The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-10-22
coMMlssIoNAT ATLANTA.
Investigation Board Looking Over Hos
pitfalls and Camps.

Atlanta, Ga., October 21.- The war in.
vestigating committee arrived here at 10
o'clock today, and after calling up Gen.
Pennington, in command of the depart
ment, proceeded to Fort Mcpherson. The
only work to be done here is in connec.
tion with the hospital at the fort.
The members separated into parties of
two each to visit the various divisions of
the institution. They found the barracks
at the post had been transformed into
hospital wards and Notwithstanding the
day was wet the wards were all found to
be comfortable and warm made SO in each
case by large stove in the centre of the
room. There are now 322 patients in the
institution and many OF them are con-
va!esaent. The commissioners talked
with surgeons, nurses and patients. They
encountered no complaint from the sick
men and the nurses stated that the work
was constantly growing less and less irk-
some. owing to the decrease IN the num-
her Of patients. They also visited the
mess halI5of the conyalescents while they
were at dinner and the diet kitchen where
dinner was being prepared They found
the men in the mess room abundantly
supplied with food and all partaking of
it with relish known only to men who
have just recovered from typhoid fever
LIlS EOEQHslSStUEoIfo S%sAA1iAOtk ohiy pWO
WI 5uessea here. They gere Major Blair B.
Tas lor, sufs son u ftlargsssof the esneral
i,s asAgy lie ssI sss3si flsss., Cyyille =
Nave, chaplain CT that insGitution Both
appeared at the afternoon session of the
commission. Major Taylor related the
history of the hospital from its inception.
He said that recently he had no difficulty
in securing supplies, as he had been
given carte blanche to purchase them.
This authority, however, had not been
given until the first Of August, whereas it
had been asked for as early as the Goth
of June. He had in the beginning OF the
camps. history, considerable difficulty in
getting acquisitions filed, although he
had no difficulty in getting them ap-
proved by the authorities at hWashington.
One requisition made on the 10th OF
May and another on the Gath of June had
not been entirely filled until very recent
ly. These acquisitions had been made
upon the New York supply depot, while
all those made on the ST. Louis depot had
teen cots ordered in the beginning of the
season had only arrived a day or two since
and they were not now needed.
Dr. Taylor, had, on account of delay
in filling these acquisitions been COM
pelled to call upon the surgeon general for
a portion of his special fund and had thus
prevented any suffering among patients.
delay YVES bed linen.
DR.. Taylor said that he had found the
sixty cents day communication fund more
than sutficienJ to furnish food for the
sick men and expressed the opinion that
40 cents per day would be sufficient for
the purpose of supplying food. DR.. Tay-
lor stated that he considered Atlanta an
excellent place for winter hospital
Rev. Melville J. Nave said he had visited
patients who had been in the hospital and
that he had never heard single COM
plaint from man who was in possession
Of his reason, while he had heard many
expressions of gratitude for the excellent
conduct of the hospital. He said thieving
which had been going on and the petty
psculation which had been practiced
upon soldiers oftentimes by comrades had
one of the saddest features of the war.
While the bodies Of patients were careful
ly guarded, their property was not
Chaplain Nave said he had seen some
of the surgeons at the hos pital under the
influence of liquor but not to sufficient
extent to interfere with the proper fulfill
ment of their duties. The commission
lett at eleven O'Clock tonight for An
niston.