The Sauk Centre herald. (Sauk Centre, Stearns County, Minn.) 1886-current, 1910-10-20
DOING HIS DUTY
Each Member Of Hospital Corps
is Busy All the Time
WITH FIRE SUFFERERS
Lieut.. Lamb and Five Priyates From
Sank Centre Fxerting Them
selves at Beaudette

The Herald is in receipt of letter
from DR.. II. L. Lamb, First Lieute-
nent in the Third Regiment, M. N.
g.. and attached to the medical corps,
who left here last week for Beaudette
with five privates of the hospital
corps of the regiment, to do duty at
Beaudette, among the sufferers there
from the recent forest fires in northern
Minnesota.
Lieut.. Lamb and corps arrived at
Beaudette Friday and that evening
occupied their tents, which were at
once made ready for them. Lieut..
Lamb says: eve are living comfort
ably in conical Sibley tents having tar
paper carpets and stOve.'
Referring to the relief work he
writes: "Major Clark has charge of
the general sanitary administration,
aided by three experts from the state
board. have charge of the camp
and all the medical work among
the regiment and refugees; keeps me
pretty busy. My boys are doing great
work. They have much responsibility
placed upon them. They are direct
ing details of the sanitation work in
camp. The danger of epidemic is
greatly exaggerated. The m O S
minute and scientific caution is taken.
DR.. Bicknell, national director of the
Red Cross, is here and says the situa-
ton has been handled better than
any he has seen, and had the militia
not taken charge it would have been
awful. We are getting the situation
ready to turn over to the local
authorities and will be out of here as
soon as possible.
Armed guards patrol the ruins
with orders to shoot any vandals.
One night the guard at the bank OF
the river heard something and chal.
lenged. Hearing no reply he fired and
got his game, but it was only dog.
So you see yeggman would stand no
show"
Speaking of the fire situation and
supplies DR.. Lamb says: 'This dis
aster is worse than can be imagined.
Fire came at s p. M, seeming to come
in a big cloud from all directions.
Fifteen hundred people were taken
across the river in box cars in fifteen
minutes, escaping with nothing but
the clothes on their backs. The town
is absolutely fiat, nothing except iron
work left.
General Wood came in and estab-
liShed martial law. Part of the Third
infantry is in camp on the school
house grounds n d h a absolute
charge. All civilians are stopped re-
CARELESS of who they are and set to
work under armed soldiers. The mil
itary is clearing up and establishing
sanitary conditions and securing the
country for.the dead. The most hor-
rible conditions exist. Col. Resche
and Red Cross men are distributing
supplies. We have fifteen carloads
Many are living in tents and we are
feeding them"
IN CAMP, BAUDETTE, MINI,
Oct. 15-Dear Mother: We arrived
here yesterday evening and found
everything ready for us. We are the
only hospital chappies here, except
the Red Cross, and we have the health
of the whole camp and town under
our control.
They were mighty glad to get us,
it seems, for the General called on us
last night and had our tents put up.
They put tar paper on the floors and
gave us spring cots for sleeping.
But talk about your desolate country
there isn't enough left of the towns
about here to talk about. The troops
are camping where the school house
was, and you would think it had al
ways been prairie. The ground about
here is about three feet deep with
ashes and dead horses and cattle, to
say nothing of people. They are just
beginning to find them. 1t is worse
than the papers give it.
The fire is out now but we expect
tO no here for at least fbroo uooLc
and maybe longer. heard the Gen
eral tell the doctor that if it got too
cold here he would have board floors
put in the tents, and then we could
bank the snow up around the outside
of the tents. No snow yet. The
tents are large enough for six cots all
round with stove in the center. The