The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-07-19
General view of Camp Whitman. ten miles from Pough-
keepsie, N. Y.
$500 New York State Troops Get Down to Business
Under Critical Eyes of Gen. Organ and
Regular Army Inspectors.

PouGHKEEpsIE. y. v. July IS
Major-cicn. John +. Organ tilted back
his amp chair in front OF his quarters
at Camp Whitman this afternoon and
glanced with satisfaction at the or
derby array OF horse, foot and guns
coralled. tented and parked on the wide
broken plain.
The infantry. cavalry. batteries and
auxiliary corps of the First Brigade
ct the New York National Guard had
just set up housekeeping for the week be-
fore them of hard practice under real
service conditions. and the spectacle of
their fitness and efficiency was very
agreeable to the man who Is working
with tremendous energy to bring tho
suardsmen of this State up to regular
army standards.
The great camp SO suddenly and
smoothly come into being back amons
the hills of Duchess county. ten miles
from Poughkeeps,e. was extraordinarily
impressive to a civilian observer. The
brown tents of the regiments the Sew
cnth. the Sixty-ninth, the Twelfth and
Seventy-irst of the Second Field Artil-
lery, Of Squadron a, OF the Twenty-sec-
end Corps OF Engineers, of the signal
battalion. the Pioneers. the hospital
street after street. Wagons and auto
mobile trucks laboring over the dir,
roads which web the encampment
ground We're raising clouds of fine
Gust which hung in the still air and
settled very slowly. II was hot-ioO
degrees in the sun. at least. and you
could see the heat CULVER as you looked
southwark.
No ..Icc Cream" s%Oidicring.
Most of the command of $500 young
soldiers were resting after their ,bors
In getting the ami ready for business.
Baseball games were iiourlshing in the
! level spaces. Perhaps 1000 visitors,
many of them women. the mothers. sis
tiers or sweethearts of the guardsmen.
were scattered over the plain satisfying
their curiosity about the machinery of
Il military camp and very eager to know
hat their particular soldier lad was
comfortable and getting enough to eat.
Gen. organ, observing all OF thes,
things. and the temporary picnicky
aspect of Camp Whitman, smiled
slightly and turned to his visitor.
Speaking IS one who knows" he
said. there will lie no ice cream sol
uiering about this camp after to-day.
All of the practical military knowledge
that can Toe into these lads IN
one week Will lie crammed into them. 1t
will be work, hard work but | believe
that every man here prefers to be "A real
soldier rather han a dressed up make
believe. II there's anything ! abominate
1t is ice cream soldering.
Yesterday of course we marched In
and have been extremely busy ever
since getting the camp ready and the
machinery organized. This morning
there were the usual drills and to-mor.
row there will be practice by all units
in extended order attack. On Tuesday
we will be ready to work out the first
large problem.
Brig. ten. George r. Dyer. command
ing the First Brigade. will be assigned
To command the Blue defending army.
and Col. j. 4. Dickman Of the Second
Cavalry, L. :, A., will command tile
led invading army.
Red Army Reported Advancing.
WORD will have reached Gen. Dyer
here that the Red army is moving In
great iorct from new iorH ana mat us
advance mas penetrated to Ftshkill
l.dhdlhg lien. Dyer, commanding a
lneof'tlcai uiVlsioh OF -2,oVo men, with
aoout ',ooo horscs' VIII attempt u nahk-
,ns movement 10 cut OF u crush the
Red force, He will march his com
mand. consisting of all the troops in
camp except the Sixty-ninth Regiment.
- battalion of tn. Thiftieth United
States infantry and "A squadron of the
Second United States cavalry. along two
roads until the advance reaches Sprou,
Creek.
Then 4 situation will develop which
Will try the mettle of the Blue troops,
Spr"ut Creek Is eighty feet wide and
Tour to twelve ieet deep. There is n
bridge over II, but that bridge has been
destroyed theoretically Dyer must get
ms men across the creek II to do II
he must ouiid ms own bridges IN snort