The Bellefontaine Republican. [volume] (Bellefontaine, Logan County, Ohio) 1855-1905, 1898-11-29
A POINTER
FOR CONGRESS,
Teddy Roosevelt Writes a
Letter
Telling the Truth About the Neglect
and Abuse of the Soldiers
IN THE WAR WITH SPAIN.

The soldiers of the late war, who suf-
red sickness, starvation and abuse, and
tho have been insulted by the charges
,ade against them, of being responsible
,r 1t all themselves, have been waiting
for Congress to meet and
nvestigate matters. They have borne
their wrongs, even when in
ult has been added to injury, knowing
hat individual complaints would in
many cases only subject them to re-
roach and ignominy at the hands of
heir superiors and of the yellow dog
lewspapers.
The cry that went up, however, was
100 general to be ignored, and com.
mission was appointed by the Presldeut
% investigate the matter. Its course
has been such as to impress the entire
public with the opinion that it is white
the whole iniquity, and the
President might a. well call it off.
This committee has seemed to labor
10 prove that there has been no unusual
among the soldiers, that rations
were abundant, that the camps were all
well located, and that all sickness, ex-
posure and lack Of proper food haYe
been from the recklessness and improv-
idence of soldiers themselves! Tnis il
abominablel Every community that
soldiers have gone from, has seen gaunt,
sallo ", sickly soldiers that have come
home. Parents and friends, thousands
of them, have heard the stories of
the boys. from their lips and by letter,
of the unnecessary hardships they have
been subjected to, of the poor and scant
rstions they had often to put up with,
and of the great amount of sickness and
lack of attention in their camps. They
could not be silenced by the whitewash-
ing report of any committee, and will
not be.
It will be q satisfaction to all such to
find that there is one officer, who was in
the thickest of the hght, who is honest
enough to tell the truth, and brave
enough to challenge the work of the
committee. Teddy Roosefelt has spoken
out, and his letter will fall as bomb in
tho camp of the whitewashers.
The Committee was to visit New
York, and q commission of officers and
soldiers was voluntarily organized to
secure witnesses who inew something O
the abuses they had been subjected to
and would testify. Their testimony
was given and the Presidential commit
tee notified; but it seemed that instead
of being thankful for information they
wanted to know why this voluntary
committee had not fixed the RESPONSE.
bility for the abuses the soldiers hae
testified of. Mr.. Roosevelt wrote tn,
following reply, which goes right to tn,
mark, and shows up the whitewashini nj
committee which has sought to defent
dishonest and incompetent officers ant
contractors by villfying the patriot,
soldiers who were their victims. Heal
Mr.. Roosevelt:
ITO tho Presidential Commission of in
quiry:.
"Gentlemen: have noticed in tn,
morning press that one of your member
crirlcizss the witnesses who have testi
fed at the request OF the committe,
formed in this city to protect tn,
soldiers, for the reason that while es.
tabiishing the fact that much ground.
less and
Inexcusable Suffering
was inflicted on the army, they do no
fix the responsibility nor show who ia t,
blame. If the views of your commission
are correctly reported, there seems to b,
misunderstanding between US. w,
supposed that all the witnesses were t,
do was to prove the facts and that tn,
commission would fix the responsibility
indeed, was appointed for the expires
purpose OF fixing the responsibility.
1.-THE heroic boys may forget thei
sufferings; may even refuse to testify t,
them, but their mothers will not ant
their fathers will not. Nor will it do t,
take refuge behind the errors of the civi
war.
"There was then no intentional cruel
| ty such as seems to have 90 often pre-
vailed in this war. The sick men wer
not starved. Sick men were treatel
with all possible attention and kindness
Water was not sold to fever-racked suf
ferers at ten cents glass, food was no
| sold to starving men at twenty-five
cents for q sandwich, and dainties fo
the dying men were not eaten by tn
officers. But suppose matters had beel
thousand times worse in the civil wal
| would that be any reason now that ou
men should be sent with arms out o
date, and there should be no ambulsncel
no pack trains or transportation t.
carry food to the front; not half sufficien
medicines, nor doctors; no proper hos
pitals and that men with freshly treate
wounds should be left to lie in the mu
on blanket if they had one-without
they had none-nor even why mid-win
ter underclothing should be sent to Cub
and midsummer gauze to Montauk.
"The accomplishing endurance of on
men hns simply been heroic. The
bore wounds, sickness, privations, t
death even.
| Without a Word.
1t was only neglect, starvation, in fac
and abuse in the hospitals which calle
forth letters, and then only to the
families; letters which were sent to n
by broken-hearted mothers in pitifs
appeals to try to help their sons. wis
your commission could haye read then
but as many of them were tranemitte
to me confidentially cannot even quot
from them.
"The witnesses have establishe
monstrous incapacity. That they hay
not full confidence in the power of yor
commission, no matter how good i
will, to meet all the requirements IL
public demands of it. is only echoir
your own doubts, but in spite of tn
fhax aaann fo haxa dona THAR aharo ar