The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1898-10-05
THE War INVESTIGATION.
6eneral Joe Wheeler Tells Of the
Santiago Campaign.
He FOUND NO CAUSE FOR COMPL ANT
ehafter Deserved Credit - Men u,a.
'icnty OF Food and Medicine.
Transports Comfortable.
Especial Dispatch to The post

sloh nan decided to modify its rule CT
yesterday vita reference % admitting rem
resentatives of the press to the hearing.
before the commission. 1t was said that
the commission had decided TO only permit
one official sienographer to be present and
that he would be "the representative of tha
commi ssion Instead of the newsn,nars -
This was found to he erroneous. The req
oihtion as fixed up by the commission yes
terday stands and Chairman Dodge in
struoted the secretary to announce that
the ruling OF the commission In tbis mat.
ter was final and would not be mortified
Fhe resolution provides that each of the
news associations should be allowed to haya
one representative present at the sessions
OF the commission during the taking of
testimony; that the "prcss" (meaning the
special correspondents) should be allowed
to have their stenographcr present, two TO
represent the correspondents ana one the
newspapers of Washington.
General Wheeler was the first Witness IN
the chalr today. General Wheeler went
immediately to the war department. from
the commissioners headquarters and re-
fused to be interviewed. lie did not ap-
pear to be greatly fatlgued by the exam
ination which he had been subjected to-
Tt Is understood that General H. V.
Boynton, who has been stationed at Chick
an.Guga Park camp, will testify before
ne commission this week. He will prob
ably follow General Flt2hugh Lee
1t has leaked out that thu war DEPART
nent mas for some reason suppressed up
to date the report made by Colonel Theo-
dore Roosevelt on the Santiago campaign
Colonel Roosevelt's report was sent to the
department some time ago, but all efforts
to obtain q copy of it for publication have
failed. The commission has been request
ed to summon Colonel Roosevelt to come
before 1t, but, II has not 1t Ia said taken
action on the matter as yet. A full exam
inaton OF Colonel Roosevelt, II hls test.
mony should corrohorate what Is to be the
nature CT his report. would hardly afford
much relief to Algcr, and for that reason
the commission may not press Col. Roose-
welt 10 come to the front. If the commis-
sion Ia acting in good faith. however, II
will insist upon being furnished with a
copy OF Colonel Roosevelt's report
Washington, October 1.-The war in
| vestigaton commission began its examina-
| ton of witnesses today by placing General
| Wheeler on the stand Chairman Dodge
stated to him the scope of the commits
slon's duties and askel General Wheeler
| whether he had any objections to being
swcrn. He had none and Major Mills re-
corder for the commission. administered
the oath.
| Ex-Governor Beaver conducted the ex-
animation. developing the essential facts
as to General Wheelers rank and his COM
| mlnd. General Wheeler stated that he
| left Tampa for Cuba on the 14th OF June,
but that he had no knowledge OF the plan
OF campaign before going aboard the trans
port He then told of the voyage on
June 81 General Shafter ordered him to
dsembark the next day, which he did with
q portion OF his command. He wslt into
the country four miles that day and next
moved his troops to Jaguracl. Then he be-
gan his accommodating. arranging with
General Castillo OF the Cuban army to send
Cuban troops with his men for the re-
connoiter but unfortunately the Cubans
| did not keep tho engagement. He told
| OF the first battle at La Qulsina stop
ping to compliment especially the regular
troops and also to speak OF their excel
| lent firing. They soon learGed to distruSt
General Wheeler has not been able on his
| own account to secure any accurlte
| estimate OF the Spanish losses duriaS the
| American approach upon SanJago. Speak
Ing of tho proceedings after the first ba.
tie he explained that he had been reported
sick and there We're some movements jlst
prior TO the battle Mt FL Caney, With which
he was not familiar.
| II was not sick" he said, but | had
been on the 2ath and 30th. Still / had not
gone to the sick list had a fever, hut
| appreciated the situation, took medicine
and came out all right.
He was In the battle OF FL Caucy ana ex
! pressed the opinion that more men had
been killed In this formation OF the line
than afterward. He told OF the necessity
| for wadfng the San Juan river, saying that
| the water was about walls, deep.
Il ought TO say said he in the course
| of his testimony. that II was magnificent
to see Officers of high rank SO ashore
With their packs on their backs. accepting
| all the fortunes OF war with their men.
! They SLEPT on the ground with the sol
dlers. None OF us were mounted and We
were without tents for several days"
| Speaking of the character OF the roads
from the coast TO tho points occupied by
| the Americans, he said that with such
! attention as they were able to give them,
they were vSry good. The rains had not
| been severe up TO that time. The roads
were narrow nut equal 10 tue uelutnus.
| The supplies were cons1dered sufficient
except In few Instances ard in those
instances the deficiency was only tempo
| raly
| Genera, Shafter," said he, deserves
great credit for the zeal he displayed in
this respect He devoted himself to this
task and I think there is r, doubt he
| succeeNl.i We used pack trains and
! there was comparatively little suffering
because OF the shortness Of quattermaster's
supplies"
General Wheeler said in response 10 a
question that Ceryera's fleet was the oh
| ject OF the campaign There was no reason
why the Spanish troops should have made
sortie from Santiago and he had asked
Ger,sral Torai why he had not attacked.
The latter seplied that the failure to do
so vas because his men were foOtsore.
| Yet General Wheeler couh no, accept
! this explanation, for the Spanish men were
rot footsorc. General Wheeler's opinion
] was that the Spanish commander was not
/ ab'a to face the Americans In the open.
| Discussing the~pian Of the campalgn ne
| safi he doubted whether any more effect
| i've plan could have been adopted.
| Speaking OF the medical department, he
| said that at this time there were coni-