Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1898-08-18
SUFFERING AT ~CHICKAMAUGA
CAPT. MORRIS OF NEW YORK TELLS
eoF FEARFUL SCENES.
Chickamauga Park Hospital u Modern
Andersonville-How Sick Soldiers
nDvIeft Unattended Gross And
0excusable Curelessness.

NSvIeu Unattended Gross And
nexcusable CareIessness.
Capt. william T.. Morris of Company
*, Ninth New York Volunteers, has
returned from Camp Thomas, Chick
amauga. The captain was the sec
ond senior captain in the 9th regiment
before it left the National Guard to be-
come u part of the volunteer service. For
years he has been president of the De-
linquency Court of the 9th regiment,
whore his decisions on important cases In
volving the rights of enlisted men have
been widely quoted. The New York Times
says:
capt. Morris returned, boiling over with
Indignation against the way he alleges the
New York troops are treated in Camp
Thomas. When interviewed he spoke
with great vchcmenCc and force. He was
Il stanCh advocate of Col. Greene before
that officer was chosen to head the 9TH
in pl acc Of Col. William Seward. 1t was
largely through the influence of the cap
tain that Col. Greene got the place. OF
all the line officers who have resigned in
the last few weeks, Capt. Morris was the
last to go.
- stood it as long as I could he said,
but matters got so bad that | could not
remain longer, realizing my inability to
alleviate the suffcrings of the men. NO
matter what Interested gentlemen may re-
port to New York people after going TO
camp for a few days and being pctted and
banquetcd by the higher officers. | want
to declare ii as a fact that the camp Is II
modern A~ndersunvillc. Everything | say
l am prepared to prove. | say nothing OF
anything which / did not see. As | look
1900. .-Gt.aAaaI there - ~
u iew days ago, Il all seems like an awful
dream. left there Saturday. The day
before a sergeant whom | had known long
and we'll was taken to the hospital OF the
division. As he left the regiment he sald
to mo that | need not look for him again
as he was going 10 the hospital. and
frankly. | doubt whether ! shall ever sec
him again. He was a noble fellow. too.
rho captains voice faltcrcd and his eyes
grew dim under the influence of the mem
ory Of his old friend.
CONDITIONS IN THE HOSPITAL"
'That's the idea" the captain continued,
"that the men have of the hospital. 1t
seems like tho door of despair to them.
ono would expect sick soldiers to welcome
tn, hospital. In Camp Thomas thoy don't.
so far as the 3th regiment Tcn / saw no
there are concerned. They look upon 1t rs
the house of doom. Here are some OF tho
things | know of the hospital of the diVis-
lou. | heard one dag that a man from the
9th. ore of my own company, was dying
thorc. With COL. Greene went there.
The man was III of typhoid fever, ana his
temperature was far above 100. When |
reached his cot | nearly staggered WIN
horror. The mans face was literally
black with files. His mouth, which was
opcn-thc poor fellow was too weak u
close twas filled with iics. Col. tleono
denounced such "A state of aHalrs, as dl''
l.. The person in charge n0nchalantly re-
marked tha there were not enough nurses
to go round. Then | told him as cmphat-
icallv as the snlcmnity of tn" place would
permit, that his duty was TO let the men
of the company know, and they would
gladly have acted rs volunteer nurses.
sent a man from my quarters over.
THE man I sent was II trained nurse
before he joined the army as n soldier.
He knew ia an instant what was needed.
He found that the man who was 50 Ill
with the fever had had no bath, although
burning up with fever. He asked f"r
some cold water. The doctor In charge
wanted to know what for. When the man
replied that he wished To give the patient
A bath the doctor told hin to get the wa
ter out of a barrel which had been stand
ing in the sun The water was actually
tcpil. The nurse Indignantly told the doc
tor he would rot attempt to lower tht
tcmrcraturc with water that would only
increase il. What do you know about
ito snapped the doctor. because ! Ero"
about those things, and have been =
nurse" was the answer. This convinced
the person in charge hat my representa-
tive knew too much to be smothcred, art
after several hours he managed to geI
some ice. Imagine how much IT was. \
Mound, exactly. With this he was expect
ed to lower the temperature of a man dy'
ing with fever. Several days later th'
man was dead.
In another case n man who died I'm th'
division hospital was found to be LITERAL,
alive with maggots under his a'rnpits, ant
his dying asonics wore intensified by thu
moVcmcn of these Vermin. There arr
other shocking cases Of neglect which arr
too horrible to he rccCunted. II Is incrod
ihle that such things should have happen
ed IN this, the richest country on thu
globe. When there were $50 men in thu
hospital ~ one time | found that there
were but two thermometers to take thu
tcmneraturr. and remember, nearly nj
these patients were fever stricken. II
have used tho instruments for the purpoS'
intended would have consumed cXactl!
II hours and 20 minutes. The moaning -
the men for Ice when they We're burning
up with fever Is something ! shall ncve
forget. Why, officers of the regiment hat
to subscribe money out Of their OWL
pockets to get ice in the interest of hu
marity. And then the amount procure'
WAS totally inadequate to the need. Tn
men knew all about the horrors Of tn
hospital. The scrseont, who was take
to the hospital the day before | left, wa
so III three weeks ago that he ought 4
have conc in, and he suffered the creates
pain day after day, He wouldn't listcl
to advice to go to the hospital, He salt
that would he tho end of him.. and h
, would keep out of It as long as he could, n
matter how much he suffered. At last h
collapsed. ConvalcsCents who are still s.
weak they can hardly stand, get boile
beef and boiled onions for breakfast,
tough meal for even the strongest of me
at camp.
Gen. Grant found us without waite
and, learning that Il wagon had been re
fused, was indignant and said he woul
order ono. As the outcome of Col. Greene
harsh and %tyrannical methods there ar
to-day not more than $50 men in the ut
out 1900 who are tit for duty. 1t Is onl
wise for the friends of the men in thi
city to know this