time it was needed, to-wit, on July 1st,
I'd and Sd when the wounded from Ell Caney
and San Juan were coming from the front
for care and treatment This was because,
in general, no opportunity was afforded to
land the medical property. Earnest efforts
were made by medical officers to have sup
plies at the front with the troops. During
and after the battles at Ell Caney and San
Juan there was an insufficency of tents,
cots, bedding and medicines due to the
causes stated, but all the hospitals were
well equipped for surgical work
After the capitulation of Santiago the
Ifr,pa fhn fro, i I
der the fatigues they had undergone and
the malarial influences to which they were
exposed; but by this time an ample supply
of tents, furniture, bedding, clothing and
medical stores had reached Siboney, toqeth.
er with corps of trained nurses and force
force of surgeons was sent to duty at the
! yellow fever hospitals, being immune to the
disease. Meanwhile, to relieve the pressure
in the field hospitals, such convalescents
, and sick could bear the journey were
, sent to the United States on transport yes
, sells. This was an emergency measure to re-
,, lieve the hospitals at Sboney and permit
Iof the transfer to them of the men who
were sick in regimental camps. The trans.
fer of troops from Santiago to Montauk
was also an emergency measure and the
great responsibility of excluding yellow fe-
yer infection from every transport rested
. on the medical officers who had charge of :
the embarkation. Had they failed in this
duty the effect would have been disastrous
during the voyage to the men on shipboard
and the risk OF importing the disease into
this country would have been greatly in
lcreased.
REPORTS OF HUNGER
1t is needless to refer at this time to the
complaints of starvation which appeared
almost daily in the newspapers during the
occupation of Camp Wikoff, for it is now
|generally understood that the weakness,
|prostration, anaemia and emaciation of so
many of the troops were the results of ma
arial, typhoid and yellow fever, from which
the army suffered as consequence of its