The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-06-26
Clergyman, State Sepator, Socio-
logist, and Private in Army.
AS HE VIEWS THINGS
Camp Life at h Presidio Is Not So Bad.
Though h Grub Has Been Poor.
The Montana Regiment looks
Fin in Its New Toys.

company /, of the LIST Montana regi-
ment, has been received here:
San Francisco, June 14.-At $50 a. m.
last Sunday the soldiers and officers
of the LIST Montana, in heavy marching
orders"-knapsacks. blankets, haver-
sacks, canteens and rihes-wer lined
up on their parade ground for inspec-
ton by the commanding officer. Armed
with their new Springfield rifles and
dressed in new uniforms, the men Of
the regiment appear second to lone in
Camp Merritt. Our men are physically
superior to all the other regiments. and
a few weeks more of training will place
us with the best of them in tactics
and the manual of arms. The routine
of camp life is making us familiar with
the general duties of the soldier, while
about six hours a day of company and
battalion drilling and regular guard
duty have introduced us to the per-
Torrance of our special duties.
Yesterday we had our first ~regimental
drill under command of Colonel Wal
lace. This afternoon we engaged in a
b~loodless, though intensely realistic.
sham battle. The first and second bat
talions, under command of Colonel
Wallace, were repulsed IN an effort to
dislodge the third battalion. under
Major Miller, from a strong position in
the dense timber along the hills of the
Preside. In the hottest of the fight
the first section of company /. the "tall
squad under Lieutenant Foster. was
rushed from the left to the extreme
right to meet and repel a whole COM
pany of the enemy. Under cover of
the hills the defeated company re-
formed, and, moving around by the
right. fell upon our flank in the timber
After a spirited contest. in which bay
onets FLASHED and rifles were dubbed
and taken from each other, the COM
pany was again repulsed.
Among the most popular officers in
the regiment are Lieutenant Colonel
Wallace, now i'm command; Major Dren-
nan of the first and Miller of the third
battalions; Captain Keowan of COM
pany c. as well as all the officers of
company /. Captain Preston is a SOL
der in every sense of the word, while
Lieutenants Foster and Craft are sec
ond to him in RAM only. There is
very little of the dude and prig element
to be seen among our officers. as il will
not pass muster of be tolerated either
by the officers or the soldiers. Among
a thousand soldiers are to be found al
most every possible type Of the many
sided coed man. The gay, the grave,
the athlete, the kicker. the contortion-
list, the Salvationist and all the rest
of them are here.
Although few in number, the Sweet
Grass company boys are in evil
dence on all matters Of import
anCe.
IT. his new $1.37 brown canvass uni
form Corporal De Hart is often mis-
taken for a major general; the super
inr craftsmanship Of Bird Nestel and
Dean Nickers is commended by every
body. oscar Follonk rs a soldier and
a gentleman; while on the firing line
and at the mess tent George Pitcher
and Frank Kline are unsurpassed by
the best men in the regiment.
There is much complaint among the
NEIL on account Of arms and food. Aft
err being promised Krag-Jorgensen rifles
We are forced to go to the front with
Springfield rifles of a model hat is now
q years old. In any contest with men
armed with the Mauser repeaters this
means a great sacrifice of life, and ii
may mean defeat for our forces. If the
Spanish soldiers are as good as their
weapons they can never be defeated
by an equal number of men armed
with our inferior rifles. In one COM
pany a large number of men begged
permission to arm themselves with the
best new rifles at an expense of over
500 each, but their request was re-
fused.
Yesterday Company b refused to drill
on account of short rations. For some
time many of the men in the regiment
gone hungry for lack of food The
regular government ration is ample for
the soldiers, but between the food and
the soldier are so many mighty Off
GERS and so AM yards of red tape
that the result is very much like a
transaction on the produce exchange
a transfer of accounts, but not of
goods.
This morning almost every man in
the camp broke through the line and
lined up along Point Lobos avenue TO
see the departure of the second Philip
pine expedition. Cheers followed
cheers as the companies from the 18th
and the 23d regulars, the 10th Penn
sylvania, the 4th Colorado and the Utah
battery marched by. The Montana
men are more than anxious to go to
the front. but We have not yet been
assigned a place with the troops or
dered out.
Barring the presence Of several
thousands soldiers there is very little
the streets Of the city to indicate
a state of war. But on the heights of
the Preside. overlooking the entrance
to the harbor. are batteries of 12-inch
rifles. 1O-inch disappearing guns, dyna-
mite guns, great mOrtars and many old
style guns. The stiffness of the place
is only broken by the tramp OF an oc-
sentry. but the appearance Of
a Spanish nag off the coast woul call
frCm the lips Of these monster guns
& voice such as the Pacific never heard
before.
Just this moment the regiment is
than ever before. Each Of the
soldiers has received S29.64, his pay for
months service. and permission TO
camp until $50 p. o.. ''There'l be
a hot time" etc. So here we go.
w. J. HANNAH.