Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-03-08
0FFFORSAN ANTONIO
Departure of Three Batteries
From Fort Myer.
TAKE PART IN WAR GAME
Over Fifty Cars Needed to Garry the
Commands.
SIXTY-HOUR RIDE LIES AHEAD
Battery D Proceeds Through City to
the Union Station, But Other Com
mands Entrain at Rosslyn.

Three batteries of the Sd Field Artil-
lery, u s. A., have left Fort Myer, and
within sixty hours after the cars start
this afternoon will be at San Antonio,
Tex. Their leaving Fort Myer this morn
| Ing gave Washington a thrill, as the
| actual sight of an active part in great
mobilization of troops was offered to
thousands Of people.
| Fifty or more cars and three long trains
| had been furnished by the railroads, and
| all spesd possible has been urged upon
| railroad men all the way along the lines
| to the objective point.
| Batteries E and F entrained at the
Pennsylvania freight yards in Rosslyn,
and Battery D at the Union station.
| OF great historic interest to those who
| watched the departing troops was Bat
terry D. This famous organization. now
under command Of Capt. Willard New
| bill, has for it's own special bit of pride
| the fact that it was the first organization
| to enter the City Of Mexico in the war
between the United States and that
| country.
| The men of Battery D all knew of
the record of their organization and not
a few of them spoke of it as they loafed
! In the snow this morning waiting for
troop cars. box cars and flats to back
The War Department has urged speed
on the railroads. The officers of the
| three batteries urged speed on the men
this morning. The men themselves had
the freshly QUILTED look that goes with
the start of a long campaign, or a long
war game.
Parade Through City.
Battery D. originally scheduled to leave
from Virginia avenue and AZ street
southwest, was sent to the Union station,
and as horses and men and guns and
wagons filed through the downtown sec
ton of the city, thousands of men and
women. who have seen Fort Myers artil-
lery q hundred times with little or no
comment, rushed to windows and stopped
work to see this historic battery go by. :,
From Fort Myer the wagons carried
huge loads Of ammunition. which stuck
| out at open ends Of wagons with the label
| plainly showing that 1t was real shrap-
| mel and not merely fireworks. Great
wagons of hay for the horses and mules
| in transit were sent over the railroad,
and kindling wood and much-worn camp
cooking outfits gave the departure solid,
! real campaign sort of look.
The artilerymen looked lean and brown
| this morning, and the revolvers tucked in
holsters. and dangling careless rawhide
| thong looked well enough like war Mules
| and gun carriages, limberS, escort wag-
| ons. ambulances, harness. tentage, rusty
| looking camp baking outfits, cooks sup
plies wood and hay for the batteries
| were all loaded on tremendous train
| furnished by the Southern road.
The first section on the Pennsylvania
was composed of tourist kitchen car,
| two tourist sleepers, three box cars, five
1 fiat cars, two gOndoid cars ana SIX Stdhu-
| ard stock cars.
| The second section had tourist Kitchen
car, two tourist sleepers, sixty-foot bag
gage car that was loaded ITO the limit,
three box cars, flve nat cars RS a sonoo.a
train carrying Battery d was similar 10
these other trains.
Entraining at Rosslyn.
! At the Rosslyn freight yards big
crowd had gathered by 8 o'clock this
morning to see the soldiers entrain
Prominent among those who came to
see the regulars off was Lieut.. Gen.
Nelson A. Miles. retired. Sherman
Miles. his son, is first lieutenant in F
Battery Lieut.. Miles was on hand early
at the Rosslyn freight yards and super
intended the loading of the forage and
stable supplies in box cars. His father
was with him. He watched the loading
| of the field guns and horses Win the
ewes of a critic, but volunteered no
advice to the younger and active ofh-
GERS. $50. ,.v. ,,,+,,;, -
say about the movement of the troops
| SOUTH" he said. It's all been explained
in the papers. This work here is being
done admirably"
Loading the Guns.
| The guns were loaded on fiat cars.
Each piece was unlimbered from its car
riage and the two run on the car with
the wheels turned toward the car coup
| lers. Two guns, two gun carriages and
a caisson were loaded on one orty-foot
car. The wheels were then chucked with
heavy oak blocks and nailed to the car
| floor
AS further security against slipping.
each piece was dashed with ropes to the
| steel sockets on the sides of the cars. The
| whole was then covered with a tarpaulin.
| The guns. gun carriages and caissons
| were run from the street on the cars over
a heavy plank platform. Four cars were
| required to load the gun and caisson
| equipment of each battery.
| The field wagons and other heavy equip
| ment were loaded in the same way, the
| wheels being locked and dashed to the car
| sides. The horses were run over a stock
| loading plank into the stock cars and
| hitched with q short halter line.
| The animals were loaded about twenty
| to twenty-five to a car without unneces-
1 nd ~