Evening star., 1898-09-12
CARE OF THE SICK
War Department Plans for Well-Built
Hospitals.
IMPROVEMENTS At CAMP WIKOPF
Gen. Coppinger Reports on Con-
dtion at Camp Wheeler
IRA SPORT REG

Surgeon General Sternberg today fur
nshed some interesting details of the plans
of the War Department for the establish
ment of two large, weH-equipped winter
hospitals for the troops He said that
without attracting much attention the
medical department had for some time been
at work erecting such hospital on the
government reservation at Fort Monroe,
and he was pleased to be able to announce
that Lieutenant Colonel Woodruff, the
surgeon in charge, had reported that the
hospital would be ready for the reception
of troops next Friday. There is already at
the fort tent hospital in excellent shape,
capable of accommodating 800 patients.
7 he new hospital will be additional to this,
will be constructed of lumber after the
style of regular barracks, and will contain
LOCO beds 1t is intended for the reception
of sick soldiers returning from Porto Rico.
Looking ahead to the possibility of an
extended occupancy of Cuban ports by the
United States army, with the resulting re-
Quircments upon the medical department
for the care of the sick soldiers, Surgeon
General Sternberg is planning for another
hospital on an even larger scale at some
of the southern ports below Fortress Mon
zoe and more accessible from Cuba. He
has appointed a medical board to make an
inspection of available places, and the i'm
preston prevails that the hospital will be
either loca ted at Charleston or Savannah.
The hospital ships Resoiute and Missouri
are under orders to prepare Immediately
for return trip to Porto Rico to bring
back any sick soldiers requiring home
treatment.
|. Altering Camp WikOf Hospitals.
Surgeon General Sternberg has received
the following telegram from Surgeon For
wood, in charge of the medical establish
ment at Camp Wikoff Montauk, respecting
the improveme ents being made at that place:
The few patients remaining here tenn
porariiy under treatment will be perfectly
comfortable in the altered wards now being
prepared. The tents are taken off the
floors, widened two feet ard the plate raised
two feet There are sliding windows and
good ventilation. and three medium base
burner stoves in each. Two of these are
well under way.There is a large force of car
penters and plenty of lumber. Everything is
under way and in three or four days four
of these wards will be occupied. They will
accommodate fifty patients each, and four
will be- ] think, mora tran enough. The
Sh:nn cock took about 300 today yesterday.
The Relief will take 800 from the division
hospitals here tomorrow, and the SHINE
cock will be re 4dy for 300 more at l o'clock
Tuesday. Ebert said this evening he had
less than 100 patients left, and he is direct
ed not to receive any more from any
source. The only influx of sick will be
flOm the camps and the general hospitals
where all typhoid cases have been sent. |
inquired in many wards and was told that
patients We're comfortable las night dur
ing the cold Storm
Conditions at Camp Wheeler
In view of all that has been said of a
critical character from sanitary point of
view respecting the conditions of the
United States troops quartered at Hunts
vile, Ala, the War Department has deemed
it proper to make public the following let
ter, which has been received by Surgeon
General Sternberg from Major General
CoppingeT:
HEADQUARTERs 4TH ARMY CORPS,
CAMP WHEELER, HUNTSVILLE, Ala,
September 3, 1888
General G. NJ Sternberg. Surgeon General
L, S. Army, Washington, D. C.
Dear Surgeon General: | have impress
sion that at this time it may be of interest
to you to have line 4 lines-mans view
of the sanitary condition of the 4th Army
Corps.
We are camped in an attractive, open
valley, the fresh, cool, invigorating air of
Huntsviles hills steadily winning our poor
enfeebfed men back to life and strength
after the poisonous fever-laden swamps of
Tampa.
Our corps and brigade hospitals well sup
piled; surgeons and attendants doing fine
work.
Their work has been long and arduous
Doctors Reynolds, Lippitt, Strong and
Richards, now fever-stricken, broken down,
were especially noticeable for their inde-
fatigable zeal for the well being, and their
tender solictude for the welfare of those
to whom they ministered so we'll
DIR. O'Reilly has worked nobly and effec-
lively, with marked and successful admin
istrative c4racity.
Our condition struggling at Tampa with
typhoid and malarial fever was sad. L can
not too strongly express my gratitude to
you for the extraordinary success with
which you supplied the corps with doctors
immuQeS nurses and medical T,,a
more extraordinary when you reflect how
conflicting and unooked-for orders fired
our men, with little time for preparation,
into unlooked-for places. You humanely
responded to every appeal. On behalf of
my stricken men l wish earnestly to thank
you. Believe me, sincerely yours,
j. ]. COPP1NGER,
Major General, L. s. V.
Washington barracks Hospital.
The post hospital at Washington bar
racks, District of Columbia; the Sternberg
and Sanger field hospitals at Chickamauga
Park, and the military hospital at Ponce
Porto Rico, have been designated as gem
eral hospitals, and placed under the
exclusive control of the surgeon general
of the army.
Regulations for Transports.
A board of officers, consisting of Briga-
dier General William Ludlow Col Frank
J. Hecker and Lieut.. VIM c. Rivers has
been appointed TO meet at the Army build
ing, New ork city, at the call of the presi-
dent of the board to make regulations for
the government of troops transports.
Sites for Permanent Hospitals
The acting secretary of war will this
afternoon designate a committee, headed
by Gen. Schwan, an engineer officer a med
ical officer and officer of the quarter
masters department, to inspect and select
sites for permanent hospitals.
At Chickamauga Park.
The following was posted at the War De-
partment this afternoon:
Copy of telegram)
by direction of the Prestdent-Respect-
fully referred, Secretary Of War"
CHICKAMAUGA PARK Ga.
September H. 1S9S
The President: Less than forty days ago
work was begun to build and equip Stern
berg Hospital, to supply a crying demand
for better accommodations and more care
full treatment of the sick of this command.
who were daily increasing in numbers
when l assumed command, on August 2
Major Griffin was put in charge Of this hos
nj nj nd hac in fhnt