Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1898-12-22
That Embalmed Beef Sent to the
- Soldiers.
RED HOT ROAST FROM MILES
criticises tho Secretary of War and Gen.
shafter. Lack Of Medicines and Sup
plies. The Sins Were Not His,
Gen. Merritt on the Stand. 1f
WASHINGTON

ley Merritt, commander of the Ameri
can forces at the capture of Manila.
were the principal figures before the
War Investigating Commission today.
General Miles responded to the sum-
mons of the commission only after sew
eral days consideration. He was ac-
companied by his own stenogra pher,
His testimony was comparatively brief
and not sensa tonal.
General Miles opened by describing
the railroad confusion in getting the
war, munitions to Tampa, and pointed
out the lack of government storehouse
facilities there He said that when the
transports were loaded it was found to
be impossible to put aboard more than
10000 and this number was equipped
as Well as possible under the c,1rcum-
stances.
1t was most Fortunate" he- said
that he transports had good weather.
II they had encountered severeEstorm
the loss of life, or suffering. at
least, must have been fearful RS
Tho stores taken" said he, .'were
sufficient but the medical supplies were
Inadequate"
At Santiago, the supply OF tentagc
and food was very limited.
Were the medical supplies at that
time sufficient for the needs Of the
commando" he was asked
In reply, he read a dispatch from
General Shafter on August 4 which re-
ferred to a Chronic scarcity OF medi-
clnes" and that four men had just died
from lack of medicines. There was at
no time, said General Miles. sufti-
Gent medicines for the troops He re-
membered seeing one wagon train for
n
covering over the Wag ons.
General Beaver q From q VIII L. Won
learned and observed while there, do
you think there was at any time K a
sufficient medical supply?"
General Miles: Medical materials?'
General Beaver: Yes
General Miles: mo, sir"
Ills army in Porto Rico, he said, had
oeen supplied, in way, with quarter
masters and commissary stores but
not III the best way. At Porto Rico he
had asked that fixed rations be sent.
but instead they were sent down In
bulk, and in many instances stores were
spilled in the hold of the Ships and
thrown away. This caused great en-
barrassment and loss of stores ana
deprived the troops of food. He as
serted that the scarcity OF food largely
caused the distress of the troops He
characterized the refrigerator beef, of
which there We're 1927 tons sent, as
"embalmed beef" and said the canned
fresh beef. of which $4,000 pounds had
been shipped there, was condemned nv
officers whose commands used it.
WHO fixed the beef as an army ra
tion?"
You will have to ask some one here
IN WASHINGTON yn,1 hofJ !,
Secretary of War. or the Cornmissary
General. 1t was sent as food. If they
hadn't taken that they would have had
TO so hungry. If they had sent pay
masters down there, as I asked, we
could have bought food. but they did
not do that
General Miles suggested that the food
was sent to his large army under pre-
tense Of an experiment
General Miles stated that the first
plans for sending troops to Cuba were
not his, as he was opposed to sending
troops there until Cervera's fleet was
located.
He was also opposed to sending a
large force to places like Havana or
Matanzas. because of the large per-
centage of yellow fever deaths there.
He said that the destruction of Ger
vera's fleet settled that problem. He
SAID he wanted to operate with a
small force against the Spanish forces
during the sic<ly season. aiding the Gu
bans and not endangering the lives OF
his own forces
He also at first favored taking Porto
Rico, to prevent the Spaniards from
using that as a base of operations.
General Miles gave details of the Porto
Rlcan. expedition organization and OBJ
stacles.
Concluding with his opinion OF the
camp sites. he said the first he knew Of
the selection of Camp Alger Va, the
most Objectionable camp, In his mind,
was when the regiments began reach
ing there. As to Chickamauga, he
had recommended. the moblizing of the
regulars there and q portion of the
volunteers, after some of the regulars
left, but he never anticipated that 75,-
600 men would be sent there, and upon
nnding 1t overcrowded, he had recon-
mended distribution Of the forces among
other localities.
General Merritt told the commission
that he regarded the Philippine expe-
dltion as a decided success and would
conduct 1t on the same lines if he had
1t to do over. He spoke in high terms
OF the troops under him, and said his
army was well equipped with medi-