Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1898-11-18
lust As EXPECTED.
Continued from page -

camp InOHlaS ana at Ialnpa, IN CuDa
and at Montauk Point. The troops had
camped at Ell Caney and on San Juan
hill and had found the region malar-
ious. At first the health of the men
was good, but later the sickness IN
creased from eight cases to 1S9 in five
days. There had been fewer than 25
deaths in the regiment. At Montauk
the tents We're without floors, compell-
ing the men to lie on the ground and
causing sickness.
Major General S. 3. NJ Young was
before the commission, at the after
noon session, relating to mis- experience
at Santiago and afterwards at Mon
tauk. He said he had landed at Bal
quiri, June 21.-He had notified Gen.
Wheeler and had received orders to
move on four or five miles and secure
a good camp. He has accordingly
pushed on to Siboney. He had asked
Gen. Wheeler where the government
camping ground was and he had re-
piled that the Spaniards occupied it,
Il them" said Gen. Young, asked per-
mission to go out and see the ground,
saying l should like to get it for our
own troops, to which Gen. Wheeler as
sented.'
In accordance with this arrangement
he moved out, next morning. to fight
the battle of Guasima, sending the vol
unteers and the Rough Riders by one
road, the regulars going by another.
He declared there was no surprise in
this fight and no ambuscade as had
been reported.
Speaking of the Rough Riders, he
said there had been a greater percent
age of casualties among them than
among the regulars and that they We're
not led into any situation not to be
expected in war"
In reply to a question as to what aid
he had secured from the Cubans in this
fight, he replied: None whatever
The Cubans guide had deserted him
upon the first fire. After the fight was
over, however, some of the ubans had
come up under the command of a
F'renchman, who salute1 him very
tragically with his sabre, saying that
he had been ordered by Gen. Castillo
to follow the enemy and fight him
wherever he could find him. Gen.
Young said he had simply ordered the
vice they performed was to gather up
the baggage that the American sol
diers had discarded.
General Young said that Immediately
after the Guasima fight he had looked
the ground over toward Caney and had
informed General Wheeler that he was
confident he could take the place that
night with his brigade, if allowed to do
so. Gen. Wheeler had replied that his
orders from Gen. Shafter were not to
advance without notifying him and
that he would notify the general of his
(Gen. Youngs) wishes. He had not
heard any more officially in regard to
the matter.
With this, Gen. Young's service in
Cuba ceased. and he was taken down
with fever on the 30th of June and sent
to Montauk Point to establish Camp
Wfkof. He detailed the difficulties of
the preparation of the camp. He said
it had been impossible to put in floors
and that he had not considered them
necessary either for health or comfort
Il gave them lumber and hammers
ana nails, however, and told them to
make themselves floors of they wanted
Sh~AAi liiouSht liley were ptl1S
treated too much like babies"
Regarding the commissary supplies
he said they Were abundant and that
food enough had been allowed to spoil
to feed 1900 men daily. The hospital
and quartermaster stores were also
ample. He had never in all his exper-
fence seen army hospitals so well sup
piled with medicines and stores of all
kinds.
The controlling motive in selecting
Montauk was that of securing proper
quarantine and a very strict. quaran-
tine was observed He considered the
camp very healthful and the site desir
able.
''As to what was done there for the
soldiers" he said, Il think / deserve
more credit for what I did at Montaulz
| than for what l did at La Guasima l
think more was done than should have
been done for the soldiers
| Telling of the hardships of one COM
mand which had just arrived from Gu
| ba, he said: They were not the
heroes, being only regulars He said
the privations of war We're not so seri-
ious as those of Indian campaigns he
|
occasions when his command had had
to live on corn and others when there
was nothing to be had except horse
meat or burro meat. But that" he
said, was not in the newspapers"
He was satisfied that most of the
complaints against the camp were un-
founded. Many of the complaints Were
made by men and women who had
never seen men in camp. Approaching
the situation, the soldiers had played
it on" the visitors, making complaints
that were without foundation in order
20 get delicacies. Soldiers like to be
made babies Of he said, land some of
them soon get so they would not eat
| their regular rations."
Gen. Young concluded his testimony
with the statement that the soldiers
were far better cared for than they had
been in the Civil War
The adjutant general of the army has
furnished the war investigation com
mission a statement showing the au-
thority upon which the camps occupied
during the war with Spain We're select
ed. 1t shows that Gen. Miles located
the camps at Chickamauga, Fernando.
ma and Miami, and Camp Alger; thai
Gen. Lee selected that at Jacksonville
and Gen. Merriam that at Camp Mer.
| rift and that ha Of