New-York tribune., 1916-07-13
Bliss Too Late to Find
NeW York Men SUFFERING
Guardsmen Now Comfortable and Well Equipped-Blamc
tor Past Hardshps Put on Swivel Chair
Powers Back Home

man, inc captain commented. That's
only a few hours from New York isn't
II? Why couldn't they have been
brought to the city when doubt arose
about all the troops going to the mo-
bilization camp before they started
down here!"
Travel Rations Good.
Decrcpit though they were as rolling
stock. the troop trains carried plenty
OF substantial food-the regular travel
ing rations of the army TO keep the
men in good condition on the way
true, 1t was not an extensive menu
the government offered to men used to
city restaurants and to eating we'll mt
home. But there was soft bread, hard
tack, canned corned beef, canned corned
beef hash, beans, tomatoes. jam, coffee,
sugar and evaporated milk for every
man, Of excellent quality and in more
than sufficient quantity.
That much the government was re-
sponsible for, and that much the gov
ernment provided. Over the use made
of the food by company commissares
only the guard commissary officers
themselves had control. The officers
mess was the officers own affair. On
most of the troop trains the officers
made no attempt to organize a mess,
contenting themselves with telegraph
ing ahead to railroad restaurants and
holding up the whole movement while
they ate.
Very few of the National Guard trains
were equipped with kitchen cars. After
couple of days of cold ratons vari-
Gus companies bought oil stoves or re-
sorted to other makeshift methods Of
heating their food. The lack of kitchen
cars may be put up squarely to the
regimental quartermasters.
Give me half an hour, freight car
and a field kitchen equipment" said
that trained supply officer, Captain
Aloe, "and will have you as fine a
kitchen car as you want, ready to put
up as good a meal as you can buy. All
else that's necessary is some dirt and a
few bricks to build a foundation for
the stoves"
Supplied with Ammunition.
Take the question of ammunition.
Some irresponsible reports have gotten
to New York that the Guard came into
hostile territory without a cartridge
to defend themselves with. Those re-
ports, which come boomerangng back
to US, are untrue. OF all the command
now here only the 14th Infantry of
Brooklyn came without filled cartridge
belts. Each man Of the 7th, list and
18th regiments carried a hundred
rounds with him, ready for instant
use. And the 14th, at that, had a SINH
lar supply in freight car.
Army regulations, strictly inter
preted, require that each man shall
have 220 rounds, but there was no ne
cessity In the country through which
the troops passed that the rule should
be literally followed. Once here, the
men are within a few hours Of the
great Federal ammunition stores at
Harlingen.
One hundred thousand rations-one
hundred thousand man-sized meals.
were awaiting at McAllen, Mission and
Pharr when the troops arrived. and
more rations have been pouring in
daily. There are garrison rations, IN
ing powder, beans, rice, potatoes,
onions, tomatoes, prunes, jam. evap-
GRATED apples, evaporated peaches
coffee. sugar, evaporated milk, vinegar,
salt, pepper, pickles, cinnamon, lard,
lard substitute, butter. syrup and
lemon favoring extract. Delmonico's
offers bigger assortment, maybe.
but I'VE are in the army NOW"
The men have been complaining
some of them-because they have been
forced TO spend company funds for
extras. That, although company funds
in the guard may be spent for the
other things, is what the company
funds of the army are for. And the
funds are swelled whenever purchase
of articles not on the government bill
Of fare enables the men to get along
without something or other that Uncle
Sam offers.
Barring the heavy uniforms and the
announcement ammunition shortage,
the equipment of the men was practi-
cally complete when they started from
New York. and is almost entirely so
now. And their general health is as