Evening star., 1898-11-02
THE ECONCHASCANDAL
Major Romeyne Describes Conditions
on the Transports.
UNNECESSARY DEATHS OF SOLDIERS
Offensive Water, Bad Meat, Moldy
Hardtack, Wormy CornmeaI.
INVESTIGATORS IN SESSION

The members of the war investigating
commission, who returned to this city yes
terday. resumed their work OF examining
witnesses at their headquarters in the
Lemon building this morning.
Col Dcnby presided. other members pres
ent being Gen. McCook cx-Gov. Beaver,
Capt. Howell and Gen. Wilson.
Maj. Henry Romeyne. 9Th Infantry. re-
/ tired, who had gone 20 Cuba as cor
| respondent of the National Tribune was
| placed on the stand. Maj, RCmeyne said
he had asked the War Department to give
| him a military assignment. but not receiv-
| ing 1t went as correspondent of the Ma
tional Tribune. At Tampa he heard COM
| plants of lack of food IN the volunteer
regiments. but he saw evidences of great
waste of food in these same regiments.
| He saw whole loaves of bread in kitchen
sinks. Among the regulars he heard no
complaints. The sick at TAMPA we're less
| than pr c. mt.
Maj. Romeyn criticised the way troops
were arranged at Tampa. He said even
staff officers could not tell where the vaIi
Gus regiments were. He said, in reply to a
question by Gen. McCook that he did not
hear Of any publication of any order for
| a systematic embaI kation Of troops b. fore
leaving for Cuba.
Insufficient Preparations.
Asked whether the preparations for en-
| barkation Of troops were sufficient in his
| opinion in view of their journey into a
| hostile country, he replied he thought they
were not. Two scows were taken and ore
| was lost. Il a question on the Olivette
whether that was not lost purpose be-
cause ii WAS Teta riding the progress Of the
| beat. He gave two reas 5ns why prepara-
tlons were not sufficient for landing sup
plies; one was the lack Of surf boats ana
| the other was the lack Of order.
Mai. Romeyne was satisfied that the
| Rough Riders were not surprised when ths
Spaniards fired on them. They expected
( the fire. and he thought they made all
reasonable preparation for the attack. He
saw only one ambulance on the firing line
| in front of Santiago.
The witness said he had been asked to
| help take care of wounded men and had
| looked aftef providing for them when they
| were brought to the rear. He received
| about 800 men and worked ali night, as all
| the surgeons did.
There was no complaint among the
Americans who were wounded. About forty
of the wounded were Cubans, and they
were nervous and talked great deal The
regular soldiers brought back their blank
cts and Canteens, while the volunteers drop
| ped everything. One man said his captain
| told him to leave his blanket and ne would
get a blanket at the hospital The regulars
made no complaint. They said their ra
| tions were short, and that was what they
expected
The witness said an immense amount of
clothing had been thrown away. Going
| two miles he had seen enough clothing to
provide for a company. He said the
wounded men would have gene very hungry
had it not been for the Red Cross Society.
The witness-'There was very little
wagon transportation. ] saw perhaps half
dozen wagons at Baiquiri. What became
of them / do not know.
He said the town of Siboney was the
filthiest place he had ever been in in his
49,,
had been no effort to clean 1t.
Major Romeyne was injured when riding
on a wagon, having his leg hurt so that he
had to carry ii in a sp.int. Later he had
yellow fever.
The Concha Scandal.
He left Siboney July % on the Concha
for New York. He said hospital boat
left Siboney about that time with accom-
modations for $50 men, but it carried only
1S5 men, though wounded men were wait
ing to be taken home. Speaking of the
condition of the Concha, he said:
The water was offensive to the sight.
taste and smell. 1t mad been in the tanks
from the time the ship left Tampa, or more
than two months. No special provision was
made for the convalescent men. The only
COOK for the men was a volunteer cook
named Reed, who had been a lawyer in
Chicago and had gone TO Michigan TO en-
list among his old neighbors in the Saith
hlCulBan. Inc meat was bad 1t was
canned meat. The hardtack was moldy.
A man brought me a can of his cornmeai
mush after it had been cooked, and said
1t was too bad for him to eat. Ii had
worms in it three-fourths of an inch long
when the captain was asked why he did
rot get fresh water he replied that he had
asked for permission to go to Jamaica TO,
get 1t, as well as food, while lying off San
uaSo, but said he was refused such per
mission. During the voyage home enough
rain water was caught in canvas awnings
10 be used for drinking purposes for one
day, but that was as long as it lasted. 1t
was only used in the cabin, and there was
not enough of such water to supply men
on the lower deck.
Unnecessary Deaths
The witness said that during the yoyage-
home. and while lying off New York. six
nen died, and he was satisfied that some
OF them would have lived if they had been
properly cared for. They We're conyales-
cent from fever. Having no special food
and practically 10 attention. they satisfied
their appeutes, so far as possible. with i'm
proper food He said there was only ore
doctor ON board the Concha, and he was
convalesccnt from fever. He did what he
could but that was not much. The nurses
on board were Red Cross nurses, who were
also convalescent, and were in such physi-
cal condition that three of them lay in
bed, while the other three did what they
could for the sick men.
After arriving off New York they lay in
the haroor twenty-seven hours before they
could get fresh water. Two dead men were
en- board, and the witness telegraphed the
adjutant general of the army, stating the
condition CT the ship, and got permission
to go TO sea to bury the dead. BY the time
they returned TO the harbor another man
died. and they put back to sea TO bury him.
The witness said that convalescents on
board the Ccncha slept on the board hunks
without any bedding, and in the most filthy
condition.
Going 10 Camp Meade.
The commission this afternoon arranged
to have three of their members-Gen.
Beaver, Gen Wilson and Capt Howell-go
TO Harrisburg on the 7:50 train tomorrow
morning, and from there to Camp Meade
where they will look over the ground that
was occupied by Gen. Grahams troops.
Tl-ey will probably be back to this city
Saturday evening.
Generals to Exchange Commando.