The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-12-23
ROUGH RIDERS WERE STARVED
RooSEVELTs REPORT ON CoNDI.
TIoNS AT SANTIAGO.
Found 1t Impossible to Get Proper
Supply of Food-Sick and Wound
Cd Neglected.

Washington, Dec. 23.-The war de-
partment today made public two re-
ports OF Colonel Roosevelt, on the fights
of the First United States cavalry
(rough riders) in front of Santiago. One
is addressed to Colonel Wood, COM
manGing, and the second is to Brigadier
General Wood, after Colonel Roosevelt
took command of the regiment. The
war department has hitherto refused to
make these reports public. The second,
after reporting operations III to the
time of the truce, says:
THE Spanish guerillas were very ac-
tive, especially in our rear, where. theS-
seemed, by preference, TO attack the
wounded men, who we're being carried
on litters, the doctors and medical at
tendants with Red Cross badges on
their arms, and the burial parties. 1
organized detail Of Sharpshooters and
sent them out after these guerillas, of
whom they killed thirteen. Two OF the
men thus killed were shot several hours
after the truce had been in operation,
because, in spite of this fact, they kept
firing upon our men Is they went to
draw water. They were stationed in
the trees, as the $1erlllaS were gen.
orally, and owing TO the density of the
foliage and to the use OF smokelass
powder rifles it was an exceedingly
difficult matter to locase them.
For the next seven days, until the
10th. we lay in our line while the truce
continued. We had continually to work
at additional bomb proofs anG at the
trenches. and as we had no proper sup
ply Of food and utterly inadequate
medical facilities, the men suffered a
great deal. The officers Clipped to-
gether and purchased beans, tomatoes
and sugar for the men, so. that they
might have some relief from the bacon
and hardtack With a great deal of
difficulty we got them coffee. As for
the sick and wounded, they suffered SO
in the hospitals, whan sent TO the rear,
for lack of food and attention that we
found it best to keep them at the front
and give them such care rs our own
( doctors could.
1--WE continued to watch and DO our
best to get the men, especially the sick,
properly fed, and having no transpor-
tatiOn, and being able to get hardly
any through the regular channels, we
used everything we could find, cap
tured Spanish cavalry horses, abah-
doned mules. which had been shot, but
which our men look and cured, dimin-
utiVc, skinny ponies, purchased from
The Cubans, etc. Ply this means anG
by the eXertions of the officers we were
able, from time to time, TO get supplies
cf beans, sugar, tomatoes, trd even
oatmeal, while from the Red Cross rea-
pie we got our valuable load ii rice,
cornmeal, etc, all of this being OF the
utmost consequence, as the lack of
proper food was telling terribly On The
men. 1t was utterly impossible to get
them clothes and shoes, those they had
being, in many cases, literally dropping
to pieces. Yesterday 1 sent in a detail
of six men and officers to see il they
could not purchase or make arrange
ments for a supply of proper food.
clothing, etc, for the men, even if we
had to pay for it out Of our own pock-
! cts. Our suffering has been due pri-
marily to lack of transportation ard
/ proper food, or sufficient clothing and
/ of medical supplies. We should not
/ have wagon sheets for tentage.