The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-06-15
THEIR COMPLAINTS JUST
The Volunteers Are Niserebly
Fed at San Francisco.
is BAD BUSINESS
The Rev. 0lddon Has Visited the Camp
and Seen for Himsslf-The Deplora-
BILE Conditions Due Either %
Robbery or Incompetence.

discomfort that was the cause of the
Company b trouble. He said:
Eyes, I know there vas a very great
volunteer regiments, and tine fact Is so
patent that Is was commented upon
in many directions in San Francisco
during the month ! was there. The
Examiner had the courage to make
public some of the scandals and was ac-
cused of being traitorous and all that
kin of thing; but all the same, there
was ample cause for complaint.
Frankly speaking. the charge was
commonly made that gross Irregular
tiles existed In the commissary depart
ment: although. for obvious reasons.
II was not Easy to substantiate the
charges, except by looking at the food
supplied to the men, n then n was
obliged to conclude that something
wrong was going on. in the stealing
line, or that his was another exhibit
tion of official incompetency.
las a sample of the objectionable
laundering. I heard of one regiment
that had a four days trip to make in
the cars before reaching San Francisco.
and they were supplied with rations for
"a hours. One Of the captains told me
that so wretched was the commissary
arrangements that 1t cost him $40 to
pay for his share of feeding members
on the train, and this reminds me that
! ought to say that / found a large
number of instances where Just such
splendid. unselish acts have been done
by the volunteer officers. This is not
guess work on my part. for l nave seen
them go up to the unch counter and
pay the lunch for half a dozen men.
and yet the officers themselves were
not men of means, for l took pains to
inquire into the matter.
ION the matter of the actual act OF
INSTRUMENTATION of the boys as stated in
this mornings Standard IL is not my
place to comment: and IL would be
wrong for me to make any remark that
would seem to indorse their actions in
this matter, because, as we all know,
there Is no crime more serious in mill
tarv life than disobedience of orders,
and nothing so liable to cripple the
efficiency of a body of men as that.
Indeed 1t would be ~treachery to en-
courage INSTRUMENTATION. but on the
other hand. IL. through the silence of
the press. and those who have seen
and heard how matters are going. these
are to be allowed to con-
tinue. the splendid patriotism of the
people will be crushed. and the arms
of the United States will suffer defeat
because of the i'll treatment of her vol
unteer forces. 1t surely must be pat
ent to everyone that to feed men scant-
lily and with improper food is a very
Door preparation for their long sea
journey n their work i'm tropical eli
mates. The veries tyro. in thinking.
can see that unless the soldiers are in
good health before thew leave, they
can't stand the close confinement of life
on a troop ship. and a voyage OF not a
few miles under "A tropical skv. fol-
lowed as ii will be bv hard work in a
country that's only a few daCraas ahpyn
tho equator.
"As to the Montana regiment. I went
to their camp several times after some
of the newspaper comments that I have
just SPOKEN of had anpeared. ] found.
OF all sides. a great difficulty in getting
the slightest suggestion of information
on the matter. n l very much ad-
mired the sturdy LOYALTY that they
showed in this direction. As one of
them put II. We're not much given to
chewing the rag about these things I
had. therefore. to depend upon OBJ
servation. and am hound to say that
from what I saw of the food. ! could
hardly admit that it was up to the
standard. The o don't expect to be
fed on Strawberries and cream. and
duck and green peas and that kind Of
thing. but they do expect to be fed:
and IL seem to me. then, and does now,
that when men make such sacrifices
as the boys of these regiments have
done. they deserve the best considera-
tion that can be had at the hands Of
their country. Now. when who'll regi-
ments are so poorly look after b.
the commissary denartment that they
go a whole dav without food between
breakfast and shutdown. not on the bat
tlefield. but In San Francisco, and have
such shabby shoes that they may he
said to have none at all. and such like
blunderings as these that were made
public by the press Of San Francisco,
1t can be ACKNOWLEDGED that there Is
something thoroughly and unmistak-
ablv wrong.
when ] had ascertained some Of
these things. 7 asked some army Off
GERS I met and others who understood
these matters. as to what they con-
sidered the case Of all this trouble and
laundering. Some EXPRESSED the opin-
ion that Just as the Eastern coal deal
ers bled the for 81 a ton
more for coal for the warships than
they were charging TO others. and iust
as II was charged that defective rIste
was supplied to the United States hat
fieshins not long ago n eneer work
done In that BROOKLYN drv dock this
year. SO the government was rayinr a
fair and honest price for good food but
being cheated IN the quality. That
a very generally expressed opinion
In a Francisco. There was anothe-
and more charitable one expressed
nuaintIv bv a colonel whom I met. He
said: Men OF no experience are taken
out OF their stores and Offices and nut
into important positions. not because
they are competent. but 10 pay of
some political debt. Ut To do some per-
sonaI favor. The proper wsv to DO
would be to promote men from tAe
REGULAR army who uni ,rstood the Se-
tails. but in that way tho pie count
would lose Its power. Yet when yo,i
are sick you don't SEND for a black
smith. do you. even II ne is your
friendy'
in that little question Is a martial
explanation Of a great deal OF the un-
pleasant comments that have been
made"
Ed Crow. ,ged IS years. died vester- |
dav AZ the poor farm. The funeral
will fala liza froun Shar-au,G ,,ado<