The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1898-11-04
SICKNE SS.
Cause at Camp
Thomas.
HARTSUFF'S VIEW
Due to Inexperience Of
Medical and Line Officers.

Washington, Nov. 3.--Dr A. Fl. Hart
stuff, who was chief surgeon of the
army at Camp Thomas, Chickamauga
Park, from the LIST of April until the
9th of July last, was examined today
| by Col. DENLY Of the war investigating.
commission, concerning the conduct Of
the camp from medical point of view.
He criticised the various features in
the management of the camp, begin
ming with the local convention of some
| regiments. He said that the park was
upon general principles a general camp
ground but that some of the regiments
were located in swamp sections and
others on rocky ground, where it was
impossible to get the sinks of a suffi-
Gent depth.
He said the sites We're selected by
Gen. Brooke, and that Notwithstanding
MS own position as chief medical Off
Ger, he had not been consulted in re-
gard to the location. He had made a
formal protest at the time, but the
protest was not needed.
Dr. Hartsuff took positive ground
against the establishment of division
hospitals at the expense of the regi-
ments. He said that the law for the
organization of the volunteer CORPS did
not provide for the enlistment of a hos
pltal corps, and as a consequence there
was no force for the hospital work, and
the only way to get one was to trans
fer men from the volunteer force to the
regular force and oftentimes these
men were not the most efficient. He
thought a division or field hospital was
q necessity but he thought it should be
built up as an independent institution.
He had found that regimental surgeons
and nurses transferred to division
hospital were not so capable of render
ing good service. Many were quite
useless; others were almost paralyzed
Furthermore, there was immense con-
fusion in transferring the regimental
erects to the hospital and sending them
back when regiments were ordered
away.
DO you mean" asked Col. DENLY.
that the establishment of division hos
pitfalls is a bad policy?"
ness.
"Couldn't, you. as chief medical off,
Ger, have controlled the matter?" he
was next asked
no, sir; was under order from the
secretary of war, and under this order
no regimental hospital could be main
tained."
He thought this order unfortunate.
that in carrying it into effect the work
OF caring for the sick was greatly in
terfered with, and that no one was
benefited by it.
Dr. Hartsuff also expressed the opin-
ion that the water supply Of the camp
was not good. He said that he had rec
commended to General Brooke the Gre
nation of the garbage.
He stated that the 1,ppof9T71 10 fiar
had not been acted upon, and in re-
Spouse to question from Colonel Den
by. he said that d medical officer could
not execute but could only recommend.
Asked If the volunteer army surgeons
under him We're competent, DR.. Hart
SUR replied that some were, while 9TH
ers were not
The great difficulty had been to find
men of administrative ability to con
duct the hospitals. He thought there
had been suffering because of this fg-
norance, and instanced one case in
which he had found a big hospital prac-
tically out of food because none Of the
surgeons connected with it knew how
to make ration return
Summing up, DR.. Hartsuff said: I'm
my opinion the sickness at Camp
Thomas was due largely to the mex
perience, and in many cases to ineffi-
cheney Of the medical officers, and also
to the inefficiency and inexperience of
line officers, who did not furnish the
support they should have furnished to
the medical department. The execution
of any plan of operation rests largely
with the line officers, the duties Of the
surgeons being limited to recommend
ations, who are therefore unable to cor
rect abuses themselves. This applies
to the officers of regiments as well as
to general officers"
Col, NJ. H. McCord of the First terri
torial infantry went before the commits
sion and made the following statement:
Il see by newspaper reports that
Lieut.. Col. L. d. Mitchell of my regi-
ment, the First territorial. U. S. V. in
fantry (Who before joining the regiment
was a captain in the Fifteenth infan-
try gave some testimony before the
investigating commission yesterday at
Lexington, ny, to the effect that re-
QUESTION made by the commanding Off
Ger OF the regiment (myself) had not
been promptly responded to. ] wish
to contradict that statement if it was
made. Every requisition that l have
made in behalf CT the regiment of what
ever nature. has been promptly COM
piled with One requisition that l made
upon the ouartermaster at San Franz
cisco while the regiment was stationed
in Arizona, for shoes, clothing, hats
weighed several thousand pounds, was
shipped to me by express, thus causing
the supplies to reach me four days
sooner than they would if shipped by
freight
THE medical officers of the regiment
have never complained of lack Of
medical supplies, nor has the quarter
master or the commissary ever made
complaints that they could not get their
l.aft1fi citifi1 f,TgIs1ntiV filed
The regiment is well equipped in
every way. This fact viii be patent
when | say that in the early part OF
July the regiment was mustered into
the service ana contained 1903 officers
and men. Up to the present date, it
has lost but three men by death, and
has now over Zoo officers and men
ready for duty.
Cincinnati. Nov. S.-Gen. Dodge, Gen
Sexton and Or. Conner Of the war in
vestigating commission, reached Fort
Thomas, Ny, at 10 o'clock a. m. In
company with Maj. Hall, who is the
surgeon in charge Of the hospital at
THAI place, the commissioners proceed
ed on a tour of inspection through all
the wards Of the hospitals, and also the
camp of the Sixth regiment, which is
in tents on grounos adjoining. This
regiment was cut to pieces in the San
tiago campaign, and has since been re-
cruited Gen Dodge put many ques-
tons to the patients III the hospital con-
corning the treatment but found no one
complaining. He was especially inter-
ested i'll those transported the previous
day from Lexington. They were all
in good spirits, and apparently not I'M
favorably affected by the railroad jour
ney. The inspection of the camp was
thorough. 1t extended into the dinner
hour and Gen. Dodge and Col. Sexton
went to the mess tents and inspected