The herald., 1898-06-16
IN VOLUNTEER SERVICE
WHAT THE RECRUITING OFFICES
IN THIS CITY ARE DOING
Live News From the Boys at Camp
Merritt-Companies Forming
on Every Hand

Col. w. G. Schireber of the Seventh regi-
ment arrived in the city yesterday from
Camp Merritt, San Francisco, with detail
of three officers and three privates to as
sist him in recruiting 24S men needed for
companies A, C, and M of his regiment.
The number required will be about even
ly divided between this city. Pasadena, Po-
mona, San Diego, Santa Ana, Riverside,
Redlands, San Bernardinr santa Barbara,
Ventura and Santa Paula. The colonel will
take sixty-six men from Los Angeles,
while Captain Dodge goes to San Diego
and Captain Finley to Santa Ana and the
other towns to make up their quotas.
Colonel Schrieber opens his office at Arm
DRY hall today at o'clock If his papers ar
i've on time from Washington.
Everything is q. *. at Camp Merritt"
said the colonel. 1.-The weather has been
very bad, raining much of the time. One
drawback to the camp Is the sand which
makes walking very laborious. The streets
and sidewalks are strewn with a kind of
porphyry which is worse than nothing at
all and wears out shoe leather very fast.
All the straw has been taken out of the
camp for fear of disease and the boys have
to lie in the sand However, few complaints
are heard. Rations are very fair and
plenty of them. wish to state, though NOT
in disparagement of any other regiment
that we have an exceptionally fine, orderly
set of boys in the Seventh. There has been
very little intoxication or infraction of the
camp rules and no serious offenses. The
general health of the camp Is very fair.
Lieutenant Bates of this city has been
quite i'll and in the hospital but is now con-
valescent. The measles has claimed few
of the boys but they are under strict quar-
antine and are all doing nicely.
1.-THE boys are waiting anxiously for pay.
I had to make a struggle to get the detail
paid OFF which 1 brought with me, but fin
ally succeeded as it was not likely that
they would be back by pay day and in that
case would have to wait another month. I
am waiting for blanks from Washington
and shall on receipt of them get down to
work at once"
Col. tombstone Jones of the California
volunteer cavalry reports his regiment us
full, 1000 strong. 1t is now ready for SER
vice. The last company to come in was
Riverside with eighty names on the roster.
Major c. o. Alkire is captain, ]. w. Lam
caster of Cotton, lieutenant and F. M.
Heath of Riverside, second lieutenant.
The recruiting detail under Lieutenant
C. p Elliott, regular United States army,
has changed its quarters from the armory
to rooms 215 and PIG Wilson block, corner of
First and Spring streets. The lieutenant
reports the regular cavalry service of the
United States full at the present time. He
is now recruiting for the regular infantry
service. Men are being enlisted subject to
discharge at the close of the war. The lieu
tenant says that he has secured thus far
very superior class of men, both physically
and mentally and he compliments this Sec
ton very highly for this fact.
The Eighth California volunteers, organ
izing under Col. w. B. Shant, whose head
quarters on First street are temporarily
in charge Of o. ]. Varley, are progressing
fairly we'll. In company A, Captain Vaw-
ter, sixty-two men are enrolled and sixty
two more are wanted. Nine companies are
now formed and the officers in command
feel certain that their regiment will be ac
cepted for service in short time.
Captain Perkins of Pasadena has opened
a recruiting office in the Muskegon block,
corner of Broadway and Third streets. The
captain is acting under instructions from
Colonel Anderson of Santa Barbara, who
fought under General Miles against the
Indians and earlier in the civil war under
Custer. The colonel. as Captain Perkins
shows by letters in his possession, is in
direct communication with the war depart
ment and he has letter from General Mer-
rift expressing readiness to accept his reg
iment when it is ready.
These recruits are for cavalry service.
Eight troops are already formed. Thirty
per cent of the enlistment must be Spanish
or be able to speak that language fiuently.
Captain Perkins heads troop A. He has
sixty men and needs forty more.
Lieutenant Diss is busy at the armory
recruiting for battery D, heavy artillery,
Captain Steere's battery of Los Angeles.
The battery was $50 strong and on orders
must be swelled to 200. Fifty-two men are
wanted and thirty have been secured. An
aide stated that the class of men here is
much better than at San Francisco. The
oil fields here seem to furnish from its la
borers the best material, physically, to be
found on the coast. Lieutenant Diss will
go north with the new recruits Saturday or
Sunday and expects to leave for Manila
before the end of the month. All the re-
cruiting officers from Camp Merritt ex-
press the belief that they will leave for
Manila by the 25th or at latest the LIST of
July.