Evening star., 1898-05-24
General Merriam Issues Orders at
Frisco Today.
new TROOPS COMING IN FAST
Great Activity in the Big Camp at
Chickamauga.
BRYAN STILL A PRIVATE

| SAN FRANCISCO, May 24.-An order has
been issued by General Marian, command
| ing the Department of California, transfer
| ring all troops now here. with the excep-
ton of the Sd Artillery, 4th Cavalry and the
lst Washington Volunteers, to General Otis
command. This Is the preliminary step in
the thorough organization of the forces des-
tined for the Philippines.
General Otis and his staff are now active
| ly engaged in arranging for the work, and
within a day or two his headquarters will
be moved from the Phelan building to
Camp Richmond. The general and his staff
will go into camp with the troops, living
under canvas with the others, and his first
work will be the organization Of the troops
into brigades. Then the men will be thor
oughly drilled before their departure for
the Philippines.
Arrivals mt Military Camp.
The latest arrivals at the military camp
on the old Bay district camp are all COM
fortably quartered, though Utah and Wyo-
ming are somewhat short of tents. Wyo-
ming has the promise of the government
that its solitary battalion shall not be put
in to fill up a regiment. but will go into
service as an Independent battalion. 1t has
an assurance also that it and the Utah bat
teries will be sent away to war about the
1st of June
Idaho and Kansas are the two camps that
lack equipment. Idaho has only three COM
panies uniformed, and until their clothing
arrives there will not be much drilling.
The Idaho men are new to the manual, but
the fighting spirit is all there. When a ru-
We're, they were to sail for Manila at once
the camp was visibly pleased. That's
good news" grinned a big private, "the
sooner the better"
The sandy ground on which the camp is
situated is too soft for drill purposes. The
Utah batteries are unable as yet to use
their guns, and the carriages are sunk deep
in the sand. The horses have not yet
arrived.
The Camp nj Chickamauga.
CHATTANOOGA. Tenn. May 24-Tae
work of unloading and storing forty-nine
cars of provisions which arrived yesterday
and last night was completed today. Up
to today the Quartermasters department
has received S29JOO0 worth OF provisions
Tor the volunteers The value of the cloth
ing and equipments already received
amounts to almost much. The quarter
masters department is doing remarkably
we'll i'll its work of caring for the $4,000
men now in camp.
The arrivals this morning were the Sd
regiment. Tennessee, Infantry. and the
1st Regiment, Vermont Infantry. The Sd
Tennessee, 1000 officers ana men, under
Col. j. +. Fyffe, arrived at 4 o'clock a. m.
on three trains from Nashville. Breakfast
was served the men in the city and they
were taken to the park at o'clock,
The majority Of the men in this regiment
are from Chattanooga, and thousands of
people visited them during their stay in
this city.
The 1st Regiment, Vermont Volunteer In
fantry. arrived this morning on four trains
over the Southern railway The regiment
Is composed of $50 officers and men, under
Col. o. 0. Clark. 1t was transferred to the
park at roon. The railroad men are now
getting their first rest since the mobiliza-
ton began. Comparatively few troops are
arriving. In the park today hard drilling
Is going on in every camp. The work of
training the troops thoroughly is being
steadily and vigorously prosecuted
Bryan Was Not Elected.
LINCOLN. Neb.. May 24.-The election Of
company officers of the new militia COM
pany recruited by William J. Bryan, was
held last night. Mr.. Bryan's friends had
made a canvas in behalf of the captaincy.
and he was placed in nomination but with
drew when 1t was seen that others desired
the place. H. G. Whitmore was elected.
Members of the company say Mr. Bryan
could have been elected but anything short
of an unanimous vote would have been dis
tasteful to him. The election was behind
closed doors and occasioned very keen in