The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-11-02
16OTH INDIANA FARED WELL
MAI. JOHN j. BACKMAN HAD NO
COMPLAINTS TO MAKE.
Fault Found by GenCral Bates, Doc
tors Mearns, Glennan, COgsweII,
Chalmers and Others.

of Camp Hamilton, who denied the state
ments made by Lieutenant Colonel Mitchell,
of the First Territorial Regiment, last
night. He said every requsition had been
honored from the territorials.
The second witness was General Bates,
who testified as to the Santiago campaign,
the camps at Mobile and Chickamauga. He
went to see General Brooke regarding the
lack of equipments and other supplies.
1.-THE day before we left Mobile he sale,
1--WE got pretty well supplied. These were
supplies for recruits. At Santiago we had
bread and meat always. Montauk Point
was not a proper place for a camp for sick
soldiers at this time of year. At Montauk
Point / learned that the Long Island Rail-
road Company had an exclusive contract to
haul the soldiers to the city, / issued or
ders to allow other railroads to come in and
help take off the sick. In Cuba medical
supplies were woefully short. The medical
officers said they could not get them. This
was especially true at Siboney. In going
over we had enough medical supplies but
we were cut down. We had trouble in
getting ambulances taken to Cuba but got
one for each regiment and one for the
squadron. 1 think the ambulances 1 took
were the only ones ashore when the Rough
Riders fight occurred on the oath of June"
When asked what, in mis- opinion, was the
weakness in the medical department, Cen
eral Bates said he thought a great mistake
was made in not sending medical officers in
sufficient number with regiments ordered to
the field. Additional transportation should
have been furnished for medical officers and
medical supplies, ambulances and horses.
By DIR. Connor-What do you think f the
propriety of allowing female nurses accom-
panying an army into the field.
Il think it would be perfectly proper to
have them at large hospitals but not in
regimental hospitals
Replying to the leading question by DR..
Connor Gen. Bates said that with modern
arms, danger in removing wounded from
the line of fire was greatly increased, that
It would be difficult for ambulance men and
I litter bearers to live in the increased zone
of fire. In Cuba 1t was difficult to get oat-
meal and other delicacies for the sick. Il
think" the general said, there is not Suffi-
cient excuse for medical supplies being
short in Cuba. Better preparations could
have been made for TRANSPORTATION. We
had no way to shoe horses and mules. Have
no recommendations to suggest as TO inn
provement of War Department regulations
nor regarding the rations. These matters
have been subject to consideration of boards
and able officers, and don't care to offer
an opinion" General Bates was then ex-
cused
TYPHOID GERMS IN THE WATER.
DR.. Edgar A. Mearns, surgeon in charge
of Gibbs General Hospital, Lexington, was
asked regarding the sanitary condition of
Camp Thomas, where he was brigade sur
geon. He read report on the condition of
the sites there which showed they were
disease breeders. He thought the men de-
tailed from the regiments to the division
hospital were incompetent DR.. Mearns
condemned the water supply at Camp
Thomas because there was typhoid fever
.1rt,a
generally obeyed when boilers could be pro-
cured. DR.. Mearns was asked what recon-
mendations he would make. He said men in
charge should be given what they ask for
as has been done here. With competent
men in charge there should be no waste and
nothing would be asked for that was not
needed
of the observation-disclosures xtIeth Indiana,
was the first witness called by the commits
son His testimony indicated that his regi-
ment had Jared well in every respect
Major J. d. Glennan, who was captain
and assistant surgeon in the regular army
and was made major and brigade surgeon
of volunteers June 4, was called. Major
Glennan was at Chickamauga and Tampa
with the Sixth Cavalry. He later
returned to Chickamauga as brigade sur sur.
Corps. He said that he found more cases
of sickness among volunteers than he had
been used to seeing; that he fo"~A the sinks
left open and not dug deep enough to make
the camp healthful; and that the water
supply-was affected by this Major Glennan
said he reported on these conditions both
verbally and in writing and made certain
recommendations, but that no attention was
ever paid to his reports. He said he tried
to get lime, that requisition was made on
the quartermaster's department but it did
not furnish it: that then the requisition was
made on the medical department. DR..
Huidekoper. the corps surgeon, concerning
whom sensational charges have been made
since, disapprOved the use of lime and re-
turned the requisition. Major Glennan
gfnf tod fhnf hn Of in giVN1aN9
where the sick were kept for weeks be-
cause the division hospital had no room for
them He further said that he believed the
water in every well in Chickamauga Park
contained the colon bacillus, which indi-
Gated contamination by sewerage. No mat
ter how many chemical and meteorological
examinations showed that the water was
not contaminated l should still maintain
that it was not fit for USE" declared Major
Giennan.
Asked by Dr. Conner whether the tend
ency in the medical service of the regular
army was not to deteriorate from the day
man went in until his retirement, Major
Glennan said this had been his impression
until he saw the volunteer surgeons, when
he had come to the conclusion that those
in the regular army were as good as those
in the volunteer service.
IT have no doubt" said DIR. Connor, chat
the worst in the regular army are a great
deal better than some who were brouEht
into the volunteers"
DIR. COGSWELLS CHARGES.
Major William Cogswell, surgeon of the
Eighth Massachusetts, said that when his
regiment reached Chattanooga it was kept
in the freight yards eighteen hours and it
took four hours to be transported to the
park; that the men went two weeks with
out fresh meat, their health was thus great
ly impaired and large number were taken
sick. DR.. Cogswell attributed the typhoid
to the water, milk and lemonade drunk by
the men. He said that the clothing and
RI MAJ rr-l,A Id
typhoid were brought back without having
been washed or boiled, and used by other
men of the regiment. He mentioned other
abuses too degraded to write which he said
were reported to the higher authorities
without action being taken. The doctor said
he was at Camp Thomas he knew of DR.
Huidekoper, the corps surgeon having Wis
tied the camp of the Eighth Massachusetts
but twice. He had great difficulty in Sc
curing medicines, he said. and had to buy
drugs out of a private fund. The list of
medicines which he made requisition for al
ways had about half of the most important
drugs scratched off by the higher authori-
ties. He told of the red tape" which re-
quired a requisition for medicines to go
through a dozen channels and then back be-
fore the supplies could be secured.
Captain George B. Duncan, of the regu-
lar army, who recently served as adjutant
testified before the commission. He stated
that he was wholly conversant with the
conditions connected with the sailing of the
transport OLDHAM and that DIR. Seaman, who
returned in charge OF that vessel, had posi-