Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1899-05-18
THEY WANT A REST.
Nebraska Volunteers Declare Thew
Are Exhausted by the Campaign.
A MEMORIAL TO Cen. MACARTHUR.
The News Received with Deep Interest st
the War Experimentation the Fill
pinO Congress Stands In Regard
to Making Peace.

Manila, May l3.-The First Nebrask
volunteer infantry is taking the uni
sual step of respectfully petitioning tn
division commander, Maj Gen. MacAr
thur, to temporarily relieve them iron
duty at the front. The regiment i
badly exhausted by their campaign, il
which it has taken an active part, AM
not many more than 300 men of the or
ganization are at present fit for duty
Sunday 1850 men of this regiment re
sponded to the sick call. In view O
these facts, the men have prepared re
spectful memorial to Gen. Macarthur
asking that their regiment be with
drawn for short time from thu
fighting line, in order that they
may recuperate. The memorial
states that the men are willing tc
fight, but are in no condition to do Sc
owing to the strain of long marching,
continual fighting and outpost duty in
which they have been engaged. 1t is
added that many of the men have been
unable to have their clothing washed
for months, having been compelled dur
ing all that time to sleep in their uni
forms to be in readiness for fighting.
The memorial adds that since February
2, the regiment has lost 225 men in
killed and wounded, and 50 since the
battle of Malolos. The officers of the
regiment purpose to present a similar
memorial on behalf of the men.
Five volunteer regiments and the
Utah battery of artillery are at San
Fernando. They muster in all about
1900 men, whereas, their normal
strength should exceed 5000. Many of
the soldiers are in the hospital here
suffering from heat or other causes.
The wounded were all suffering acutely
and showed the effects of exposure to
the sun when they arrived. Three
days rest has already worked wonders.
Since the army entered Malolos the
soldiers have had little water to drinl,
except that which was brought ON rail
way trains from Manila and that was
of poor quality. Now the artesian
wells at San Fernando are doing much
towards making the men contented.
Fresh troops are going to the front.
Two battalions of the Seventeenth
United States infantry that had been
holding the lines about the city of Ma
Mia will join Mai ten. MacArthur's
division at San Fernando tomorrow. |
and one battalion of the same regiment
will reinforce Mai. Gen. Lawton's divi-
sion near Bacoor. These troops will
be replaced here by the Twenty-frst
infantry regiment, which arrived from /
the United States ON board the trans
port Hancock Thursday.
COMMENTS AT WASHINGTON.
Washington, May 49, No dispatch
received recently from Manila has been
read with deeper interest at the war de-
partment than that which was sent by |
the Associated press via Hong Kong.
War department officials and army
officers did not care to be quoted upon
the subject, but the comment generally
among army officers was that the troops
which had been fighting so long and
continuously are exhausted and were
really in need of rest. 1t was explained
that the men did not fear fighting. but
after fighting and marching and con-
slant picket duty, they We're no doubt
much exhausted. Some army officers
that the action of the Ne
braska regiment was like town meet
ing and that the army could not be
upon such lines. Comment
was made to the effect that the dis
patches indicated that the various reg.
ments were on duty constantly and
hat there was no reserve to relieve
hem when they reached the limit
If endurance. 1t was stated by an
'tlcer of the department that one
'eason why it had been impossible to
.elicve the volunteers with tba ranr-
dTS HOW dl MdHlld was because the