The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1898-05-07
A Visit to Bryan
Grimes Camp

| spent two hours ut Camp Bryan
| Grimes yesterday morning, and found
thc bows in fine condition, and the camp
r5pidly becoming all that could be de
sired. The first day the arrangements
were so imperfect that some of the com
panics had insufficient food and slept
| in cramped quarters This gave rise to
much complaint, and many of the volun-
teers wrote to their homes, telling their
home folks that they were not being
cared for. One wag, | think he was
! from Charlotte, who had no food for
| several hours after his arrival, sought
out Captain Robertson (by the way he is
| the senior officer here, and one of the
| best anywhere) and said:
Captain, l desire to make Il requlsi-
tion for looking glass
"A looking glass" repeated the cap
tain, land what do YOU want with
looking glass now?''
ITO see myself starve to death, was
the reply.
Reports of the lack of proper food have
gone out all over the State, and many
of tho good fathers and mothers have
been naturally distressed about it. One
gentleman with big heart, who was Il
brave Confederate soldier, who was
moved by these reports, wrote to Il friend
inquring about the truth, aud said:
"These young men whom I'VE have
sent to Raleigh are our neighbors and
our neighbours sons; they are very close
to us, and we do not propose that they
shall he treated in any such manner
without violent protest. War is war,
and the young gentlemen are likely
enough to suffer inconvenience and dis
tress at the hands of the enemy; never
let it be said that our friends joined
i'll the onslaught upon them. Please in
vestigate and let the people know the
truth.
There is not good North CaroIinian
who will not feel that this sort of in
dignation was righteous if the conditions
were as bad as they had been represent
ed. j have talked to the privates, the
petty officers and the commissioned
officers. and have myself partaken of the
food served ut the camp i'll order TO
know exactly how the soldiers are faring
ut Camp Bryan Grimes. In doing this
| have followed the plan Jefferson adopt
ed when he was in France, to find out
the true conditions of the people. Writ
ing to Lafayette of his journeyings, he
said that he had lifted the lids off the
pots in the homes of the peasants to sec
what food they lived upon. and
sat on their beds to see with what com
fort they slept. In desire to get at the
truth, / yesterday became a literal dis
ciplc of the sage of Monticello. First,
learned that very poor provision had
1 hn nf hn
troops on Monday. and that quite a
plumber of the men did not get enough to
cut that night. SO far as the people of
Raleigh are concerned. they would not
have permitted such a condition of affairs
if they had known that it existed. The
regulations provide that rations shall
be issued upon requisition, and each com
pany shall arrange to cook its rations for
its men. Coming in late Monday after
noon, without such management as ought
to have existed. there was much confu-
sion and more delay, which resulted III
little to eat and crowded quarters to
sleep. and if the young men had not
kicked and kicked pretty hard they
would have been nearer saints than we
have in North Carolina.
Now, however. since the soldiers have
been mustered in and the officers have
had time TO secure discipline, the reasons
for complaint have been removed. One
of the best captains. who kicked some
on Monday night. said: THE fare
is good. Every company is getting along
all right that has Il good commissary
officer and good cook. 1t all depends
on them" This seems to tell the whole
story of camp living.
4
One of the first men / saw in camp
was Capt. Percy Gray, of the Guilford
Grays He was directing the putting
UP OF tents for the Wilmington company,
and his men, most Of whom had never
seen Il tent before, were working as eX
pertly as if they had never done any
thing else but put mp tents. 1t took a
very few minutes for them to have a
tent put I'D and ready for occupancy.
1t was a novel sight to see young men
who had never been accustomed TO hard
work, using axes and hammers with as
much dexterity as Il blacksmith or
carpenter. Our company is composed
of a fine set of men," said Captain Gray,
and they will do most anything, and do
it well" After watching them put up
tents. ! followed my nose and went to
the kitchen where dinner was being pre-
pared for the Guilford boys. The men
who do the cooking in all the com
panics are regular members, detailed for
that duty. Here is what was being
cooked for dinner: Roast mutton, fried
bacon, Irish potatoes. onions, coffee, and
as fine bakers bread as / sat down to
few weeks ago at the Raleigh cafe in
Washingt0n-the best restaurant in the
South. 1t was cooked well and there
was an abundance The boys were
served with breakfast, consisting of sau-
sage. fried onions, beef. potatoes, wheat
bread and coffee. For supper there was
boiled and roast beef, bacon, onions, and
coffee. At the adjacent kitchen. of the
Washington Light Infantry, the cooks
were frying nice fresh pork. The bill