The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1898-10-02
FEARFUL ABUSES
At CAMP W|KOFF
Specifications Submit
ted to investigators.
CHARGES OF THE WORLD
ARRAY OF FACTS TILE COMMITS
SION WILL CONSIDER.
According to the Information Sub
mitted Sick Soldiers Were
Neglected in a Crimi-
nal Manner.
ARRAY OF FACTS TILE COMMITS
SION WILL CONSIDER.
/. specIal pIspatca to The calI.

| WASHINGTON, Oct. 1.-The War
Investigation Commission devoted its
time to-day largely to the statement
/ flied by: Nelson .Hersch, on behalf of the
I New York World, giving what he styles
| a record of facts concerning the es-
tablishment of Camp Wikoff and man
agement, together with specific de-
scriptions of abuses charged to have
existed, dates, number of sick in hos
| pitfalls, deaths, etc.
This statement. was made in response
to the general invitation from the com
mission. The specifications cover
twenty-one pages of typewriter mat
ter, taking up the. movement of the
Santiago troops after the surrender of
the Spanish at that place and before
the breaking out of yellow fever there
in July. 1t is asserted that at the time
Montauk Point was selected as the site
for the camp. it was. "a barren waste
The details OF the selection of the camp
site are given, as are also those of the
transportation of troops, and it is as
serted when the first detachment of 275
troops arrived on the Sth of August,
the camp was not ready to receive
them, and that they slept under their
blankets, and in the open air, as no
tents had arrived"
This" it is added, was eleven DAYS
after it had been decided to establish
the camp"
Continuing, the assertion is made that
by the 10th of August the sick were re-
ported suffering from want of proper
accommodations and food; that their
tents were without floors, and with only
their blankets between the sick men
and the ground; and that a glass of
sour milk apiece was. the only nourish-
ment they received in twenty-four
hours
The War Department is charged with
frequent changes of plans and it is as
serted that General Young was given
only six days for the preparation of the
camp before the arrival of troops, when
two weeks time was necessary which
caused great confusion" On the 14th
or August DR.. Edison visited the camp
and found that the 1400 troops there
were almost wholly dependent upon a
body of water without inlet or outlet
and known as Fort Pond for their
drinking water. This pond received the
drainage from the camp, and the doctor
found the water to contain 80 grains of.
salt to the gallon. This condition, he
said, caused disease and. rendered the
pond constant menace to the men.
By August goth there were 10000 men
In camp and 1900 in the hospital, with
llduy uIdUle 10 secure ADMISSION from
the transports. The. regulars were re-
ported to be suffering for the neces-
saries of life and had received no pay
for three months. Contract surgeons
were reported living at the expense of
patients.
after the doctors had lunched," says
the account, twenty-five empty apol-
linaris bottles were counted on the
table, said to have been diverted from
hospital stores"
Particulars are given of the death in
his tent of Private Hugh Parrett on
August %, and it is asserted that DR..
TABOR refused him permission to enter
the hospital, on the ground that he was
not sick.
The assertion is made when. on the
9TH of September, DR.. Lee went to
Camp Wikoff with a special train to
take sick soldiers to Brooklyn hospi-
tails, he as unable to get more than
fifteen men to the train on account of
the lack of ambulances, which were
being used to carry sightseerS around
the camp. While hundreds of sick SOL
diers were waiting to be transferred to
boats and trains. a dozen ambulances
stood at the depot filled with laughing
men and women who were seeing the
camp with officers friends
After this incident General Young
gave orders that the ambulances were
to be used only for the transportation
of the sick.
A list of witnesses is as follows: Cen
eral Joseph Wheeler, General. Young.
Colonel Forwood, Major Brown, Sur
geon Sem from the Red Cross, Miss
Helen Gould, Mrs. Walworth, DR.. Cy-
rus Edison; DR.. S. II. Doty, health Off
Ger of New York City; DR.. w T.
Jenkins, Health Commissioner of New
York; William Smith. banker; Sur
geon Linn, Thirteenth Infantry; Sur
geon Ames, Tenth Infantry
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Rheumatism. kidney, liver diseases cured. Dr.