Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1899-01-07
HANDLED ALL ARMS
The Duties of a Former Rock Isl.
and Arsenal Officer Dur.
ing the War.
HONOR FOR LIEUT.. COL. THOMPSON
While the Supplies Were Being Turned
Out at This End at an Unprecedented
Rate He Was Delivering and As
DsiGning Them-Cuba as Garden

Rate He Was Delivering and As
C-iGning Them-Cuba as Garden
Spot.
Lieut.-Col. j. L. Thompson. L. S.
A, who during the period of his SER
vice At Rock Island arsenal few years
ago was known in the three cities as
plain Lieut.. Thompson, one OF the
most popular officers ever assigned to
duty ut the arsenal, distinguished
himself during the recent war, as did
the officers who succeeded him at the
arsenal here. Lieut.-Col. Thompson
has risen gradually in rank since leav-
ing Rock Island until he now occupies
one Of the highest positions in the
ordnance department. In the mean
time he has been on duty at Omaha,
Chicago and other stations in the SER
vice of the army and is now ut New
port, Ky, on leave of absence. visit
ing his mother. The Cincinnati Times
Star has this to say of him:
The man who directed the hand
ling of IS, 600 tons of munitions of
war without an accident, without the
explosion of single cartridge, and
without the discrepany of one cent in
the tremendous item of $4,000, 900, is
in Newport, XIV. He is Lieut. Col.
John L. Thompson, of the ordnance
department; has only recently re-
turned from Cuba, and is ENJOYING a
brief leave of absence with his mother,
Mrs. Col. Thompson. After the ces-
satiOn of hostilities, Lieut.-Col.
Thompson was assigned TO duty in
Cuba with the board of officers dele
gated to select camp sites for the
army of occupation. Himself and as
sociates travelled extensi civ in the
island and selected camping grounds in
the provinces of Havana, Matanzas
and Pinar del Rio. He saws
that in parts of the island they en-
countered ruins of magnificent sugar
plants, destroyed by the Spaniards or
the bans, as the case CHANGED to be
the Cubans seeking to destroy in
dustries which produced revenue for
their oppressors, and the Spaniards
devastating the country in the scheme |
of RECOMMENDATION. Some of the re-
iineries and plants destroyed, Lieut.
Col. Thompson estimated to have |
been of the value of 5000, 900 or more. |
An Eden of Opportunities.
Cuba he pictures garden spot-an |
Eden of opportunities, particularly |
for the agriculturalist. Earning |
land, he says is rich and fertile, and |
what is more to the purpose for
the homeseeker, is cheap. Excellent
land can be bought for from 81 to S. |
an acre. Havana he describes as
city, which will rapidly de-
velop into iirst-class municipality
through the magic influence of Amer
lean enterprise, energy and capital.
During the war Lieut.-Col. Thompson
was brought face to face with the diff
Guilty of equipping a large army
The experiences of the de-
partment, he says, demonstrated the
necessity for maintaining in arsenals
stores of arms and smokeless powder
and proiectiles. These can not be
bought in the market of the world at
the moments notice, and in some in
stances last year machinery for their
had to be planned and
built before the. real work of their
could be commenced.
He thinks the government should
keep on hand, and ready for emer-
sency, at least 5000, 600 magazine
lilies, with corresponding quantity
IF ammunition. Lieut.-Col. Thomp-
'on supplied Gen. Skaters 9TH army
,Orps for the Santiago campaign and
llso QUILTED Gen. Miles expedition
o Porto Rico.
The Artillery Trains.
The artillery trains of both armies
included about 100 pieces of various
Kinds, WHICH were planned to have
Ieen used against Havana last fall
lad not the early close of the war
'bviated the necessity. 1t required
g, 600 rifles and 1000, 900 rounds of
for these two armies, to
which was added several thousand
nachetes for the Cuban allies, and
lumher of Sims dynamite guns.