The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1917-12-28
HEALTH CONDITION
OF CAMPS NOT GOOD
Charges BY Surgeon General
GOrgas Result In lnvestiga-
ton Staged BY Senate

WASHINGTON, December 26-(As-
sociated Press)-The senate military
affairs committee today listened to
testimony as to conditions in Camps
wadsworth and Bowie r. .,.
This committee investigation grows
.from. CHANGES arnade By. the surgeon gen
oral which are told of in newspapers
just received from the mainland but
of which no wireless or cable messages
were received here.
The article printed under the date of
Washington, December Is, saysh
Sensational charges Of unsanitary
conditions at army, training camps ny
Surgeon General William @. GOrgas
were made public tonight by Secretary
of War Baker. - s =
Copies of the reports made to the
chief Of staff by General GOrgas on con
ditions at four of the camps were
given out: They are: Funston, Kan;
Sewer, s. c.; Doniphan, Okla, and
Bowie, Tex. They allege:
Excessive deaths at the camps due
to overcrowding.
Failure Of winter clothing to arrive
|. Location of camps In infectious ter
ritories,
Inadequate and incomplete hospital
facilities.
Pneumonia, meningitis, measles and
mumps cause many deaths.
Reason for Sickness
1t is the first time official admis
sion has been made that the death
rate is excessive. Blame is placed OF
the failure of the War Department
mac hinery to provide adequate accom-
M odations.
Oyercrowding is in every case blamed
, for The extensive sickness, Men wer'
placed ten and twelve in a tent, allow
ing only twenty cubic feet of air space
per man, when the proper space should
| have been much larger, with only hv'
men to a tent.
| In each Of the camps there was NJ
attempt to quarantine new arrivals un
til they had been proven free from in
| fictitious diseases. This, General Cor
gas intimates, was unavoidable whel
as many as $4,000 men were poureC
into camp In a few days.
Detention Camps ....
He recommends the immediate es
tablishment of detention and separa
ton camps for the sick men, issue o
tents until there are but five men I
! each, rushing warm wooden clothing an
careful examination of every con
mand before II leaves the camp, wher
il has been infected. n...t
| OF Camp Funston, General Gorga
said: ,.. -
~ call attention to the fact tina
they had "a deaths lin the last month
when the normal death rate of such
command should be about twelve"
This part of the country, Genera
Gorgas says, has been well known q
u center Of epidemic meningitis to a
health officers for years. Yet, tn
camp was built in the river bottom
where storms of dust blow about til
streets. To the dust and the Grove
ing he attributes the excessive pnu,
mOnia rate. The men had no wintC
clothing and no heat in the barraek
OF Camp Sewer he says;
"Sanitary conditions here are ser
Gus. Sixty men have died of pnu
mOnia within the past month";
: ~ am Informed that shipments {
winter clothing are coming in rapid
and issued to the men as fast as r
ceiyed, "'says General Gorgas. "Fro
personal observation, however, fin
I that many men are still wearing the
5 cotton khaki clothing" This repo
. was dated December II.
!. AL overcrowding
5 At Camp Bowie the same prevalen,
: Of diseases due TO overcrowding al
r insufficiently clothing is noted. Co
I ditions here are described as the wor
! of any camp visited. They have d
!. turbed the Governor Of Texas and h
local health authorities,