The age-herald., 1898-10-05
WOUNDED PROMPTLY CARED FOR

timony today, and Major-G General Joseph Wheeler was on the stand the greater part of the day. There was a full attendance of the commission, and the doors of the room in which the inquiry is conducted were for the first time opened to the rep resentatives of the press.
 General Wheelers testimony covered the care of the soldiers at the two important points of Santiago and Wikoff. He said, with reference to the conduct of affairs at Santiago, that there had necessarily been some suffering in the trenches, but that General Shafter had exercised the utmost efforts to protect his men. There had been, he said, a shortage of land transportation facilities for time, and there had been no tents for week. The roads were very fair.
 The general contended that Wikoff was model camp the climate salubrious one and the accommodations quite exceptional in character. He considers the hospital ca pacity equal to the demands upon it, and that no military camp in history was ever so well supplied ineall respects as was this. Red tape methods were entirely abolished. and the demands of the men were met as soon as they were properly voiced
 Wheeler on the stand
 The war investigating commission be- gan ist examination of witnesses to- day by. placing General Joe Wheeler on the stand Chairman Dodge stated to him the scope of the commission's duties. and asked General Wheeler wheth- CT he had any objections to being sworn. He replied that he had none, and Major Mills, recorder for the commission, admin istered the oath.
 Ex-Governor Beaver conducted the ex- animation, developing the essential facts as to General Wheelers rank and his com mand General Wheeler stated that he left Tampa for Cuba on the 14th of June, but that he had no knowledge of the plan Of campaign before going aboard the trans port He then told of the voyage. Oh June 2l General Shafter ordered nm 10 disembark the next day, which he did with a portion of his command. lie rode alnto the country four miles that day, and the next day moved his troops to Jagura C1ty. He then began his reconnoiterfng, arranging with General Castillo of the Cuban army to send Cuban troops with his men TOT the recennoitre, but unfortunately the Cupans did not keep the engagement. He told or the first battle at La Quasma, stopping to compliment especially the regular troops and also to speak of their elScellent firing. They soon learned to distrust the reports and estimates of the Spaniards. Generai Wheeler had not been able on his own ac- count to secure any accurate estimate or the Spanish loss during the American ap- proach upon Santiago.
 After the Battle
 Speaking of the proceedings after the first battle he explained that he had been cja a1k nd there ments just prior to the battle at El Caney with which he was not familiar.
 q was not sick" he said "but had been on the 29th and 3Oth. Still l had not gone to the sick list. had fever, but l appre- ciated the situation, took medicine and came out all right"
 He was in the battle of Fl Caney, and expressed the opinion that more men had been killed in the formation of the line than afterwards. He told of the necessity for wading the San Juan river, saying that the water was about waist deep.
 ''I ought to say,' said the General in the course of his testimony, that it was mag nificent to see officers of high rank go ashore with their packs on their backs, &C., cepting all the fortunes of war with their men. They slept on the ground with the soldiers. None of us were mounted, and we were without tents for seven days"
 Speaking of the character of the roads from the coast to the points occupied by the Americans, he said that with such at tention as they were able to give to them they were very good.
 The rains had not been severe up to that time The roads were narrow, but equal to the demands. The supplies were con- sidered sufficient except in a few instances, and in these instances the deficiency was only temporary
 Shafter Deserves Credit
 "General Shafter," he said deserves great credit for the zeal he displayed in this respect. He devoted himself to this task. and I think there is no doubt he sue ceeded. We used pack trains, and there was comparatively little suffering because of the shortness of quartermasters' sup plies"
 General Wheeler said in response to a question that Cervera's fleet was the object of the campaign. There was no reason why the Spanish troops should not have made a sorte from Santiago, and he had asked General Toral after the surrender why he .ad not attacked. The latter replied ethat the failure to do so was because his men were foot sore. Yet General Wheeler could not accept this explanation, for the Spanish soldiers were not foot sore General Wheeler's opinion was that the Spanish commander was not able to race the Amerl' cans in the open.
 Discussing the plan of campaign, he said he doubted whether any more effective plan could have been adopted. Speaking oi the medical department, he. said that al times there were complaints. but that they were not serious. On occasions there was a shortage of surgeons; some of the surgeons being sick or wounded. According to Gen. eral Wheeler's belief in the wounded in bat tie were promptly cared for by the sur geons. After the fight of July l all the wounded were carried from the field that night. The witness had heard that there was more complaint of the shortage of medicine among the infantry than in the cavalry arm of the service.
 Tampa Camp Incidental Going back to Tampa, he said at the sea- son he was there, the first half of June the site was without objection, but he had felt that it would be wet later in the sea- son. It was his impression that Tampa hat been selected as a camp site after the be, ginning of the war and was incidental te