The Washington times., 1903-07-20
SIGNAL CORPS WORK
At LEESBURG CAMP
Telephone and Telegraph
Service Installed.
MOST COMPLETE EVER HAD
Commissary and Ambulance Depart
ments of District Guard to Go Out
Before Thursday.

The first steps toward establishing a
camp for the National Guard Of the Dis
trict OF Columbia at Leesburg were
taken yesterday, when First Lieut.. Viii
liam Niemeyer. in command Of the Sig
mol Corps of the Guard. reached the lit
tie Virginia town about noon and erect
cd tents and began TO install telephone
and telegraph systems for the use OF the
officers Cf the Guard and the war cor
respondents" Great secrecy was main
tanned by the signal men. and no one.
with the exception of Adjt Gen. Alfred
p. Robbins ard Lieutenant Niemeyer
and his twenty or more men. knew the
siGnal Corps would take It's departure on
Sunday
BY reason of special orders from Ma
tional Guard headquarters, the Signal
Corps was supposed to be in Leesburg
this morning 10 perform special duty
In order TO arrive IN Leesburg in time
the corps was compelled to start yes
terday, and thereby have four days more
at camp than any other organization,
because the men will remain at Lees
burg until the tents of the Guard are
struck about noon OF August 1.
Lieutenant Niemeyer left Washington
at a. IN yesterday in the Signal Corps
wagon, loaded with poles. yards AMI
yards of wire. glass insulators. tele-
phone and telegraph instruments. pro
visions, and everything else the men are
likely TO need. and travelled down the
Alexandria turnpike for forty-one miles
behind two heavy brown horses.
Men Went in Pullmans.
His twenty men left Washington at
o'clock in the morning, but went in
Pullman cars over the Southern road.
instead Of in a rocky, jolting army
wagon. The men arrived at the camp
site about II O'Clock. and Lieutenant
Niemeyer reached Leesburg about noon
Before he arrived. however. the men
had their tents pitched and we're digging
holes for the erection of the poles which
are to be used in stringing the wires.
The Signal Corps is one of the most
efficient organizations in the Guard
and the telegraph and telephone sys-
TENS established at previous camps
have been of the best. By reason of
having a little more time than usual
the signal men promise TO outdo all of
their previous efforts and fx the sys-
TENS so as to please the most exacting
message-senders and made a feature OF
promptness and dispatch. There will
be ten telephone stations on the camp
grounds. a complete outfit will be
found in the little telephone tents and
at Signal Corps headquarters. There
will also be several telegraph instru-
ments at the headquarters, and II a per-
son prefers sending message TO Wash
ington or Leesburg to talking over the
telephone he may do so. There will be
a telephone switchboard in the Signal
Corps tent. and the operator will be
able TO make connections with any
point in Washington or Leesburg.
Work Mapped Out.
The Signal Corps men have their
work already mapped out for them. and
viii have to string twelve miles OF wire
and erect several hundred poles by
Wednesday evening Every effort will
be made TO surpass the creditable work
done by the corps in former years. Be
cause Of the fact that the camp will be
slightly different from those on George s
farm. the corps members will have to
work little faster and a tribe harder
in order to be ready for the Guard.
which reaches Leesburg about noon
Thursday.
A company composed Of about fifty
men will leave Washington, either this
afternoon or tomorrow morning, under
the command of Lieutenant Grove. and
will perform the duties ordinarily al
lotted to the Engineer Corps. Because
Of the fact that the Engineer Corps was
disbanded by General Harries last win
ter II fell TO the the lot of Lieutenant
Grove and his men to lay out the camu
which is not materially changed from
last year or the year before.
Several other organizations of the
Guard, such as the commissary depart
ment and the ambulance corps will
leave Washington TO go to Leesburg be-
fore Thursday. The infantrymen are all
in readiness for the ten days outing. and
will be on hand bright and early Thurs
day morning.