The herald., 1898-06-08
ALL SIGNS or THE TIMES
POINT TO EARLY INVASION OF
CUBA
ALL REGULARS Modified
More Transports Engaged to Garry
Men and Munitions to Cuba
end Porto Rico


Associated Press Special Wire
NEW YORK, June IA Times Washing
ton special says:
Signs are multiplying here which con-
firm, even in the minds of the most eau
tious observers, the hurry orders to the
troops at Tampa which have been current
for the last few days. The circumspection
of the responsible members of the war adj
mnistration prevents the exact nature of
those orders from becoming known. That
every effort is being made by all branches
Of the Department to get troops ready to
move from Tampa at very early day is
beyond question.
Every available soldier of the regular
army not actually set aside for duty has
been sent to Tampa. Every regular reg-
ment has been sent there except the Fiji
tenth, Eighteenth ard Twenty-third In
fantry, which are going to the Philippines,
the Third Cavalry and Fourth Artillery,
bound for the same destination, and the
Fifth Infantry, which is distributed all
along the Gulf Coast, with a detail at At
lanta doing guard duty. The mobilization
was completed when the camp of regulars
at Mobile was broken up last week and the
men transferred to Tampa.
Rush orders for ammunition and supplies
for Tampa have been bestirring the actv-
tiles of the subsistence and ordnance de-
partments in the last few days. Last
Thursday, for instance, imperative de-
mands were made from army headquarters
at Tampa that one million rounds of ammu-
milton should be delivered at that point by
Saturday night. So promptly was this at
tended to that the ammunition was taken
from the arsenal on Governors Island
within the time prescribed going faster
Thursday afternoon and delivered at Tampa
than the mails. At the same time train
load of subsistence supplies went forward
on the same hurry schedule. These are in
cdents in the proceedings of the last few
days which indicate an accession of haste
at the front since General Miles reached
there.
Another indication of the approach of the
long deferred forward movement is the
chartering by the War Department of new
transports after it had announced that it
had all 1t would need for the Cuban in
vasion. That was that the transports were
to be called on to transport some 10000
or 25.0oO men directly across the gulf to the
northern coast of Cuba. Now that Porto
Rico is to be occupied and an army landed
to assist in the capture of Santiago, 1t Is
found that more ships will be needed to
supplement the fleet of 80 already secured
Work for Hot Weather
NEW YORK, June 7.-Summer has set
in in earnest, with more fervent heat in
Florida and Cuba than in Washington but
summer weather is not to be wasted by the
administration In siestas, says the Wash
ington correspondent of the Times.
,s,I. N,,Jo, Ia
found it comfortable and consistent with
the policy of prolonging the war to drop
war when summer came on and they may
be inclined to continue their old habits,
but if they expect to do so the administra-
| ton will create a very different impress
sion before the summer is over.
After a brief experience of summer
camping with men hoping for active opera
tons, only to remain in hot camps, 20
think over rumors of activities soon to
come, the President thinks there will be
less danger to the troops with occupation,
even though they be in Cuba or Porto Rico,
than there would be in camps remote from
the scene of war and In mere schools for
drilling.
1t has come to be the opinion of medical
men of some experience and judgment of
climatic risks that the army will be quite
as well off during the summer where they
can reach the enemy and keep him from go
ing to sleep too frequently, as they would
be frying on the sands of Tampa bay or
wasting away with ennui in the camps.
The determination to make the cam
paign on land and sea an active one from
the beginning to the end is being carried
ont as well as possible. There are some
drawbacks, among them being the sluggish
response of some of the bureaus of the War
Department Some OF the old men in the
Quartermas ter-Generaps office, the Com
missary-Generals department and other
branches have been running this as it has
been run Cor thirty years. insisting that the
red tape that is well in time of peace must
be made to work in time of war. Under
vigorous direction this red tape could pc
dispensed with or stretched to answer, bur
that vigor can never be developed in subor-
dinates while there Is lack of it at the
head. No one knows this better than the
out if he does not know it now, and also
to find remedy for it.
All plans for the occupation of Porto
Rico are kept very secret in the War De-
partment Just who has made them is
not ascertained. but the assumption is
that the best suggestions have been mada
by the careful mind of General Schofeld,
General Miles being occupied very fully
with the direction of routine business,
and only having time to consider plans
with the purpose of carrying them out.