The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1899-06-30
Report on the Care of the Graves of Those
Buried at Arlington.
THEIR GRAVES WELL CARED FOR
Satisfactory
Yellow Army to be
Thousand-TenT Thousand Troops be in
Providing Thi-ty.Five
Observation-Disclosures for Regular Army to
sO be

Washington, June 28-At the instance
of Adjutant General Corbin, Quarter
master General Ludington recently in
stituted an investigation of the pub
1ished reports that the government was
neglecting the graves of the confeder-
ate dead in the national cemetery at
Arlington.
The report of Major T. E. True, the
depot quartermaster who has charge
Of the Arlington cemetery, has just
been filed at the war department..
There are" says Major True 1876
confederate soldiers and civilian state
prisoners now inferred at Arlington ma
tional cemetery. These dead are buried
with other honorable dead in the GEM
etery. Their graves are known and re-
corded, are marked with headstones
very similar to those marking the
graves Of union soldiers, bearing the
name, but not the regiment, company
or state, as in the case Of union SOL
diers; are we'll sodded and cared for,
according to regulation, precisely as
the graves of all the other dead in that
cemetery are cared for. In short, the
confederate dead are honorably in
TERED and honorably cared for 1t is
hardly probable that they would be SO
well cared for in any other than ma
tional cemetery
NO YELLOW FEVER IN PORTO
RICO.
Admiral Van Reypen, surgeon gen.
eral of the navy, has received a report
from the surgeon on duty at Porto
Rican ports stating that a most salts
factory sanitary condition exists
throughout the island, and that there
is not a trace of yellow fever.
OTIS TO HAVE 10000 TROOPS.
Secretary Alger Adjutant General
Corbin and Colonel Bird, assistant
quartermaster general in charge of
transportation, had an hours consul
tatiOn with the president today rela-
tive to the question of re-enforcements
for General Otis A definite decision
has been reached to continue recruiting
men at all the recruiting stations for
service in the Philippines, and Secre-
tary Alger said when he left the White
house, after the conference, that Gen.
eral Otis would have 10000 men when
the rainy season closed, for resumption
of active operations.
There are seventy recruiting stations
in the United States and enlistments
are to be taken at all of these stations.
The enlistments are to be for service
in the regular army and recruits are
to be organized into regiments or as
signed to regiments already formed
after enlistment. No organizations, as
such, are to be accepted, if sufficient
recruits can be obtained by regular en-
listment.
General Corbin said the enlistments
would be for three years, although the
law for the creation of the provisional
army of $4,000 in excess of the regular
army of $1,000 provides only for such
a force until 1901. Arrangements are
TO be made at once for increasing the
transportation necessary to get these
additional troops to the Philippines.
The decision to re-enforce General
Otis by the end of the rainy season is
interpreted to mean that aggressive
campaigning will cease until the bad
weather ends. Until that time our op-
erations will probably be confined to
occasional excursions to place in
close vicinity to our lines where the
insurgents may have congregated in
force. By remaining quiescent under
good shelter during the rainy season
it is hoped the health Of our troops will
be conserved and the danger from cl1-
matte fevers reduced to a minimum.
QUESTION OF INCREASE OF THE
ARMY.
General Otis has cabled the war de-
partment that he has the skeleton or
ganiZations of two of three regiments
which it is proposed to raise in the
Philippines. At the war department
this is said to mean that General Otis
has the officers for these regiments
selected and that they are ready to be
filled with enlisted men. How many
of these can be secured from the vol
unteer regiments now in the Philip
pines is not known. 1t is stated at the
war department that the recruits now
being enlisted at the rate of 1000 a
week. cannot be used for the volunteer
army provided for in the act of March
End, authorizing $4,000 men, although it
would be an easy matter to transfer
these men with their own consent TO
the volunteer service il 1t Should De
determined to raise additional troops.
Later in the day it was definitely de-
cided to begin the enlistment Tor the
first volunteer service under the act OF
the last congress. The reports to the
adjutant general, based on the reports
of the recruiting officers and on close
estimates as to the number Of soldiers
in the Philippines, and in each COM
mand in Cuba and Porto Rico show
that the regular army is up TO It's 1ull
authorized strength.
The additional soldiers needed must
be obtained under that section OF the
act of congress authorizing the enlist
ment of volunteers. The only excep-
ton will be in the case Of the few en-
liStmentS that will be made from time
to time to fill gaps in the regular army
caused by casualties and by the expl-
ration of enlistments. The officers
scattered among the principal cities OF
the country who have been enliStine
regulars only, will be instructed i'm.
mediately to prepare to enlist volun.