The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-11-29

Testimony BEFORE the Commission In
New Hork-Nexieet aud Inapropcy
Treatment Of Cerxaiu SuTgeons-Food
Plentfful-Scaretty OF Hospital Help
and Medicine

New York. November 23.-The war
investigating commission decided to-
day 10 adjourn its New York session
Saturday night and proceed to Boston.
\ number OF witnesses were examined
today. James J. Z. Archibald. a San
Francisco newspaper man. who was
with the First regular infantry from
California 10 Santiago, testified that
there was plenty OF food. He said:
The inability Of the volunteers .
adapt themselves To circumstances was
due 10 their own inexperience. II they
had known enough 10 hustle and cook
the food that was there they would
nave had less cause to complain.
There was a scarcity of medical sun
Plies, or surgeons and Of nurses. IL
appeared to me that DR.. Wood be-
lieve his initials are NJ. M.-caused
considerable unnecessary suffering by
his severe administration of his hos
pltal near ~Siboney. He refused To al
low any one to visit the sick"
John Jay Robinson, OF New York.
who was at Camp Wikoff with the Y.
NJ. {. \. tent, told Of the conditions
there, as he saw them during the last
days Of August and September. H
did not know Of any great lack Of food
p and said that he considered
as a whole, that the camp was we'll
conducted.
Mrs. johanna Won Wager. of Yon-
kers, a professional nurse, established
a dlet Kitchen at Camp Wikoff and
served this for a month from August.
She corroborated the statements made
by other women on the condition Of the
camp and told of her own experience
IN treating the sick of the Seventh in
fantry. She complained Of the lack of
competent hospital help, the scarcity
OF ambulances and the ~ineXperience Of
some OF the contract doctors. on more
than one occasion she saw impr0per
prescriptions and on one occasion she
complained to Major Forbes that a
dose prescribed for a man would kin
hlm- The matter was referred to the
surgeons Of the general hospital. They
were friendly to the offending doctor
and nothing was done, but the dose
was not administered Mrs. Won
Wager declined to give the names of
the surgeons she considered negligent
and told the commissioners they could
get the names, if they wanted them.
from the records Of the Seventh regi-
ment.
What struck me most painfully"
said the witness in conclusion. was
the utter Indifference Of the medical
men in the regimental hospital TO the
suffering of the SICK
Cleveland MOffltt, a man,
who was at Camp WikOff writing mag
azine articles and taking photographs.
testified that while men were lying
sick at quarters, because there were
no means of taking them to hospitals.
he saw twenty ambulances in camp
which were never used because thew
lacked tOngues.
General Dodge read a cOmmunica-
ton from Lieutenant John NJ. Thomp-
son Of the Seventy-first regiment. who
is sick in the hospital, ~contradicting
the statements made by Private David
j. GOss, Of his that the Off
GERS occupied hospital tents to the ex-
clusion of the sick.
DR.. m said the women visitors
were responsible for a great many men
being discharged before they were fit
to cave the hospitals at Camp Wikoff.
DR.. j. Norris Brown. deputy sur
geOn general Of the United States army
at the New York depot. said there was
no lack Of medical supplies.