Los Angeles herald., 1909-09-30

tional guardsmen alike, in appointment
to staff work. Many men are appointed
for their social qualifications rather
than their energy, knowledge or in
terest in the work they are appointed
to do"
In closing, Captain Stopford recon-
mended that through the adjutant gem
erals "a progressive line of instruc-
tiOn be laid out for your subsistence
officers. l recommend that the militia
division of the general staff be called
upon to prescribe it. 1t should include
suggestions for the improvement of
the present cooking and baking ar
rangements in the field"
Captain Stopford, during the course
of his address, pointed out as indicat-
ing the efficiency of the commissary
department of the army, that during
the San Francisco fire of April, 1885,
zone little telegram of less than ten
words sent from Washington to Seat
tie put 350,000 complete rations along
side the Preside dock in fiftysiX
hours and, of more Importance, the re-
lief camps established by the army
dealing out food to every body involved
the establishment of forty-six kitchens
each under an army cook, distributed
to centers all over the city and sent
there before hunger had any opportun-
ity to work havoc on the remaining
strength of the public, probably did
as much as any one thing to prevent
the congested public developing into
disease camps"
Appeal for Hygiene
On the subject of military hygiene
and army sanitation, Captain Bevans
said:
THE supreme purpose of the army
is to gain the ends of the government
in war The army is not a sanitary or
ganization nor is it's purpose the pro-
motion of hygiene. There is within
the army, however medical corp, the
chief function of which is to investi
gate hygienic conditions and make
sanitary recommendations and, in the
field, initiate measures looking to the
promotion of health and the preven-
tion of disease.
THE line officer is close to the men
of the army and represents the con-
Meeting link between the source of hy-
gienc information and the body bene-
fitted by the signs.
THE real theme of my paper is the
line officers opportunities for practice
of sanitation In the national guard
strongly for the admission to the or
ganization of men who are physically
unfit A rigid physical examination
will avoid great waste of time, money
and energy when mobilization takes
place, and the national guard goes
through its transition into a volunteer
army.
Chance for Company Chief
at is in the personal hygiene of the
soldier that the line officer can do his
most effective work, a proper balance
between work and recreation, exercise
and rest is very important. Good air
and enough of it, proper ventilation,
avoidance of dust and dryness in living
rooms and the prohibition of promis
cuous splitting, and all points in favor
of a reduction of cases of respiratory
disease. The interest of company COM
mander is necessary in maintaining
cleanliness of the body, the clothes and
the bedding. The maintenance of per-
feet cleanliness perhaps best expresses
the essence of personal hygiene
Army regulations place the control
of the company mess almost exclusively
in the hands of the company COM
mander, and thus because of the sery-
ing of good, nutritious, attractive food
is OF such vital Importance. The in
fiuence of a good mess is felt at sick
call Immediately. 1t reduces desertions
and alcoholism and raises the standard
Of efficiency.
THE hygiene of moving troops is Of
special interest to the national guard
officer. Neglect of it may bring dis
aster to the army and epidemics to the
surrounding friendly country or to the
troops to follow.
wherever the camp may be, it
should be clean when entered, clean
during its occupancy and clean when
it is abandoned.
Should Start Clean
IAN army leaving home for active
service is apt to meet its first and most
formidable enemy at the mobilization
camp. Before leaving the armory a
searching observation of the men
should be made by the surgeon so that
they may arrive at the mobilization
camp in the best possible state to resist
disease and endure the new strain they
are about to meet.
S'The value of systematic drill in in
creasing military efficiency and the
power to act creditably in times Of
stress is recognized by every authority,
and it is the same in regard to the
establishment of sanitary efficiency.
The man who can avoid disease in him
self and others during a campaign is
no more easily produced than the sea-
soned fighter
"By constant example and well con-
cieved instruction, fixed habits must be
established, and this in the armories Of
the national guard and maneuver
camps. The mobilization camp, when
war is threatening, is the place to prac-
tice hygiene and not to lessen 1t. 1t is
the battlefield Of sanitation where men
die from sanitary errors, and not tho
recruit rendezvous where drills can be
| begun.
when the officer of the line realizes
his manifold opportunities and great
| Importance in preventative medicine,
army sanitation will have reached it's
proper place in military science"
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