The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-11-04
Sick Volunteer Tortured Until He
Shrieked With Pain.
ONE HOSPITAL INCIDENT
PATIENT HAD REFUSED TO
TAKE MEDICINE.
Surgeon Choked Him and Wrenchsd
His Hands-Commission Investi-
gates the Division Hospital at
chickamauga - Surgeon Blames
the Medical Department.

! Cincinnati, Nov. 3.-General Dodge,
General Sexton and Dr. Connor of the
war investigating commission reached
Fort Thomas, KY, at 10 a. M In COM
pany with Major Hall, the surgeon in
charge of the hospitals at that place,
the commissioners proceeded on a tour
of inspection of the hospitals. They
| also inspected the camp of the Sixth
| regiment which is in tents on the
grounds adjoining the hospitals. This
regiment was cut to pieces in the San
tiago campaign and has since been re-
! cruited. General Dodge put many
questions to the patients concerning
their treatment, but found no one COM
! planning.
The afternoon session was occupied
in hearing three witnesses, mostly on
the condition of the division hospital at
! Chickamauga. The first witness was
Major e. F. Helburn of the Second
Kentucky. He stated that he served on
a commission appointed on account of
a complaint of the colonel of the First
Arkansas, to Investigate the division
hospitals. DR.. Ward. the witness and
Major Johnson formed the commission.
| This commission was appointed in the
latter part of August and reported
| about Sept. .. The patients were then
being removed to the hospital and the
hospital was in a chaotic condition. The
sinks were as close at $50 feet from
! the wards, and were in an unclean con-
dit.on. There was a dumping ground
| where other refuse was thrown. There
was a gully running right through the
site.
Colonel Hofs statement before the
committee dealt with defense of the
| field hospitals, which, he said were
J ~f,,-,r Izl
sick, but the sickness increased so rap
idly and unexpectedly that the supply
department was not able to meet the
demand. acquisitions for supplies met
many obstacles. The railroads were
said to be unable to carry goods. The
witness, being asked his, own opinion
about the great amount of sickness at
| Chickamauga, said he thought that
two-thirds of it was due to negligence
/ of the men themselves.
Many Of them drank stale beer after
hot drills and would lay about, cooling
off suddenly. The witness cited the
Eighth and Ninth New York regiments,
which had canteens, and he said almost
the entire REGIMENT We've stricken by
disease.
SURGEONS BRUTALITY.
This witness also. read the statement
of Captain Charles Price of the Second
Kentucky. who told Of hearing shrieks
from the Ninth New York ward and
upon investigation he found that Major
Hubbard was trying to administer med
icine to a patient. The major was bru
tai. Price interfered and Hubbard said
that was the only way to humor a pa
tient. The only explanation he gave
was that the patient refused to take
the medicine.
The reading was at this point inter
rupted by the appearance of Captain
Price, and he was examined. He testi-
fed that on one occasion, when he
went to the hospital to see one of his
men, who was i'll with measles, he was
informed that the patient had been de-
tailed to carry water. The measles
wards were packed the men being
wedged in like sandwiches. The same
was true of the typhoid and malarial
wards.
The witness. in describing the action
of Major Hubbard, said that he choked
the patient and forcibly pressed him
down on the cot. He then caught the
patients hands and then wrenched
them until the poor man shrielHed with
pain. At this point the witness said
to Hubbard: Il Go not know your
name or your rank, but this brutality
must stop"
Hubbard did not stop. but said some
thing about showing patient how to
refuse to take medicines.
Captain Price said he made it a point
to go every day TO the hospital to see
about the treatment of the men of his
company, and ne found that in that
way his men We're not permitted to
suffer.