Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1899-01-06

| Tor the several departments or ty,e sas 70
government, and all its institutions. and
conf1ne all appropriations for them
| within that limitation,
mere snouid be no gross sums appro-
priated to be used in common by severa
departments fpr express bills or Tor any
other purposes, but each should have
assigned for itself such sum and mo
more. Tor contingent and other expenses.
as you find absolutely necessary.
| MILITARY AFFAIRS.
After years of patient waiting and
timely warning and Intellectual negoti-
ating, the people of the United States
We're compelled in the interests of hui
manly and good government to call a
nalt' ana to put an end to the despotic.
| chronic and inhuman conditions, very
injurious and detrimental to their mites
ests, that had so long existed in Cuba.
Congress, in the exercise of its consti-
| tutlonal prerogative, in the month of
April last. solemly declared that a state
OF war existed between this country and
| Spain. Happily. the contest was brief.
sharp and decisive. Signal victories
crowned our arms on land and sea,
when nave led to such an honorable
settlement and treaty that all for which
| our government commended. and even
more, has been fully realized The last
| NeStige of Spanish misrule and tyranny
has been bl"tted out and forever driven
| from the American continent The peo-
| pie everywhere throughout the Union
| responded 18th patriotic and salf-sac-
| rificing alacrity to the country's call to
| arms
AT the commencement of the struggle
we were very poorly prepared for war.
For nearly third Of a century we had
| been cultivating the arts of peace. and
l ho n o mo ,c hiatt Ia r. \
our land. The difficulties encountered
by reason of want of proper preparations
have furnished us salutary lesson
| which we shall not fail to profit by in
! the future.
Maine furnished one volunteers regi-
ment Ut Infantry, four batteries of heavy
| artillery. and signal corps. This was
her full quota, and more. The infantry
regiment, think, was the largest and
best equipped that went from New Eng
| land. Maine has never faltered in her
/ devotion and loyalty to the Union, and
her people never will. The infantry regi
F, ment was ordered into camp at Chiclsa-
manga All of it's men and officers were
| anxious and clamoring to be sent TO the
| front. where they could participate IN
| the struggle. and they were about to go
70 Porto Rico when the protocol. which
| put ar end to hostilities. was signed.
! An alarming amount of sickness. espe-
cially typhoid fever, prevailed in the
! Chickamauga camp. 1t was almost cpl
demic. and compelled the government to
abandon it. This caused the regiment to
return to Maine. 1t has since its return
| been mustered out of the service After
| its return to Maine. as well as before.
it suffered a good deal from the fever
| with which it had been infected before it
| returned home.
| What causes may have induced so
| much sickness. who is responsible for it.
and whether or not it could have been
| avoided by proper foresight, and care. |
| leave to others to determine. Yet it does
seem to me that without some strong
| compelling cause it was not good juGg-
! ment to concentrate in one camp so large
| body of troops as rendezVouSed at
| Cltickamauga, and to keep them there
| for long period of time in the heat of
summer and under southern sun.
! The number of commissioned officers
that served in the First regiment of in
| fantry volunteers while in the United
| States service was 40. The number of
non-commissioned officers and privates
furnished under the first call when the
| regiment left Augusta was $50. There
| fore, the whole strength of the regiment
! at that time was 1927. as two of the
commissioned officers named We're not
commissioned to fill vacancies until the
regiment returned to Maine, as there
was no official notice of the vacancies
| prior to that time.
The battery of heavy artillery. mean
| ing battery \. had a total strength of
four commissioned officers, and 1i6 en-
listed men when it left Augusta to gar
rison Fort Popham. The total number
of officers and men furnished under the
| first call was 1177.
Under the presidents second call the
| number of non commissioned officers
| and privates in the infantry companies
| was increased to 106, and battery a of
the heavy artillery increased TO 200. This
makes a grand total that served in both
| of these organizations under both calls
| of 1345 officers and men,
There was also organized, largely from
! the Second regiment of the Nationa!
| Guard of the state of Maine. in response
| to the second call, three batteries of ar
tillery. having II commissioned officers,
and 319 non-commiSsioned officers and
! privates, total of $50.
! Maine also furnished under special in =
! structions from the war department. q
signal corps. consisting of two commits
stoned officers and 40 enlisted men, max
ing total of the land forces volunteer
with Spain of Iii officers and men. A
| large number of soldiers. seamcn and
4 marines also volunteered and enlisted
in the regular army of the United States,
and in the naval service. of which we
| have at present no account or record.
In response to a request of the secre-
tary of the navy the Volunteer Naval
Reserve associations of Portland and
i Bath organized for service. and enlisted
for one year. There We're six commits
stoned officers and IS privates in the
Portland organization; three commits
stoned officers and 55 privates in the
Bath organization.sBOth the signal corps
and the naval reserves were in excess of
the quota assigned to Maine. The signal
corps was ordered to the front. and did
, excellent service in the several battles
on the Island Of Cuba, near Santiago
which led to the surrender Of that city
and the Spanish forces occupying It. The
volunteer naval reserves have also been
mustered out of the service. The -four
batteries of heavy artillery are all oil
the Maine troops now in the service OF
the United States. They are at present
encamped at Savannah. in the state OF
| Georgia, and will form part OF the
army of Cuban occupation, as they have
| already received orders to prepare to &c
| to Havana.
Tho health Of these four batteries at