The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1904-01-04

eyes pfaintively as Mr.. Highbid's train
passed, and that sterling American,
not entirely devoid of humanitarian in
stincts, had the train stop and back
to the place where the man was ly-
ing. With his own hands, Highbid
helped pull the man from the stream
and transfer him to the baggage car.
Upon the arrival of the train at Pana-'
ma, Highbid had the stricken soldier
victim of grossest cruelty-transfer-
red to a hospital; but relief and atten-
ton came too late, and the fellow
died that evening.
Conditions of Campaigning.
This is not an isolated case; rather
it is the common story, for the soldier
on the sthmus who goes into the field
must take his life IN his hands in more
ways than one. He may escape the
bullets of the enemy, but he can hard
ly hope to escape the cruelties and in
humanities of the military methods
which permit war to BE- made without
commissary departments or medical
corps. The man who from hunger or
fever, falls in his tracks, is absolutely
without hope of attention or relief
The army. whenever it goes into the
field, must expect to sleep at night on
the dank and swampy ground with no
tentage for its protection save that at
forded by the excessive vegetation, aud
no blanket except the -enfoldlng
miasmatic night mist, which drill into
his system the germs of yellow, per-
l1heious, dengue and enteric teVers,
and beri-beri. Under such clrcumstan-
ces as these it is not to be wondered
at that one hears here well-substan-
tiated stories of times when an army
of 700 men, or whereabouts, has gone
into the field for a few weeks cam
paigning against reVolutionists, and
| not more than 200 or 300 OF the orig
inal number ever returned to their
| homes.
In no place on the isthmus except in
the barracks in this city is there any
! thing in the entire army's organlza-
ton that bears a really martial air.
The barracks in this city are clean
| and we'll kent and the rations, which
| the men furnish for themselves by
| messes. are wholesome. In Colon the
small body of troops stationed in that
province is quartered in a barnllke
| structure formerly used by the Pan
! anna. Railroad as a passenger station,
! and in the other cities and towns i'll
! the republic the conditions surround
! ing them are neither sanitary nor mill
! itarv. 1t is, withal, a most uncom-
! nIandable organization; but, fortu-
nately for Panama, this military es-
! Establishment is slated for practical eX-
tinction.
To Disband the Army.
The other day an alleged plot to
! ASA ssinate Gen Huertas was discov-
cred. A number of officers and men
! were placed under arrest at the bar
racks and quartet in this city, and
| whisked away on the first train for
| Colon. Then they were transferred
| to an outward bound steamship and
| deported There was, as matter of
course, no plot to assassinate Gen.
| Huertas The story was made out OF
whole cloth to justify the military
authorities in Kidding the country OF
some officers and men whose allegiance
| to the new republic was open to ques-
| tion. The scheme worked we'll, but
the SEQUEL to it is found in the eX-
pressions now current in official and
| other circles.
These expressions find their true and
| full Interpretation in the Star and
| Herald, the local newspaper which is
the official organ of the new republic
In an editorial of some length the
! Star and Herald makes an emphatic
demand upon the new government for
the disarmament of the army, its ar
gument being that now the canal
| treaty has been ratified and American
| occupation of the vital parts of the
isthmus is assured, 1.-The army is en-
| tirely superfluous. 1t Will in the tu-
ture serve no purpose save that of
| a misunderstanding body, for in any
| future wars Panama may be called
upon to face the actual fighting will
be done by the soldiers and sailors of
| the United States
This expression, so boldly made, de-
scribes the exact sense of the govern
ment authorities. They feel that
American occupation of the canal zone
will relieve them of all necessity for
the maintenance of an army, and
| plan has already been formulated to
reduce the strength of the organiza-
ton until it shall number no more
than a respectable guard. The adj
vantages to be derived from this are
many. The first urgent need for an
army has passed; nobody here, ex-
cept some few rattle-brained Ameri-
| cans, expects to see any fighting with
Colombia, and by reducing the size
of the army the burden upon the fed
| eral treasury will be materially light
ened without in any way jeopardizing
isthmian interests, for the future fight
ing on this narrow strip will, accord
ing to popular expectations, be done
by the United States.