Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-06-26
UNCLESAM SLOW
WITH EQUIPMENT
Guard Must Do Its "Bit" of
Watchful Waiting as
Result
[From a Stan Correspondent.1


Camp Brumbaugh, Mt. Gretna, Pa,
June 25. - Pennsylvania's National .
Guardsmen are doing their "bit" of
watchful waiting now. They have
been awaiting the shipment of tents
and rifles and other things from the
United States army's big storehouses
IN Philadelphia to take care of the
men ordered by the Washington off,
GERS over and above what the State of
pennsylvania was required to provide
Tor and now they are waiting the COM
| ing of the recruits who have been or
/ uered into camp to take their places
before the medical officers But above
all they are watchfully. watching their
officers for word that will start them
OF to the border.
This morning medical examinations
began and the men stood in line and
waited there, too, and next they will
wait to be mustered in and then they
VIII wait orders 1t is a waiting camp.
incidentally your Uncle Samuel is to
blame for some of the waiting. The
units whose recent civilian officers
hustled about to recruit to war
strength as reqpired by the orders from
| Washington would have been able to
come here with 100 or maybe $50 in
some cases If the United States army
people had provided the tentage and
other things. AS it is they have had
to wait for that.
Stewart System Stands
! The Pennsylvania National Guard
organizations called into camp, includ-
ing those veteran members of the staff
whose duties will end on July l, as
forecast in Washington dispatches
came here with the tentage and equip
ment that was required of the Key
stone State. Even men who knew that
! tn hn only a
turned up equipped for year. The
system of equipping the organizations
outlined by Adjutant General Thomas
j.. Stewart when the very last federal
requirements went into effect worked
out and the system stands.
/ 1t might be stated here that the
/ regular army officers are now follow
/ ing a suggestion of General Stewart
made back in 1898. In the rainy days
of Camp Hastings the War department
sent there medical officers here to ham
die all the physical examinations.
General Stewart saw that it would take
months to get all the men examined
and ready for muster so he suggested
that Uncle Sam take the Pennsylvania
medical officers into his service and
have them do the examining, thought
/ fully suggesting that those from West
/ ern Pennsylvania examine those from
/ the east and so on. Yesterday the
medical officers were all examined
themselves and put into federal SER
vice ready for the task of examining
/ the men which began this morning.
General Stewart is the only adjutant
general who served through the Span
ish war who is in the harness to-day.
And, in the language of an officer to-
| day its q good thing" Only he put
/ in some adjectives in remarking upon
/ the value of the experience of : the
white haired veteran who has the hot
test office in the whole State Capitol
Won't Wait For Full Units =
The United States army officers will
not wait for any full units before mus
tering in organizations. II they get a
regiment fairly complete, passed phy-'
sically and property transferred the
speed with which Captain j. B. KEN
per, senior mastering officer, will have
the men take the oath will be worth
watching. And chances are that there
will be action in that line before
night
The recruits which were ordered in
from home stations to this camp
where the sun shines hot when it
shines will have to come the way they
are sent. If Uncle Sam sends enough
uniforms and rifles and other things,
including blankets, they will be equip
ped right away and given a place to
sleep. The blanket difficulty appears
to have been passed. There were
some reports that blankets which had
been intended for the Pennsylvania
and New Jersey reserve had been sent
to Plattsburg, but the Guardsmen have
hopes that they will arrive in time for
the rockies" If they do not there
around for covering. Comradeship de-
Vplons DrettV fast here. A, Il, HI,