The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-01-04
ARMY AND NAVY OF THE
PANAMA REPUBLIC
The Like of the Army Nowhere to Be Fouod
BY MERRILL A. TEAGIJE.
Special Correspondent of the MORNING. Nou.s

| lost his right arm during the last rev-
| olutlon, and now wears CORP snrli-
! ance where his arm should he. b,,+
TINS physical deficiency does not nre-
| vent MIN from appearing as a COR
| dress uniform. '9 Oi'
In his ignorance of military forms
| and usages and the art of var CO..
| Huertas is on a plane with all the 9TH
OF ofhcers of this remarkable army.
| zen. Domingo Diaz, division COM
| mahuer, is not better equipped to di-
I rect military operations than is Huer-
tas, and the whole army reflects the
] Weaknesses Of its commanders. If k
I practlcally undrilled and undisciplined
| Lie IN the barracks is like a holiday
and the organization of the establish
ment is ridiculous in it's shortcomings.
| Under the Colombian regime these
troops were paid 81 day in Colon
bian silver. The republic has won
| great favor in their eyes because it
| has increased the pay to 81 a day.
| with this wage the men are required
| to provide their own rations, the gov
| eminent being supposed to furnish
| them with their uniforms and arms.
Informing the Troops.
How well the government does its
| work in the matter OF furnishing uni
forms was very forcibly demonstrated
| the other day. As a rule the soldiers
| are barefooted, but a herculean effort
| is being made to provide them with
| shoes and the other accessories of a
complete outfit. Every little tailor
| shop in Panama is busy making
! blouses and trousers, but with shoes
it is different proposition-they have
! to be purchased ready-made.
l happened into one of the leading
stores of Panama a day or so ago,
| and found in the rear of the room
| six soldiers in command of a cor
i poral. They had come up from the
! quartet to be fitted with shoes. Bare
! footed they had marched up through
the mud The store furnished one
! sock, and soldier No. l began the try
| ing-on process. He slipped the sock
| on his foot and after one or two trials
| got pair of shoes that gave promise
| of fitting. He then removed his sock,
| passed it on to soldier No. 2 and Slip
| ped his sockless foot into the shoes.
| Soldier No. 2 used the sock while try
! ing on his shoes, and when he got
! pair that fitted, his bare feet went
/ into them, while the sock was passed
on to soldier No. 3; and so it went
until the six men had been shod, the
| one sock furnished by the store doing
! duty for the six men. To furnish
socks is evidently not a part of the
governments business: nor would it
| please the soldiers should it furnish
| these articles of apparel, for except
| when on parade, they cannot be in
| duced to wear shoes
Soldiers Are Inveternte Gamblers.
The barracks occupied by these men
are not used to any extent as Sleep
| ing quarters. all save the guard for
| the night being released at shutdown
| They spend their nights as they please,
it being their usual custom to gather
in the various gambling houses and
risk their little stores of money on the
games of chance which are run open
! ly by the holders of the gambling con-
| cession. lust now money is easy
among the officers of the Colombian
| battalion, for they have not succeeded
| in separating themselves as yet from
| the whole of the houses paid them
when the republic was established. In
! consequence the play is high, It be-
ing no uncommon thing to see officers
risking $500 to $500 on one turn of the
| roulette wheel.
| II wonderment is expressed by the
| stranger to the croupier over the play
| of any single individual, it is an odds
| on wager that the croupier will an
| swer. ooh. he is a soldier who was
! bought in by the republic" That eX-
plains the source whence flows the
| abundant supplies of monkey money"
as Colombian silver is collOquially call
| ed, which soldiers of the republic
nightly bring with them to the Gamb-
! ling houses. The government officials
are powerless to stop this dissipation
| among the officers and men of the
| army. for after shutdown these soldiers
are free.
To relieve the republic Of the odlum
| Of a gambling soldiery, the government
has Just caused to be posted in all OF
| the gambling houses conspicuous no
| tees ordering the operators of the game
| to decline to permit soldiers in uni
| form to play. Before these notices
were posted colonies and generals
| crowded about the tables, arrayed in
| their fatigue uniforms. their swords
| and sidearms gathering as they moved
about. making the spectacle anything
hut a testimonial to the morale OF the
! arnnv.
A CaIIOuc sOiiieTy.
In this army there is to be found the
| same callousness and hard-heartedness
! discoyerabe upon every hand IN TINS
| country. Local cabmen will drive their
mites of ponies until they fall exhaust
| ed in the streets dogs are beaten 70
| death upon the slightest proVocatloll,
| and all other cruelties are practlced
| ed libitum, for among the masses OF
this people there are no humanitarian
sentiments. ,.
The same thing pervades the army
This establishment is without either
| conor,issary or a medical corps. Inc
| soldiers must feed themselves out OF
! their nav, and if in times or active
Communicating soldier is without
means of subsistence, he must take
the consequences. He can grub among
the roots for yuccas or yanls' put
should he fail to find these ne may
starve, If. on the march, ne drops
from exhaustion, he may lie down anu all
lie for no other soldier VIII stop Ior
q moment to give him assistance OF
relief. 80 r,adical
staff ever went into the held Win tu's
army. A wounded man must succol
himself. unless he is so fortunate do
70 he shot by one of his olicers OF
comrades, who very patrlotlcally laNe
This means of relieving the cause Vi
on incumbrance. The dead are never
buried. unless it is tossing the pooy III.
10 some stream, later TO nave ~
thrown I'D on the bank Where Or
waiting myriads of turkey puzzafus'
eager to devour the carcass
An Incident of "a Campaign
one incident related by j. S. High
hid roadmaster of the Panama RAJ
'aod and fully authenticated by Dr.
paodaU the railroad company pny-
Itoian will serve to illustrate the COM
,,,o,, war practices of this army.