The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1898-12-22
AND CIIARACTERIZES MEAT
SENT SOLDIERS AS EN-
BALMED BEEF."
woEFUl LACK or FOOD AND MEDICINE
Complaints to War Department Were ignored
Tells the Commission to Ask Alger
for information. The War
a Naval Problem.

-. AhHISt tilC - liAtO NtitNS
army, and General Wesley Merritt,
commander of the American forces at
the capture of Manila, were the prin-
cipal figures before the war investigating
commission today. General Miles re-
sponded to the summons of the commits
sion only after several days considera
ton He was accompanied by his own
stenographer. His examination was
comparatively brief and not sensa
tional
Are you willing to be sworn" he was
asked.
Il think" was the reply, that l
can say what l have to say without
being sworn General Miles gave his
evidence in a clear, unhesitating way
and went into details regarding both
the Santiago and Porto Rican eXpedi-
tons He opened by describing the
railroad confusion in getting the war
munitions to Tampa and pointed out
the lack of Government store houses
there He said when the transports
were loaded it was found impossible to
put more than $4,000 men aboard and
they were equipped as well as possible
under the circumstances. 1T was most
| fortunate" he said. that the transports
| had good weather. If they had encoun-
| tered a severe storm the loss of life. or
| the suffering at least, must have been
| fearful AS it was. with fair weather.
| the men below. crowded in with the
mules and supplies. could get on deck.
which would have been impossible other
/ wise"
| The eommissary stores taken, he said,
were sufficient, but the medical supplies
were inadequate. He had left the loading
except for general directions. TO the
corps commander, General Shafter. He
found just before sailing that there were
! a number of pontoon boats being taken
which would be utterly useless for the
purpose and he himself had secured two
/ barges from the owners there and had
| taken other steps. but the supply of
such boats taken was very inadequate.
| THE expedition he continued, SHOULD
| have been furnished with launches,
naptha or steam, or tugs, for towing
barges from the ships to the shore He
relied largely ON the engineer depart
ment for these. On the second eXpedi-
| ton to Porto Rico these were furnished
but they arrived too late to render much
assistance"
At Santiago the supply Of tentage and
food was very limited
Were the medical supplies at that
time sufficient for the needs of the com
mand?" he was asked.
| In reply he read a dispatch from
General Shafter on August 4th, which
J referred to Chronic scarcity Of
medicines" and that four men had just
| died from lack of medicines. There
i was at no time, said General Miles,
sufficient medicines for the troops. He
remembered seeing one train for the
sick. in i drenching rain, with no COW
ering over the wagons.
i General Beayer-"From what you
learned and observed while there, do you
think there was at any time sufficient
medical supplyT'
General Mies-"Of medical men and
materials?"
} General Beaver-"Yes."
General Miles-''No SIR"
The witness stated that the hospital
, accommodations were only of a temper
airy character. He said that the shelter
, tents did not shelter.
Questioned as to the character of the
facilities for transporting the wounded,
} he said that they were taken in wagons.
General Beaver-"Do you know if any
of the wounded were lying exposed to
} the weather.
; General Milestone were exposed
in being sent down to the hospitals. L
saw one train of wounded men driving
along in the drenching rain with nothing
, to shelter them"
He had taken measures personally TO
correct matters and on July 10Th had
, telegraphed for well equipped corps of
pier and bridge builders, etc, and had
ordered places burned
General Miles said the transportation
} facilities were used to carry supplies
TO some $4,000 refugees from Santiago
and about 5000 Cubau troops. 'This,"
he stated in answer to question, twas
not expected because | had cautioned
General Shafter to keep his men out of
the Spanish buildings of every character
and to keep the men away from the
natives. Had he not done as he did
I the army would have been much better
) supplied"
His army in Porto Rico, he said, had
! been supplied in a way with quartermas-
b tiers and commissary stores, but not in
the best way At Porto Rico he had
! asked that fixed rations be sent, but in
} stead they were sent down in bulk
without invoices or bills of lading, and
) in many instances stores were spilled in
D the hold and thrown away. This caused
great embarrassment and loss of store
and deprived the troops. He asserted thai
the scarcity of food largely caused the
distresss of the troops. He had advised
against the shipping of beef to Porto
Rico, both because there was abundance
D. of il on the island as well as because
of his belief that it was defective. Ht
characterized the refrigerator beef. OF
. which there were 327 tons sent, as lem
y balmed beef and said the canned fresi
! beef Of which $4,000 pounds had beer