The Washington times., 1920-03-27
TIED TO
|NARMY
Soldier Who Arrives Here A.
fIicted With Disease Says
He Was Tortured.
STRAPPED TO BED IN SUN
Admits He Escaped From COL
ony in South and Asks to
Be Isolated.

That one does not have to go out
of the United States to learn OF
cruelties that would DO credit to an
arch Hun, was the statement made
to The Times this morning at the
District quarantine station by Will
lard Centlivre, twenty-one years old,
Of New Orleans, La, a leper who
walked into the United States Public
Health service station at Ohio ave
nue. and Fifteenth street northwest,
yesterday afternoon and startled
physicians and nurses by declaring,
"I am a leper. You better isolate
me-"
Strapped to Bed Springs.
That army surgeons were ignorant
that he was a victim of leprosy, that
they told him he had a skin disease
which could be "sweated OUT" that
he was tied to a cross. placed In a
hole, strapped naked to bed spring.
and left with his face to the sun.
with hot sands piled about HIM, were
ohly a AC" VI thC NS'S
livre claims to have suffered because
he took absence without leave from
his regiment in order that he could
get proper medical attention.
Centlivre declared this morning
that he escaped three weeks ago from
the leper colony at Carville, La, to
come to the Capital to appeal to mem
bers OF Congress and the army Of
ficials to provide for the support of
his mother, Mrs. Georgianna Cent
livre, Of 1926 Charter street, New
Orleans, and his two minor brothers
and sisters.
He had ben court-martialed and SEN
fenced to serve twenty-five years at
hard labor at the Federal prison at
Fort Leavenworth for deserving the
army and since then his pay has been
cut off, and he claims his mother,
brother and sister are in need Of
funds. He demands that he be pen
stoned. realizing that he is a victim
of leprosy and will be isolated the
rest of his life. He asserts that he
contracted leprosy while in the army,
and only deserted when given task
he could not perform in the army
service because of the disease he
suffers from.
Enlisted In 1917.
what is the matter with human
ity?" asked Centliver this morning.
"Is 1t natural or always to be expect
ed when a man or a group of men in
authority should abuse this authority
One reads of this tendency every day
can vouch for the truth OF this
principle that is working out in the
Louisiana State leper home and in
the army.
IT enlisted in the United States
army April 7, 1917, and was sent to
Camp Nichols, La Before leaving
New Orleans for Camp Bureauguard
1 noticed peculiar spots appear on my
body. I reported for sick call and the
army surgeon told me hard work
would cure me. Hard work | did. I
dug trenches and did other laborious
tasks. But the harder / worked the
more prominent became the spots and
the worse 1 felt. Then I was trans
ferred to Camp Bureauguard. The
doctor there also recommended hard
work. 1 was assigned to carry lum-
Der and dig trenches.
Then l began to have fainting
spells and / begged for medicine.
They gave me dose oil castor oil.
1t did me no good; that Is. It did not
hel pthe spots-seemed to make them
worse. They sent me to a base hos
pital near by. / remained there two
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