Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1898-11-11
NILES REPORT.
Wholly Unprepared for War
We Win a Great Victory.
Army and Navy Responded NobIy to
Every Demand Upon Them.
Campaigns Of Santiago and Porto Rico H..
crease the Regular Army.

LUIS VI tHe army curing the year. At
ter devoting few paragraphs to the
military expeditions to Alaska in the
early spring, Gen. Miles takes up the
war with Spain, saying:
At the close of the great Civil War
the government had 100000 veterans
in arms we'll equipped for war for that
time. The great amount of war ma
terial then in the possession of the gov
eminent was sold or gradually used up
by issue either to the militia of the
states or to the regular forces that
have been engaged in military opera
tons on the frontier for the last three
years. The supplies and material that
We're not sold. but stored, were gradu-
ally reduced to the minimum, and the
war with Spain found this country with
| a very small army-25, 900 men-witn
war material sufficient only to equip
that force and furnish it with a small
amount of ammunition: but the tent
age, the transportation and camp
equippage was insufficient for any i'm
portant military operations; in fact,
quite an amount of valuable transport
tation, including ambulances, had been
disposed of within the last few years.
THE act approved April 26, 1898. au-
thorized an increase in the enlisted
strength of the army to ,597 men.
Congress subsequently authorized the
enlistment of 100000 men possessing
immunity from disease incident to
tropical climates. On April 8. | re-
commented that an additional auXil-
larry force of 10000 men be provided
for the protection of the coasts and as
reserve. This, with the increase of
regular army and the 10000 immunes
have given us effective force of 1862 597
which, with an auxiliary force of $4,000
natives, / considered sufficient. and
deemed it of the first Importance TO
well equip such force rather than to
partly equip much larger number
Copies of the two letters referred TO
are embraced in the report Gen. Miles
estimated that the United States had
approximately 12,000,000 men capable of
bearing arms.
In the letter of April IL. to the secre-
tary of war. Gen. Miles recommended:
That in my judgment the available
force of the regular army should be
modified in the best and most avaiIa-
BILE healthful position in the depart
ment on the Gulf. l suggested Chicka-
manga Park on account of it's altitude
and advantage for preparing COM
mand for the serious requirement of
actual warfare"
Gen. Miles, after quoting the recon-
mendations he had, said: AT the COM
mencement of the war the problem was
largely a naval one, and until the ques-
tjnn nf hatr
and the Spanish army, or such naval
forces as might be furnished by any
other European power or combination
OF powers supporting the Spanish gov
eminent was determined, military OPP
erations had to be determined by the
success or failure of our naval forces.
| was fully convinced that should our
navy prove superior the position of the
Spanish army in Cuba would be rem
dered untenable with a minimum loss
of life and treasure to the United
States. There We're two most serious
obstacles to be avoided, one was plac-
ing an army on the island of Cuba be-
fore our navy controlled the Cuban
waters, and the other was putting an
army on the island at time when
large number of the men must die from
the diseases that have prevailed in that
country according 10 all statistics, for
the last 100 years
For the latter reason | addressed a
letter to the secretary of war, under
date of April Is, 1898, forwarding a
communication from Surgeon General
Sterngerg regarding the danger of put
ting an army in Cuba during the sickly
season and at the same time urged the
plan of harrassing the Spanish forces
and doing the aenemy the largest
amount of injury during the time nee
essary for our navy to demonstrate its
superiority-the rainy or sickly season
or the time actually required to equip
and instruct the volunteer forces with
the least possible loss to ourselves In
that letter l also asserted the belief
have entertained from the first that
we could secure the surrender of the
Spanish army in the island of Cuba
without any great sacrifice of life"
Gen. Miles gives the text of the let
ter referred to and of another to the
secretary of war concerning the equip
ment and preparation for the volun-
teers.
Gen. Miles in the report then says:
"Congregating tens of thousands of
men, many of whom were not uniform
ed and scarcely any properly equipped
in great camps away from their states,
rendered it difficulty for them to be
properly supplied with food, cooking
utensils. camp equippage, blankets, !
tentage, medical supplies, transporta-
ton, etc., and was to great extent the
cause. in my judgment of the debilita-
ting effect upon the health and strength
of the men who We're otherwise IN
good physical condition The material
necessary to clothe and equip large |
armies was not even manufactured at
that time and the subsequent condi-
ton of the troops for weeks and |
months was injurious to the COM
mands in many ways
Gen. Miles mentions the dangerous
missions of Lieut.. A. s. Rowan to Cuba /
and of Lieut.. H. H. Whitney to Porto I
Rico to obtain military information at
the outbreak of the war and the several
Continued on page 81