Omaha daily bee., 1908-08-02
PREPARE BIG MILITARY CAMP
Eleven Thousand Men VIII Visit Fort
Riley in August.
MODERN EQUIPMENT THROUGHOUT
Mnitiamen OF Kansas, Oklahoma, MIS-
souri,, sOuth Dakota and Iowa
WIN Attend at DiRer-
emit Times. e

FORT RILEY, Kan, August L-Cspe-
preparation Of the big maneuver
and Instruction camp on this reservation
Is being pushed every day in the week by
a large force OF mechanics and laborers,
and at the present rate everything win be
In readiness for the reception Of the II. 1000
odd officers and enlisted men, both reg
ulsrs and national suardsmen. who will
be here next month.
Major Thomas Cruise, qu"artermaster's
department. ordered here from Boston, is
in charge Of this work, with First Lieu
tenant Gilbert c. Smith, Second cavalry
and second Lieutenant Lewis Brown, jr.
Seventh cavalry, as assistants.
About fifty carpenters are employed In
the building of almost 200 bath houses and
l%etriLes. Til cost OF this work alone will
aggregate In the nelghbrhood Of 10000.
An incinerator for the burning Of refuse
and garbage has been contracted for and
viii be in place before the troops put In
an appearance. Every precaution known
to modern military science is being taken
to make the Immense camp as sanitary as
possible.
AS there will be in the ~neighborhood of
5000 animals In ~camp-horse and mules.
their watering twice daily will be no small
task. To facilitate thiA and in the inter
est of veterinary hygiene metal troughs
have been contracted for to replace the
old wooden idea. A total Of sixty-five,
circular in shape, similar to a stock tank
have been ~received and will be put in
place.
To feed these animals will require about
100000 pounds OF hay. or 1000 tons Of hay.
A gang of men is stacking up this hay in
hugh piles ready for use, close by the field
quartermaster's depot, which is located
near the many side tracks where troops,
horses and supplies will be detralned. It
Is at this point that Major Cruise has
already established his headquarters and
where a force of clerks is busy at all hours.
A Union Pacific rainmaster from Kansas
City has arrived on the scene, his head
quarters have been established and from
now until the close OF the maneuvers he
will direct the handling of the hundreds Of
cars, passenger. freight and stock.
The entire plan Of the camp has been
arranged and as soon as troops arrive they
will be assigned locations, supplies of all
sorts will be issued and confusion will be
a thing unknown. The signal crops is
already running its field telephone lines
and as soon as the headquarters of the
. observation-disclosures II tSAdDllsHbu IOl-
lowing their arrivals. telephones will be
installed and within a few minutes time
they will be In communication with the
headquarters of the commanding general.
The water system that has been in use for
previous e~ncampments. has been extended
several hundred. to the in
creased number OF troops to be assembled
and there will be a standpipe for every
company detachment and headquarters.
A new departure will be the establishing
Of field bakeries for the baking of bread
which will be supplied on the ground to the
entire camp. This task viii be a huge one,
and shifts will be running night and day to
keep up the supply. Under the direction OF
the students in the bakers and cooks school,
the enlisted men of the state organizations
will be instructed in baking and cooking
In the field. Supplies, other than those
Furnished In the regular army ration, which,
by the way, Is very liberal, 1t having been
changed for the better since May l. will be
sold at two large sales departments, under
the direction OF the commissary.
Bach regiment will have a dispensary
for the distribution of medicines and fol-
the treatment of minor cases. A large dt.
vision hospital will treat more serious
cases. Those cases that require more care.
full attention will be cared for at the larg,
post hospital which will be considered as &
base.
The engineer corps will arrive with a full
pontoon train and the Kaw will be spanneC
by a bridge before the combined field man
euvers commence.
General Kerr's -headguarters will be
camp in itself. It will be peopled by hi
staff which win include about twenty of
ficers, a large force OF umpires and observ
ers and visiting officers. 1t is expected tina
several military attaches will be here a
different periods.
All OF the regular troops will arrive II
camp, some by train and some by march
ing on August g. On August 10, the Kan
sas troops arrive and remain until Angus
10. Or August 20 the Oklahoma and Mis-
souri, contigents put in their appearance
These troops will entrain for home Angus
70. On September l the Iowa and Soutl
Dakota troops arrive and remain unit
September o
Batteries b and d Of the Sixth Field ar
tillery, are on a practice march with thei
objective point, Beatrice. Neb. Battery I
left the post Saturday and Battery B lef
MoEday, both going over the same route
On the northwest journey camps will b
made at Hanover and O'Neil in Nebraska
before their destination is reached. A sta.
Of two days will be made in Beatrice. Tn
daily average for the entire march will b
eighteen and a quarter miles. on the re
turn journey, the batteries will go by wa.
Of wymore ard Marysville. The tota
march will cover 255 miles.
On September IL. following the close o
the maneuvers, three batteries of the sam
regiment will march over the same route
arriving at Beatrice, September 10. where
stop Of two days will be made.
All OF the organizations have some fas
ball teams, and as camp is general,
reached by noon or shortly after that hour
ball games will doubtless be played wit
the local teams along the line OF march.