The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-03-12
By Leased Wire to The Tribune.

SAN ANTONIO, Texas, March IL.
An army almost equal in numbers to
the force that followed General Win
field Scott into the City Of Mexico on
the fourteenth OF September, lS47, is
in camp tonight on the plain of San
Antonio, adjoining the reservation of
Fort Sam Houston. Major General
William II Carter, chief of the of
fcially designated FManeuver divis.
ion' of the United States army, is in
command
Late tomorrow night, FIVE days after
the issuance of the unheralded order,
the forces of demonstration or pacif
cation will have been assembled almost
IN their entire strength, stretched
along the Mexican bordcr-or within
striking distance, from Galveston to
San Diego.
Major General Wood, chief of staff
Is coming TO the camp at Fort Sam
Houston next week The date of his
arrival is not officially announced here
He IS expected Tuesday or Wednes-
day.
News of his coming passed from
mouth TO mouth among the higher of
licIals today and served only to com
among army men.
An entire trainload of pontoons COM
ing with the engineer corps from Fort
Leavenworth, Kansas, excited comment
all along its thousand mile Journey.
Thrtythree fat cars brought this
vast amount of impedimenta for use
at 'maneuyers in tho country which
has no streams across which man can
not walk. San Antonians, loath to ad-
nit that their country has any faults,
remarked when they saw this unusual
caravan that there is not a stream this
side of the Rio Grande that has not
been so dry from the long drouth that
it could not be bridged completely by
single one of the big scows. which
are carried on poDtoon wagons, ono
wagon and pontoon a ear. The Rio
Grande can be crossed on foot now
Soldiers Are Excited
Frankly speaking among themselves,
the men in khaki do not know why
they are here. More cagerly than civil
ians they scan the dispatches for some
inkling of the real purpose of the
mobilization. They believe that Major
General Carter and some Of tho staff
know. He inspected the camp ground
this morning soon after his arrival.
Tired by his long trip, unbroken for
two nights and day, he rested all
afternoon in the residence of the de-
-artment commander, General Duncan,
and announced that he did not wish to
see the newspaper correspondents who
are here in numbers sufficient to muster
an insurrecto colonelis command.
Officers and men alike believe they
are here for an indefinite stay. They
refer only officially to this us the
maneuvers division.' Not once in
conversation has an army man been
heard to speak the word "maneuver
today. The weight of ninety bullets in
has cartridge belt does not spell maneu-
yer to the enlisted man.
Tho consensus of opinion among of
tIcers and men IS that they are due
for field service until Mexico is paci-
fled, be that fortnight or year. The
faith of those who took unquestionably
the announcement of "maneuvers
was shaken today by the news that Col,
Glen. chief guartemraster of the de-
partment of Texas, has received orders
to procure supplies sufficient for TO-
OO0 men for four months.
Some Rush Orders.
\ telegraph order to rush another
a,nsaha aeTopla5ne az ,.lt here to replace the one
Grande and orders for large supplies of
typhoid antitoxin were additional
straws pointing with the possible cur
rent Of events as anticipated at Wash
Ington. At any rate they are so taken
by the encampment Of soldiers specu-
latlng on what the next few weeks
mean for them. The railroads have
arisen to the occasion, and there being
no floods in the great rivers of the
southwest, have moved the miles and
miles. of army trains with expedition
that has surprised even the Officers in
command, TO date there has been re.
ported only one accident of consequence
the burning of eight horses of the sig,
nal corps at Durant, Okla, where hot.
box set fire TO car.
Unloading facilities are excellent. A
loop and eight spurs afford trackage
for 600 cars. Detraining has been IN
progress since daylight and is going
on tonight. Trains Of soldiers. horses
and freight are arriving hourly over
the Katy the International 6 Great
Northern and Southern Pacific. Gen
orally cars were furnished by the rail.
roads within twenty-four hours after
requests were made by the government,
and the regiments were ready to en-
train long before cars were available