The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-09-02
STILL AT JEFFERSON BARRACKS
MULE PACKERS WHO ENLISTED
FROM UTAH.
Letter From One of the Men, Who
Says Army Life Without Action
Is Not What He Volunteered For.

! 11SFdlC-
1t IS three months today since I ar
rived at the old historic Jefferson Bar
racks to enter the service of the gov
J eminent. in answer to their call for
'.mule packers" In company with
seven other men l left Salt Lake City
on May % for this place. where all the
rack trains were being made uD and
| sent to Tampa or Jacksonville, for the
seat Of war. There were So trains
! fitted up from here, and ten still re-
main.
! AS far as L can learn, the pack trains
! that went to Santiago with Skaters
army did not exceed eight, the balance
| of those that left jefferson Barracks
were camoed "a Tampa and Jackson
vile, awaiting the order to go TO the
front-like many regiment of volun-
teers. but the majority of the men COM
! ing from the west found themselves
! an easy prey to that prevalent disease
| of the south-malarial fever, and in
! consequence a reinforcement of nearly
/ l0c men have since been sent TO take
! the places Of those unfortunate VIC
| ti-....
The last trains that left the Bar
racks were the three that We're %iven
" TO 80 men who came direct erom
| Wyoming to accompany Colonel Torrey
and his regiment of rough riders, and
| they are still at Jacksonville.
Two OF the packers who were at the
front distributing ammunition to the
gallant Santiago heroes have returned
tc the Barracks this week, and from
what 7 can learn they had an exper-
fence which will be indelibly engraved
Upon the tablets of their memories.
1t IS the same narrowing tale that
has filed the land since the war-ex-
Dcsure, hot sun, drenching rains, no
IL rrr<lr
ing day and night, with the unseen foe
vigilant with his Mauser rife always
on the alert along the trail: and. fin
ally, the result was a caoitulation to
the deadly malarial and typhoid fevers,
and one or two fell victims to yellow
te-a-.
The sicl- and wounded soldiers who
let Missouri FOR the war arrived on
special hospital train at the union
depot. and l understand that the ma
jority of the pack trains have disband-
ed. on account, of the men being sick,
and wishing to so back to their homes;
hence all who wish transportation into
the healthy regions that they left, can
leave the pest camps where they have
been Sciournin% all the summer. The
change Of climate from the Rocky
Mountains to this low altitude is quite
contrast. The heavy rains during
the summer months here, and the dif-
ference OF altitude. with the heavy
dews at night, and the change of pure
mountain water which we have been
accustomed to. have played sad havoc
with the majority of the western men
who let their comfortable homes and
answered the call for men to go to the
front and risk their lives in the ardu-
Gus task of packing ammunition and
supplies TO an army of fighting soldiers,
and in such country as the tangled
trails &c Cuba are known to be.
We have been waiting for the call,
and our pack trains have been trans
formed from the crude kicking mule
into the splendid equipped and trained
animals that only patient and iaborious
work can accomplish to bring them TO
that stage of. perfection which is abso-
lutely necessary they should be brought
to before they can be of any service as
a pack train Y X
We are ordered out tomorrow for in
spection, with every animal packed,
and the ten trains, with their assorted
cargoes, would no doubt be quite a
wonderful as we'll as unique process
sion were it exhibited at the Omaha
exposition grounds, but here it is an
everyday occurrence, as we take the
pack trains out every day over the
spacious reservation grounds.
We have moved on the west side of
the ground where the Sixth Missouri
volunteers vacated, that left here on
Aug. 13 for Jacksonville.
The barracks have now airegiment of
immuneS (colored), also the Third en-
gineer volunteers (white), both regi-
ments having their bands, and they
have acquired a degree of proficiency
in their drill, that makes quite an
imposing military appearance upon the
drill ground, as they have been fully
equipped for some time. Thousands of
visitors have come from st. Louis to
see them, and Sunday is generally re-
garded as the visitors day."
1t is easy of access from st. Louis,
both by the electric cars and the Iron
Mountain railroad. The fare on the
electric cars is 10 cents to st. Louis,
which is ten miles, and they run every
ten minutes. The ST Louis merchants
petitioned to the war department to
have Jefferson barracks used as a
mobilization center" and they have
been the recipient of large contracts
from the government and they have
reaped a corresponding harvest from
their energy while the war was on.
They did not sit supinely down and let
the southern cities get the cream with
out making an effort to divert the
golden dueats' from the channel into
which it was gravitating. We have a
live, energetic army of merchants here
at st. Louis, who pull together and do
not let the golden opportunity of bust
ness pass from the city
There is no sign of ITO let" on their
Chamber of Commerce" and their
merchants do not lapse into a state of
"inocuouS deSuetude," as is unfortu-
nately the case in Salt Lake City. If
the merchants of Salt Lake had the
foresight and business acumen that
these wide-awake business men have,
the Deep Creek railroad would be built
long ago, and it would have been add
ing to the wealth of the city, that needs
all of natures treasures to be WreSt-
ed from mother earth" and to be put
into circulation, that prosperity and
happiness may be had, instead of a
dearth and scarcity, while there are
millions awaiting at your very doors. |
ready to flow into its many channels of
trade, that should be enriching the |
teeming population of Salt Lake City. |
We have quite few Salt Lakers /
here now. also a few at the front.
Harvey Hardy has been here all sum
mer. also Phillip Raleigh, A. B. Sibley. |
Warren Brady and several more, |
whose names are not known to me.
B. F. Stewart left and went to Oma- |
ha. his avordupois being reduced fully |
80 pounds before he left, which was !
conclusive evidence that packing mules |
was not his forte nor conducive to |
his health.
We have in the ten pack trains $50
mules, with a regular ''arapajos," to |
each one, and ii takes the services of |
Is men to each train of IS mules When |
they take the trail with the bell mare"
in the lead, with their packs on, it |