The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-10-25

ficiently wei clad for the harsh weather
and said they had suffered somewhat on
account of the recent cold Col James
+. tyffe of the Third Tennessee, whose
regiment had been encamped at Cbicka-
manga Park as a part of the First Divis-
ion of the Third Army Corps previous to
removal here, said the commissary sup
pies had been excellent in quality and
ample in quantity until within the past
month.
Col. Fyffe said in reply to questions that
a canteen had been maintained in his reg
iment, and that beer in large quantities
had been sold at it,. Most of the receipts
amounting 10 500 or $500 per day of the
canteen, We're from beer. did YOU con-
slider it proper for your regiment to MAIN
tain general beer garden for all the
camp| asked DIR. Conner, reading from
letter as his authority. Col. E'yffe an
sWered no; but that the beer was there
to be sold. He denied that beer was sold
70 be carried away, except to officers, and
advocated the sale of beer at canteens as
protection against more serious indulgence
in whisky. He expressed the opinion that
Chickamauga was an excellent camp site,
but he considered the water supply bad
as IL was arranged. He thought a pipe
line should have been run to the camp
from Crawish Springs
Maj Otto Fl. Falk was the chief quar-
'termaster of the First Division of the
Third Army Corps while in Chickamauga
Park and he now occupies the position of
chief quaTtermaster for this camp He
said the most serious complaint in the
early history of Camp Thomas was from
the First Missouri, whose men claimed
that their trousers We're nothing more than
rags and threatened to appeal to charity
at home to supply their wants There was
also shortage in tents which became
quite serious at the time of the beginning
of the rainy season. Previous to that time
men had slept under the trees and under
their shelter tents without complaint
Indeed, he said, there was never a suffi-
cient supply of tentage and it was neces-
sary to put six men in a tent. Continu-
ing, he said the division had never been
completely equipped until the present
time, especially in the matter of transpor-
tation facilities. He said, however that
there had been no refusal to honor requl-
stions. He thought upon the whole that
there was too much red tape in the quar-
termaster department.
II do away with it whenever can. 1
| have succeeded so far he said, "even
though l some times violate regulations. -
Illustrating, he said he had to sign his
name nine times in the process of paying
a bill of $50.
Dr. Charles NJ. Drake, in charge of the
general hospital here, and who was in
command of the hospital of the First Di-
vision of the Third Corps at Chickamau-
| ga, was the next witness He told of var
ious improvements he had found ii nee
essary to make in the hospital al Chick
amauga. There was" he said, ''such
| flood of disease that 1t was almost impos-
| sible to meet the demand for tentage and
quite out of the question TO anticipate it,"
| AS fast as he would pitch new tents they
would fill them up. He stated that the
medical supplies had been ample from the
| beginning, but the hospital corps had
! proved inefficient as nurses They were
| as a class" he said the very worst
| material that could have been found out
| of which to make nurses"
| However, he thought there had been no
| more serious results than discomfort to
| patients, caused by the inefficiency of
| nurses. He was positive there had been
! no death from starvation or deprivation.
! Ten per cent. of the typhoid cases of the
| hospital had died, and compared with hos
pitals generally, the percentage was phe-
nomenally low. He was of the opinion
that patients in this hospital received bet
ter attention than the average man in
| this country receives at home.
Replying to charges made by signal
corps patient in Chickamauga hospital,
| DIR. Drake said he had seen maggots on
| one occasion in box in the hospital, but
| never on patients. Often the men came
there lousy, but they did not remain Sole
| denied the insinuation that he had ever
tried to favor the Southern Railroad in
the matter of Transporting troops.
! Mai Joseph H. Heatwole chief COM
rnissary of subsistence, said the quality
| of the rations had been excellent. As to
| the quantity a man would have to be
| eornandizer to eat 1t. After Maj. Heat
| wole was excused Gen, Dodge read let
| ter from Dr. Seaman of New York, who
| was before the commission in Washington,
| in which he corrected an error in his tes-
| timony He stated that ne had received
| only the regular army ratiOns for the con-
| valescents on the steamer OLDHAM from
| Porto Rico to New York.
! He SAYS that such supplies as had been
received up to the night previous to sail
| ing had been received from the relief So
cieties during the night. He continued:
| "The hospital ship Relief arrived and
| early the next morning ] visited the Re
| lief and personally secured, without any
! requisitiou, the additional supplies emu
merated in the receipt signed by me I'm
| M NV conference yesterday with Maj.
| BRADLEY l believed these supplies, like
many others, We're bought by the outside
contributions and were not government
supplies. !,
rooted TO the surgeon general of the army.
-s-Ss-s----
r-r-SUTUAI, IN FULL SWING.