The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1898-11-02
Short Supplies
of Medicine.
WHAT BATES SAYS.
Maj. Cogswell, 8th Mass,
Testifies Before War Board.

Lexington, KY, Nov. before the
war investigating commission today,
Commissary Marshall of Camp Hamil-
ton denied the statements made BY
Lieut.. Col. Mitchell of the First Ter
ritorial infantry. He said every re-
QUESTION had been honored from the
TerI1torials.
The second witness was Gen. ]. c.
Bates, who testified as to the Santiago
campaign, the camps at Mobile and at
Chickamauga. He went to see Gen
Brooke regarding the lack Of equip
ments, clothing and other supplies
He said: The day before we left
Mobile we got pretty well supplied
These were supplies for recruits. Att
Santiago we had bread and meat al
ways Montauk Point was not the
proper place for camp of sick soldiers
at this time of the year At Montauk
| learned that the Long Island railroad
had an exclusive contract TO haul the
soldiers to the city. I issued orders toI
allow other railroads 10 come in and
help take Off the sick.
In Cuba medical supplies were woe
they could not get them. This was es-
pecially true at Siboney. In going over
we had enough medical supplies, but
we were cut down. We had trouble in
getting ambulances taken to Cuba. We
got one for each regiment and one for
the squadron. I think the ambulanoes
took We're the only ones ashore when
the rough riders fight occurred on the
oath of June"
the weakness in the medical depart
ment Gen. Bates said he thought al
great mistake was made in not send
ing medical officers in sufficient num-
Der.
BY DR.. Connor-" What do you think
of the propriety of allowing female
nurses accompanying an army into the
I think it would be perfectly proper
to have them at large hospitals, but
not in regimental hospitals"
/ think there is not sufficient excuse
for medical supplies being short in Gu
ba"
Dr. Edgar A. Mearns, surgeon in
charge of the Gibbs general hospital,
Lexington, was asked regarding the
sanitary condition of Camp Thomas,
where he was brigade surgeon. He read
report on the condition of the sites
there, which showed they were dis
ease breeders. He thought the men de-
tailed from the regiments to division
hospital were incompetent. Dr. Mearns
condemned the water supply at Camp
Thomas because there was typhoid fe-
yer there.
Major ]. ID. Glennan. who was cap
tain and assistant surgeon in the reg
ular army and was made major and
brigade surgeon of volunteers June 6.
was then called Maj. Glennan was at
Chickamauga and Tampa with the 9Th
cavalry. He returned later to
Chickamauga as brigade surgeon, first
brigade, third division, first corps. He
said that he found q much larger ans
cunt of sickness among volunteers than
he had been used to seeing; that he
found the sink left open and not dug
deep enough to make the camp health
full; that the water supply was affected
by this. Maj Glennan said he report
ed on these conditions both verbally
and in writing, and made certain rec
concentrations, but no attention was
ever paid to his reports. He said he
tried to get lime. Requisition was
made on the Quartermaster's depart
ment and they said that they did not
furnish it, Then requisition was made
on the medical department and Dr.
Huidekoper, the corps surgeon, disap-
proved of the use of lime, and returned
the requisition. He further said that
he believed the water in every we'll in
Chickamauga park contained the colon
bacillus, which indicated contanina-
ton by sewage. No matter how many
chemical and meteorological examina-
tions showed that the water was not
contaminated, l should still maintain
that it was not fit For use" declared
Maj Glennan.
Major William Cogswell surgeon of
the Eighth Massachusetts, said that
when his regiment edChattanooga
it was kept in the freight yard Is
hours, and it took it then four hours to
be transported to the park The men
went two weeks without fresh meat
Their health was thus greatly impair
ed and a large number were taken sick
DR.. Cogswell attributed the typhoid to-
the water milk and lemonade drank by
the men. He said that the clothing and
blankets of the men who died Of ty-
phoid fever We're brought back with
out having been washed or boiled and
used by other men of the regiment. He
mentioned other abuses too degraded
to write, which he said were reported
to the higher authorities without ac-
ton being taken. The doctor said that
in three months and half. when he
was at Camp Thomas, he knew of DR.
Huidekoper. the corps surgeon, having
visited the camp of the Eighth Massa-
chusetts but twice He had great diff
Guilty in securing medicines, he said
and had to buy drugs out of a private
fund. The list Of medicines he made
requisition for always had about half of
the most important drugs scratched off
by the higher authorities. He told of
the red tape" which required requfs-
ition for medicines to go through a doz-
en- channels and then back before the
supplies could be secured.
DR.. Thomas c. Chalmers. captain and
assistant surgeon of the Twelfth New
York who saw six weeks service in
Porto Rico, testified that at Chickam-
auga his regiment could not only not
get medicines. but could not even get
blanks to make acquisitions for them.
In regard 10 the transport Nassachu-
sets, on which he went to Porto Rico
Dir. Chalmers said; There was no reg
ular cooking on board, and the men
We're unused to eating cold rations The
reserve hospital men We're supposed to
have been we'll men. but events proved
that they did not have enough to eat
The men never could get enough water
to satisfy their thirst Ice water was
sold at $1.25 pitcher. The matter was
reported, but the custom was not stopp-
ed. The mules and horses on board