The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-08-05
SUPPLIES FOR THE ARMY
QUESTION OF SHIPMENT ONE THAT
REQUIRES MUCH ATTENTION
AND MORE MONEY
BOTH ROUTES ARE USED SOME
Longer to Send the Goods Via the
Suez Canal, But 1t Is
Less ExDen-
siVe.

WASHINGTON, July 25.-one of the
most important subjects now under con-
sideration by the war department is sup
plying the United States army in China
with necessary stores. Very few peo-
pie know how Uncle Sam sends food and
tents and other things to the boys fight
ing for him in far away lands. All ves-
sells sailing with supplies for Manila for
merly sailed by way of Honolulu, but now
they sail by way of Nagasaki, Japan All
supplies for China carried by ships bound
for Manila are put off at Nagasaki, and
the first ship bound for Taku picks them
up there and carries them on. 1t was
at first planned to have all ships from
the United States unload at Nagasaki
and return home, while a line of ships
running between Taku and Nagasah
would carry the stores on to China. The
subsistence department, however, OBJ
jected to this. as it was feared foods
would become damaged So now 1t is
the plan for ships containing supplies
for China to go direct to Taku via Maya
sakt, while ships carrying both supplies
for China and Manila put into Nagasaki
and then sail on to Manila This is also
done so that stores will not have to be
handled three times
MANILA FURNISHES MUCH.
There are great many supplies that
have to be sent over from Manila TO
China. These go direct, the ships only
touching at Nagasaki in order to pick
up anything that may be waiting there
to go to Taku. For this service Gen.
Macarthur will have the Pennsylvania,
ster, Port Stevens, Port Albert and Sum-
ner, eight good sized transports He
may, If he likes, use all of these or only
part OF them to transport supplies from
Manila and Nagasaki to Taku Mai
Charles Reid, of the quartermaster de-
parement is under the impression that
in this way the troops in China can be
easily supplied with everything needful
for any length Of time they remain there
The fact that such vast fleets of trans
ports have been set aside for the Chinese
service would go to show that the gov
eminent does not expect the present
trouble to come to very speedy end.
Several large storehouses have been
rented at Nagasaki in which to hold
quartermaster stores and thousands of
tons of these stores are every day leav-
ing in the steamships for that point
from which they are carried over to
Taku as they are needed by the troops
in the field.
1t may seem to some people that be-
cause we have only 1900 or 5000 men at
present in China that it does not require
a great amount of supplies to meet their
needs. But it takes forty-five wagons to
carry the camp equippage of 1000 men
alone, and another ten wagons to carry
food for these men, and then there are
half a dozen wagons to carry the para
phernalia of the signal corps and medi-
cines. 1t is as hard to supply 5000 men
5000 miles away from home as 1t would
be to supply $4,000 only a few miles
away, as was the case in our Civil war
Instead of being put upon cars and sent
down the road few miles supplies must
now travel across the whole of North
America, be put IT. ships at San Fran
cisco, and sail for many days across the
North Pacific to Nagasaki. and from
there through the Yellow sea to Tohu,
where they are unloaded and carried by
wagon to points In China where they
may happen to be needed. Or they must
leave New York and go across the At
lantic ocean to Gibraltar, on into the
Mediterranean sea, through the Suez
canal, and down the Red sea into the
Indian ocean to Colombo; then on
through the Straits of Malacca, between
Sumatra and the Malay peninsula. and
up the China sea past Hong Kong to
Nagasaki, and so on to Taku.
COST OF FREIGHT.
To send these supplies from New York
1t costs from S12 to $14.40 per ton. and 1t
requires f1fty-fve days for them to make
| the journey. 1t would be quicker for
them to go by the Pacific coast, but sup
plies can be bought much cheaper in the
East. less the rate per ton for hauling
| them across the country, and so they are
sent from Eastern ports; which takes a
| few days longer, but is a great deal
| cheape: in the end. Such supplies as
| tents, overcoats. grain and other quarter
| masters supplies can take as long as
] they like IN getting to a given point but
| all foods must be rushed. The bread and
| meat and canned goods go by rail to San
| Francisco, where they are shipped direcr
| making the trip about ten days shorter
! than the New York and Suez canal route
| This is, however. about twice as ex-
| pensive Grain and hay that Is purchased
| on the Pacific coast can be shipped from
! there to China at rate of from S. to 81
| per ton.
Even the Great Lakes carry upon theil
| cold waters supplies for our boys in blue
/ in far away China Shipments Of par
| aphernalia for the signal corps are ship
| ped from Washington to Buffalo, where
! they are put into lake steamers and car
| ried to Duluth, where they are agar
| loaded upon cars and sent to Seattle
| where they find the ship that is to take
| them on to China.