Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1898-08-03
CAMP POWERS,
General Richards and Major New
comb Visit Camp Scribner.
Rifle Practice at 200 Yards in . prone
Position Begun.


large guns. or see service in the field. il
| is one day nearer That is the wav
they keep account of the days at the
camp.
Camp Powers is n nice place so far as
camps so, and every accommodation
| that can be asked for is there. even 70
to a secure guard house. Yet these
men long for a change, as badly as
Mac the eagle. longs to spread his
wings and sail into the sky, that he 50
lonsingly looks at.
Perhaps they are foolish to long 10
leave so good quarters, where they are
near the city and the commissaries
can obtain Il variety of food, whereas
tort where there was as little of the
real service and more work, they would
he deprived of this variety. The food
wouldn't be served in clean mess
house, nor cooked so well as in the
ranges in the cook houses
Over in the quartermaster's building
are stack Of pickaxes. and other i'm
PIGMENTS Of peace that were purchased
for some purpose. 1t is more than pos
sibe that if orders are received to 20
to some font, there may be some for
tifications to be worked upon, and then
the men will wish they We're back in
old Camp Powers. where they could
stay in their tents by day when the
sun was hot. and drill in the coolest
part of the day. Those pick axes with
a whole bundle of extra handles are
not a very inviting lot of things TO
lcoll upon. They are too suggestive.
One thing is certain. the men who got
into the guard house would soon ne
out for the purpose of playing with one
Of the little pick axes.
The guard house men are having
little time to breathe the fresh air hut
they are not fond of il. Many are put
on guard, and made to so on duty for
two or three days to a time This with
a menu that says only bread and
water is apt to maA the wrong doer
think of the evil of his ways. and at
least make a good resolution whether
h keeps it or not.
But to return to the subject Of a pos
sible movement of the troops General
Richards says they are as liable to be
called to go TO some place as infantry.
as not. though he says of course he ear
not tell any more about the future Of
the battalion than any one else. He
has an idea however. that If the siege
Of Havana occurs in the fall. they will
want some good men to man the siege
guns. and that being the case. the au
thorities will not let this battalion of
heavy batteries lie idle long. but Will
place them somewhere that they can
get 10 be valuable men. 1t does not
signed to some Maine fort. They sure
ly would not he assigned TO n Maine
station. for the purpose of protection
as the government has shown that it
no longer fears an attack upon tn
Maine coast.
1t was just three months ago, Tues
day, that the whole State of Maine was
SO greatly enthueai over the departure
of the National Guard for concentra-
tion al Camp Powers. 1t was a great
day. and often at the camp. uesday
the men who were members Of the n
Regiment. spoke of the great sendoffs
they received on that day. and some
contraStcd them to sCndoff they re
ceived when they. left the second time.
The last time they left their homes
the people were sorry to have them go.
hut made no outward demonstrations
The question naturally fOlloWs,-Are
the people losing their interest in the
war on account of its oncsidcdnoss or
was the matter of sending away the
bows an old story? Again would they
send them away so stoically, if the lst
Maine Regiment now at Chickamauga,
had been i'm one or two battles, and the
people could see some of the homes of
the killged and wounded?