Arizona republican., 1917-07-03
WEST AWAITING
CASUALTY LISTS
SAYS MR.. OLCOTT
BY Charles c. Randolph


WASHINGTON, July 2. There
is widespread belief among those who
have travelled through the west that the
| people of the middle section will NOT
wake up to a full realization that the
| United States is at war until the casu-
atty lists begin to come in. This opin-
ion was very emphatically expressed
by former Congressman J. Van Nechteh
| Olcott, of New York, among group
of other former members of Congress
| today.
Right here in Washington. however,
one has only to see the crowds around
| the telephone booths that connect with
the war department to realize that the
| United States is certainly preparing
| with all of its forces and ali of its ener-
gies to take a very active part in the
great European war The movement OF
troops and of vessels of the navy are Of
| curse. covered With the utmost Sc
crecy because information OF this char
acter would be sure to percolate
| through the ocean or the air 10 the
! enemy But if one could only realize
what is going on at the war department.,
| and could appreciate the terrific strain
Under which Secretary OF u ar Baker IS
working night and day, some idea could
|
and at the same time appreciate the in
justice Of the criticisms which have
been so freely passed upon this official,
who literally spends twothlrow of every
day in tackling and solving the prob
lens with which he has been confronted
for the past three months.
Few people realize that in addition to
preparing to enroll perhaps a million
men in the military establishment of
the United States, he is at the same
time engaged in the most stupendous
building operations ever undo rtaKeG in
| any country.
| Secretary Baker is building sixteen
cities in Massachusetts, New Jersy.
South Carolina. Georgia, Ohio, Michi-
gan. Kansas, Texas, Washington Mary
land and Virginia, with several other
sites yet to be selected. Each of these
cities will be sufficiently large to house
| 10000 men and they will be as complete.
except for architectural effect, as any
town in the United States of 40 0G0 peo-
pie. and so far as sanitary arrange
ments, water supply and other c1nven-
| fences are concerned they will exceed
| the great m&joritv of towns Of similar
size anywhere in the world. When ii is
considered that each of these canton
ents as they are called, can be hull.
| only after four Thousand car Dads OF
material are supplied or $4,000 carloads
in all. an idea of the gigantic task which
the secretary has to supervise can be
understood
But while much has been written as
to the building task which confronts
Mr.. Baker, little or nothing has been
said as to one other and most import
ant feature of the job In supplying
buildings in which to house the me,,
provision must also be made for tn.
care of the sick, and therefore hospital
Accommodations are being prepared UNI
der the direction of the secretary. These
base hospitals will cover practically
fifty acres in each place and viii form
small towns in the nature of suburbs tc
the city. The number of sick provided
for at the start will be three per cent
Of the garrison and in addition, quar-
tiers will be erected for the medical or
ficers. male and female nurses anc
civilian employees
Acting under the authority of the sec.
rotary of war, Surgeon General Gorgas
| assigned Coils. Birmingham and Glen
nan. Of the medical corps to look aftei
the important work of planning these
base hospitals. The p ans are well under
way The wards are arranged to take
care of thirty two patients each and
are grouped around the buildings USED
for administration. kitchen, mess, Oper.
| ationS, clinics, recreation, etc, the othel
buildings being conveniently located
and all connected by corridors, the lat
ter so constructed that they can be en-.
closed if the climatic conditions war
rant. These groups of buildings abou
100 in each. will be heated by a centra
power plant and lighted by electricity.
Secretary Baker, in connection will
the Council of National Defense anC
the big men who have been invited il
to consult with him and it, has adopted
the cost and percentage plan as beins
| not only the most advantageous to thu
government from a financial stand
point, but also promising the utmos
speed, and speed is essential, for it i!
the secretarys determination to have al
all of these environments ready for thu
great army early in September.
| Washington hotels are crowded and
overflowing with contractors anC
would be contractors for every con.
ceivable kind of material that can b.
used in building these towns. Many o
them are of necessity disappointed anC
they do not hesitate to pour into thu
ears of the critics who are always ready
to listen to venomous suggestions o
graft and chicanery. unfortunately
newspapers have been misled into Civ
ing ear to these disappointed men witt
the result of creating misunderstanding
and incidentally causing reflections t.