The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1899-03-30
WAS A HARD LIFE.
Continued From Page 10 )

arms are simplicity itself. No man OF
ordinary common intelligence should
fail TO master both in a weeks time.
Why. then. after men are IN proper
physical condition and conversant with
the Necessary movements, should they
be given these long. tiresome hours OF
drill?
After a certain point of excellence
has been reached a company goes back
rather than improves. | believe any
competent officer will admit that re-
cruits OF months experience will out
drill troops who have seen year OF
constant service. And so far as i'm
proving mems physical condition "a
concerned. any trainer knows how fire.
quently an athlete becomes overturned
and goes stale" to use a techntCaiity.
The men. after being brought TO a de-
sired degree OF proficiency a1d proper
physical shape. should receive only the
amount OF exercise necessary TO keep
them in that condition.
So to- the above causes-insufii
and improper food and overwork-a
combination which resulted in weaken
ing the men. can be traced the seeming
ly uncalled-for sickness lin the First
New York Regiment. They reached
encamped in the sanitary suburb OF a
healthful city, a locality where fever
was unknown and where the sick
OF Honolulu are sent for recuperation:
yet in n very short period the post hos
pital was filled with typhoid patients.
and in two months the regiment was
divided into about four equal parts
the sick, the nurses. the convalescents
and those remaining for active duty.
From this time on the military part
the part which the public sees and rec
| ogniZes. ceased. Drills and parades be-
came thing of the past. for the sim
pie reason that none were left for these
duties. The sick and convalescent were
incapable of active service. the nurses
were abundantly busy in the hospital
and the handful remaining were en-
lployed in guard and street duty and in
the various details to commissary.
quartermaster. paymaster and general
headquarters. Those who had been in
Camp Otis" were sent to Manila. the
engineers moved to barracks which
they had constructed and the few at
Camp Mckinley" joined the Gonzales
cents at Waialae. some four miles far
Their from the city.
During the month of November. at
the request OF the citizens OF Hilo. two
companies of the New York regiment
visited that city for the purpose OF
prospecting possible sites for barracks
on the island of Hawaii This trip was
rather in the nature of an excursion.
the men assuming the expense OF their
| transportation. 1t was the writer's
good fortune to- accompany the expedi-
ton, the recollections' OF which are by
far his most pleasant OF army life.
While we certainly made many
| friends in Honolulu. the sentiments of
the people there were not favorable to
our troops. We were regarded with n
certain distrust, which made our stay
more disagreeable that 1t might other
wise have been.
Whatever may have been felt toward
those who preceded us and however
well they may have been treated. dur
ing our stay we could not but notice
the general sentiment OF indifference
with which we were regarded. Though
it may be doing the people of Honolulu
an injustice. ii seemed as though their
hospitality to our first troops was
prompted purely by self-interest. At
that time annexation proceedings were
pending and the subscribers to the re-
that change.
Once the change had occurred no
further troops were entertained. Be
that as it may, the people OF Hilo re-
ceived our two visiting companies with
open doors. There was nothing in their
pretty little city too good for us. We
were made to feel at home. and that
means much when one Is an army pri-
yate in a strange country
During our stay in Hilo our biVouac
was warehouse near the city. and on
our march to the crater OF Kilauea we
were entertained by the people living
along the volcano road. At the sum-
nit our camp of small shelter tents was
pitched in grove some two miles
past the Volcano House. During this
trip, in spite of almost continuous rain.
no sickness developed. excepting an oc-
casional case of fever. the heritage OF
the camp we had previously occupied.
and the detachment finally returned to
Honolulu in fine spirits and in much
better health than those who had re-
manned behind-and this in spite OF
greater exposure and privation.
From this it must be concluded that
the secret of health with volunteer
troops is n constant change OF camp
and the very facts OF their enlistment
should Justify this assumption. The
regular soldier joins the army as n
matter of business. He elects to make
that life his for at least three years.
probably more. He accepts what may
be before him in his chosen vocation
and goes or stays with almost equal rel
ish. With the volunteer the circum-
stances are very different. His ser
vices have been offered At his country's
call. He has enlisted because he be-
lieved his active presence was imper-
atively needed, and when he Is relegat-
ed to the monotony OF camp, life and
surrounded by its tedious duties and
restrictions, he remembers the oppor-
tunities he may have forfeited.
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