The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1898-10-04
TROOPS PR0STRA1Rl
OVER TWENTY FIVE PER Cryr !.
THE ARMY At PONCE SICK.
Among the Regulars Very Few 4.
Unit for Duty. While voluateef.
Regiments Are HOrs du Combat

Copyrighted, 1898, by Associated Prsl|
Ponce, October BIT is the well grcv2|
ed and almost unanimous opinion u n
medical staff of the American ann, n
Porto Rico that conditions OF the yois.
teer forces here necessitate their rerueII
North. Sickness is increasing and NJ
been increasing the past three weeh Z
an alarming rate. Today the sick rep~I
shows over 200 in hospitals or in Quaru|
out of a total of 10000 men; that d ax|
20 per cent Of the troops are on the III
list. This, hoyever does not mean VI
there is an effective strength Of 1900 nx|
The soldiers discharged from the hospi.
As fit fer duty are in nine cases out d d
incapable of service, and Il crderva "a I'D
are almost invariably back in the hospin
within few days.
The medical officers have found that Y
convalescents do rot and seemingly v
not recover their strength in this cliniaI
and for this reason they are being u
North as rapidly as possible. several w
dred leaving every week,
1t is significant fact that there =
wide disparity between the sickness IN Y
volunt, er aud regular commands. IN q
two regular infantry regiments, the Nh
teenth and Eleventh, the sickness ayerap
only about 10 per cent, while IN the SvifI
teer regiments, the Sixth Massaehuts1
FIRST New York engineers, Fourth ~
Third Illinois, First Kentucky, Third VI
consln and Sixteenth PennsyiyanA
averages "a per cent. In the last 49,
two, where the conditions ure worse
sick report today shows a perceniags
40 in the Sixteenth FennsylvaniA als
in the Third Wisconsin,. Over hall va
two regiments, which with the frst ~
lucky comprlga General Ernsts puS.n
are unfit TOR duty, and yesterday ",
General Ernst moved his headquaHas
TO Aibunita, ON the summit OF lhe w
tain range, it was found that II xous
impossible for the First brigade 70 Ioinr
The command is PROSTATE wneid
Undoubtedly the wide disparity Wv
the percentage of the sickness y ~.
the fact that the regulars are peus'
To care for themselves, Most Of Wy
are veterans who understand tne ius y
health in camp and their officels
the very outset have enforced WIZ
dying energy the sanitary resuia''vvM XII
necessary for the preservation Q,
But more than that the regulars
making soldering a business. Ivy
not enlist for the war, but ~
years, and they look upon their hss,sS
Tor service in philosophical W. W., 4
make the best of the situation. -
unteers on the other hand enllstsu ~
years, but with the almost universe ~
tation t.at they would be mus'eleA, 3
when the war was closed. Amos,
man they desire to go home -. IA
since the protocol was signed Tue, M
lived in the daily hope OF beihs Y
For days they have talked OF nosn l.e. 4
Inconsistencies depressed their spur,
made them easy victims 10 t9e soms
conditions. II is said Una, m
them who did not fall sick natuta'.,Ax
ally exposed themselves to the IL Il
ate freely of tropical fruits assrfl
regulations that they might peconss n
he sent home. Some. il Is alas ',,s<r
feigned sickness aud quite a hu
these succeeded in their designs, ,.,.t,oa
The worst feature to the sisu Il 3
the steady increase of the nunlos H. N
phoid fever cases which today r,', rrobIss
400. For a time 1t appe'reu "a
that the typhoid fever In the .rs ~
Of which is alleged to have ss,lrr5I
Camp Thomas and Camp Aige,' M
would be stamped out, but ~ sI,nI
ago new cases began 10 appear = y. N
ing rate, Major Snowden anu ~
ciates do non believe that tne'. III
source Of contagion. but rathe. a.
cases are due TO infection iroH'