VOLUME LXXXIV.-NO 89.
FIRST COMES AN
INVESTIGATION
AT CAMP THOMAS
Conditions at ChicKamauga Not
Properly Regulated by the Sur
geons if) Charge.
W^y General Sternberg Did Not Protest Against
tr;e Unheard-of Crowding of Troops
Must Be Exolained.
NEW YORK, Aug. 27.— The Herald's I
"Washington correspondent sends the
following: After persistent represen
tations as to the shortcomings in the
department of the surgeon general and j
other departments, an Investigation has
been ordered. It is not yet as general j
• in its nature as it will be when more
facts are brought to the attention of
the administration, but a distinct order
has been sent to Brigadier General H.
. V. Boynton at Chickamauga. to find
out what is the basis of the compUi it .
• there and who is to blame. Acting Sec
retary of War Meikeljohn said to-day:
"In view of the statements that have j
been published about Camp Thomas j
.the surgeon general has requested that j
an investigation be made, and it has i
• been ordered. General Boynton ha.->
been conducting the investigation all
day. and as soon as a report is com- j
pieted it will be forwarded to the Sec- j
retary of War and will be made pub- j
lie." *
I was assured to-day by a high offl
. clal of the War Department that some
of the medical officers s>» Camp Thomas
were remiss in their duty, and if the ,
report of Gem al Boynton fixes the re- j
spoosibility, the party or parties named \
. will be immediately brought to trial by
court-martial. Speaking of this in- ;
vestigation. Surgeon General Sternberg
■aid to me there had been more <
Sickness at Chickamauga than at j
any other camp. The investigation
therefore under General Boynton will
•be far reaching, as the natural sur
roundings at Chickamauga were such
as is thought to be conducive to health. ;
• Notwithstanding the practice during
the Civil War of keeping men In camp
continuously only for about a week and j
of putting them together in number not j
to exceed a division, 40,000 men have
been crowded together in the Chicka
■ rj»mi-> for n«-a.rly three months.
The inquiry will proceed first upon this
basis-:
To discover why the protest of Sur
geon General Sternberg has not been
forthcoming against such an unheard j
of disposition of troops for so long a ,
.time. The next line of Investigation j
will be the hygienic details of the camp. I
The investigation, moreover, will rest
upon specific and perfectly authenticat
ed complaints.
. The percentage of fever cases will be
compared with those of other camps
and the number of nurses and doctors
will be duly noted, and if not found to
be sufficient the finding will be em
bodied in the report. For example, at
Camp Thomas, where there were 40,- |
000 troops, according to General Stern
berg's statement there were only
thirty-eight nurses. The doctors were
in proportion. Complaints, therefore,
from there have been so clear and pro
nounced that it is thought the root of
■ the evil may be most quickly found, as
far as the volunteer camps are con
cerned.
After investigating Camp Thomas it
is expected other camps will be investi
gated. But it will not stop in this
country. There will be a board ap
pointed to review the conditions and
• treatment of the sick in Santiago, and
sensational findings are expected to re
sult under the investigations of this
board.
TO ALLEVIATE THE
SUFFERING IN CAMPS 1
i
WASHINGTON, Aug. 27.— Some state
ments made at the War Department
to-day indicate that efforts are making
to alleviate the suffering in the camps.
The surgeon general reports that up to
the Bth day of August there had been
sent to Chickamauga Camp 3428 cots
and bedsteads, 6536 gray blankets, 7399
cotton sheets and 3250 mosquito bars.
. Another statement shows the number
of nurses which have been provided for
the different camps where hospitals are
established, as follows: Fort Myer,
Va., 63; Fort McPherson, Ga., 10 en
route, 46; Fort Thomas, Ky., 5 en route,
. 13; Fort Monroe, Va., 38; hospital ship
Relief, 61; hospital ship Hudson, 2o;
• hospital chip Missouri, 10; hospital
train, 3; at large, 1; Key West, Fla. id
orrlerod to Huntsville, Ala.,), 9; Santi
ago de Cuba, 179; Leiter, Chickamauga,
5 en route, 38; hospitals at Chicka
mauga other than Letter, en route or
on duty, 129; Sheridan Point, Va., 2;
Fernandina, Fla., en route or on dpty,
20; Camp Alger, 10; Camp Wikoff, Mon
tauk Point, en route or on duty, 88;
Tampa, Fla., 11; Jacksonville, Fla., en
• route or on duty, 59; Porto Klco, 6;
' total, 878.
In addition to the foregoing list there
are over 6000 workers of the hospital
corps whose services are available as
•nurses.
NURSES NEEDED BY
SICK ARTILLERYMEN
COLUMBUS, Ohio, Aug. 27.— The fol
lowing telegram has been received by
the secretary of the Board of Trade
from Surgeon H. M. W. Moore, Bat
tery H, First Ohio Volunteers, at Camp
Thomas, Ga.:
"Can Columbus send two nurses at
once to acompany sick men of Battery
H home from camp? We change sta
" tion soon, and I am unwilling to leave
them here and cannot take them on
the troop trains. Government furnishes
transportation and sleeping cars. No
nurses available here."
Arrangements are now being made to
Bend the nurses.
CHATTANOOGA, Term., Aug. 3Z.—
The San Francisco Call
The exact number of sick men in Bat
tery H, First Ohio Volunteer Light Ar
tillery, cannot be learned at this hour,
but it is and has been for several days
rather large. The request of Surgeon
Moore of the battery for nurses from
Columbus and from Cleveland, in which
he states that none can be secured
here, meant none available to accom
pany the sick home. There are plenty
of nurses here, but none can be spared
to make the long trip.
MANY OF THEf "SICK"
SUFFERED FROM HUNGER
NEW YORK. Aug. 27.— Some of the
nursea in the general hospital camp at !
Camp Wikoff are suffering from dys- i
entery, and orders were issued to-day I
that they be given more time to exer- !
cisc, bathe and rest. More nurses ar- !
rived to-day, and ten more will soon
reach the camp, ready to take the '
places of those overworked. All that I
are needed are here. There are three j
male and three female nurses in each j
ward during the daytime and two on
duty at night.
When the Eighth Ohio was landed I
nearly 300 men were reported sick and
Bent to the hospital, but it developed
that 170 of the "sick" were only suffer
ing from hunger. When these men were
fed they were able to leave the hospi
tal. They repeated stories of hardships
encountered coming up from Cuba, and
said it was almost impossible for them
to get food. One hundred and fifty men I
in the general hospital were allowed to
go on sixty days' furlough to-day, as
they had improved.
The Second Massachusetts, -when it
departed, left behind seven officers and
200 sick men in the hospitals. Alto
gether 560 men departed. As the men
marched to the dock 100 men dropped
out of line, but were aided by their
comrades and urere thus able to con
tinue until the boat was reached.
The hospital report at Camp Wikoff
to-day was as follows: Cases In the
general hospital, 1120, of which 125 are
typhoid: cases in the detention hospi
tal, 430; diphtheria in the detention
hospital, 4; in the general hospital, 1.
Deaths: Edgar H. Train, Second
Massachusetts, typhoid fever; Charles j
Flynn, Company C, Twelfth United
States Infantry, typhoid fever.
ONLY ARMY RATIONS
FOR SICK SOLDIERS
NEW YORK, Aug. 27.— When the
transport Yucatan reached the pier to
day and began to discharge the six
companies of the Seventh United States
Infantry which she had 'brought from
Sanitiago, it was learned that seven
men had died on the passage and three
more had died last night while the
ship lay in the bay awaiting her turn
to unload her human cargo.
The Yucatan had 200 sick men on
board. It is alleged that the ship left
Santiago without a sufficient quantity
of proper food or supplies for the sick,
and that she reached here without any
food but army rations, which the sick
troopers were unable to eat. When
General Wheeler learned of this state
of affairs he at once sent on board
some proper supplies. The sick men
are still on board the vessel, waiting
until there is room for them in the
hospitals.
PRESENT A SORRY
SPECTACLE INDEED
NE»W LONDON, Conn., Aug. 27.— The
sound steamer Block Island arrived at
her slip in this city about 9:30 o-'clock
this morning from Montauk, bearing
350 members of the Second Massachu
setts Regiment, United States Volun
teers, from Camp Wikoff. The men as
a rule presented a sorry spectacle.
Some idea of their condition may be
had from the statement of one of them
that in one company alone. Company
B, but thirteen men were able to walk
from their tents to the boat. Accom
panying the troops were thirteen offi
cers out of thirty-six who left Massa
chusetts when the regiment started for
the front.
PATIENTS BROUGHT
ON THE CATANIA
WASHINGTON, Aug. 27.— The sur
geon general of the army received a
telegram this morning from Sergeant
Ireland, at Montauk Point, saying that
the steamship Catania arrived there
yesterday from Santiago with 353 con
valescent patients from the Slboney
hospital and that nine deaths occurred
on the trip. He also reports that Major
McCreary, surgeon, U. S. A., died on the
Catania on the morning of the 23d inst.
from dysentery, following yellow fever,
and was buried at sea. Major Mc-
Creery was a native of New York.
MANY FEVER CASES
YET AT SANTIAGO
WASHINGTON, Aug. 27.— The fol
lowing is the health report from Santi
ago to-day:
"SANTIAGO, Aug. 27, via Hayti.—
Adjutant General, Washington: Total
sick 555; total fever cases, 427; new
cases fever, 19; returned to duty, 24.
"Deaths: Leopold Debend, a civilian
packer, acute dysentery; Charles B.
Vyberts, private, First Illinois, typhoid
fever. LAWTON, Commanding."
SAN FRANCISCO, SUNDAY, ATTGHIST 28, 1898-THIRTY-TWO PAGES.
SIR CLAUDE MACDONALD, BRITISH MINISTER AT PEKING.
GROSS MISMANAGEMENT
OF THE CAMPS WHERE
SICK SOLDIERS SUFFER
NEW YORK, Aug. 27.— A Camp
Alger, Va., special to the Herald
says: Some startling facts as to
the management and conduct of the
First Division Hospital will likely
be made public soon, unless report
of Dr. Vaughn. Dr. Shakespeare and
Dr. Reed, -who constitute the board
of visiting surgeons, is withheld.
These physicians were instructed to
make a thorough inspection of all
the army camps. They began their
labors at Camp Alger. There they
found that for weeks a condition
existed that can only be attributed
to gross mismanagement, negligence,
indifference and absolute disregard
of all ideas of humanity. According
to the statement of a regimental sur
geon who has in the past been on
duty at division hospitals, the three
physicians made a thorough inspec
tion and gleaned information that
caused one of them to remark:
"There will be other linen to wash
besides typhoid."
My informant said: "An alarm
ing state of affairs has existed for
some time, and while things have
improved since the visit of the three
physicians, yet there is room for
more. Prior to the visit carelessness
and indifference were manifest—
conditions that would not be toler
ated in a well-regulated and prop
erly governed hospital."
RECEIVING HOSPITAL AND DISINFECTING BOATS AT MONTAUK.
This Is the Point at Which All Troops Bound for Camp Wikoff Are Landed From the Transports.
NEW YORK, Aug. 27.— A Camp
Thomas, (Ga.) special to the Herald
says: Major Parker of the Twelfth
New York, acting inspector general of
Camp Thomas, to-day reported offi
cially to General Breckinridge. by his
order, on the sanitary conditions of the
camp. The report, which is a comDlete
statement of the conditions of the
camp, and the causes leading up to the
unusual death rate, advises the aoan
donment of the camp. In the report
Major Parker says:
"The number of sick men in this
camp increases each week by one
fourth. At this rate of progression, the
sick will soon reach a number which,
with the present facilities, it will \nt
impracticable to handle.
'This park, I think it can be shown,
is? not fitted to be a camping place tor
troops. The park is mainly a fortst
with occasional openings only. Such
camps are not healthy. Being very
largely in the shade, the tents and
ground around them remain damp.
The sanitary action of sunlight on
germ organism is shut off. The park
is incurably infected. Every breeze
carries a stench. The sick report
mounts up day by day. General
lassitude is apparent in the men and
omcers. The months in which typhoid
fever and malaria are most common
are at hand. The cases of typhoid
fever have reached 500, and the whole
situation presages a general epidemic.
"Under the circumstances detailed
above, no remedy exists except a gen
eral departure of the troops from this
place."
NEW YORK, Aug. 27.— The Wash
ington correspondent of the Herald
telegraphs: As a result of Secre
tary Alger's visit to Camp Wikoft
It has been decided to scatter the
troops now assembled at Montauk
Point as quickly as passible.
I am informed on good authority
that Secretary Alger is now con
vinced that the plan of making
Camp Wikoff a permanent encamp
ment is Impracticable, and that aa
rapidly as possible the regiments
now here, not alone the volunteers,
but regulars also, will be ordered
away to different sections of the
country.
I am told that both President Mc-
Kinley and Secretary Alger are of
the opinion that a mistake was
made in choosing Montauk Point as
a camping ground for the Cuban
army. They also think now that
the general plan of bringing this
great body of sick men together into
one camp was another mistake.
The plan now proposed is to order
the regiments now there and re
leased from quarantine to other
portions of the country, thus estab
lishing instead of one great army
camp several regimental campsT
where even with limited transporta
tion facilities 1000 men can be given
the necessary food and attention to
bring them back to health.
DAY OF CHINA'S
DOOM IS FAST
APPROACHING
Eogland Is I^eady for the Parti
tioning of tJ)e Flowery
Kingdom.
Conflicting Reports as to Whether She Will Act
in Accord With or Antagonize
Russia.
LONDON, Aug. 27.— N0 one except
the actual participators in the negotia
tions knows what is the latest phase of
the international crisis which still ab
sorbs European attention. We are told
to-day with equal emphasis two things
which are of an exactly opposite tenor.
One is that the Anglo-Russian rela
tions are more strained than ever and
a rupture is close at hand. The other
is that Great Britain and the Czar have
reached a complete agreement and Lord
Salisbury has abandoned the policy of
the open door and China will be par
titioned forthwith, Russia and Great
Britain dividing the lion's share.
There is a possibility that neither
story is correct, but Lord Salisbury, be
coming convinced that it is no longer
possible to maintain the integrity of the
Chinese empire, is preparing to fore
stall his rivals by being the first to
seize a share of the spoils. This poli
cy will probably yield the largest re
sults to Englishmen.
It will be necessary at all events for
the Washington Government to decide
definitely and in detail what policy to
pursue in case such action is taken#by
Great Britain or any other power. There
will be no/ time to formulate a policy
after the moment of action comes. It
will then be a question of hours, and
the American voice, if it is to be heard
at all, must speak clearly and emphati
cally if necessary in the European capi-
MANY ANXIOUS TO
HONOR CAPTAIN CLARK
I Hero of th, longest Cruise on Becord
te 3| Now With His Brother k ■-^ :
in Michigan.
BENTON HARBOR, Mich., Aug. 27.—
Captain Clark of th© battleship Oregon
arrived here to-night, having left the
United States hospital to join his wife
and daughter, who have been spending
the summer here, anxiously awaiting his
arrival. Captain Lloyd Clark, who is in
charge of the United States Government
station here, will care for his brother un
til he is again able to return to his du
ties. Special invitations are coming to
night from all over the State asking for
the privilege of tendering receptions to
the hero of the longest cruise on record.
SPANISH GOVERNMENT IN
A DIPLOMATIC QUANDARY
Some of Her Best Statesmen Refuse
to Accept Positions on the
Peace Commission.
Special Cable to The Call and the New York
Herald Copyrighted, 1898, by James Gor
don Bennett.
MADRID. Aug. 27.— The Government
finds the utmost difficulty in obtaining
members to form the Paris Peace Com
mission. The best men will not go to
what they consider sure defeat, owing to
what is looked upon as the uncompro
mising attitude of the United States.
SENATOR M'MILLAN FOR
EMBESSADOR TO ENGLAND
May Succeed Colonel Hay as Uncle
Sam's Representative at the
Court of St. James.
NEW YORK, . ug. 2S.— The Washing
ton correspondent o. the Herald tele
graphs: There is considerable talk here
to-day about the appointment of Senator
McMillan of Michigan as Embassador to
Great Britain, to succeed Embassador
Hay, who is to become premier of the ad
ministration on the 15th of September.
As tar as could be ascertained, no defln
ita decision has been reached as to Hay's
PRICE FIVE CENTS.
tals, or American trade rights in Asia
will be all but ignored.
STRAINED TO THE
POINT^OF RUPTURE
Such Is the Condition Authoritatively
Said to Exit-t Between Great
Britain and 3i-ina.
LONDON, Aug. 27.— An authoritative
confirmation has been received from
Peking by the Dally Mail this morn
ing of the report asserting tha* the
relations between the Tsung Li Yamen
and Sir Claude Mac Donald, the British
Minister to China, are strained to the
point of a rupture, and that Sir Claude
has intimated that Great Britain will
regard as a casus belli a failure on the
part of China to observe her wishes.
The Secretary says that the situation
between Great Britain and China Is
acute, Sir Claude Mac Donald strenu
ously insisting that China shall ob-
serve her engagements with British
syndicates and demanding satisfactory
explanations with regard to the Pe
king-Hankow railway. If necessary
the British squadron, now assembled
at Wei-Hal- Wei, will support the Brit
ish Minister's demands. Meanwhile,
add the Foreign Office officials, the ne
gotiations that are being conducted by
Sir Charles Scott, the British Ambas
sador to St. Petersburg, to define the
respective British and Russian spheres
of influence, are proceeding in a "per
fectly friendly spirit."
successor, and the most that can be said
about Senator McMillan's chances is that
his name is under consideration. Hia
name has come more prominently to the
front during the past two days because
V.'Jntelaw Reid and Senator Hoar, both of
Wii :.-. were seriously considered in c ;n
nection with the appointment, are now
out of the field.
CONTINUOUS FIGHTING
IN PUERTO PRINCIPE
Spanish and Bebels Not Yet Ob
serving the Terms of the Peace
Agreement.
LONDON, Aug. 28.— The Madrid corre
spondent of the Sunday Times says: The
Government has received a cipher dis
patch from Manila giving full details of
the capitulation and condition of tho
island. The contents of the dispatch have
not been made public.
General Rios, Governor of Vlsayas
Islands, reports fighting between the
rebels arifl Spanish troops at Cebu and
Iloilo. A flotilla has been ordered to pro
tect these islands from invasion by the
rebels sent from Luzon by Aguinaldo.
General Rlos has armed several battal
ions of militia.
Telegrams from Cuba report continuous
fighting in the provinces of Puerto Prin
cipe and Santa Clara between the Spanish
and rebels.
The Canary squadron is now at Ferrol.
CRITICAL SITUATION
IN THE LADRONES
Spaniards Petition for Permission to
Flee to Manila for
Safety.
MADRID, Aug. 27.— Negotiations have
been opened with Washington to obtain
permission for the Spanish in the Ladrone
Islands to go to Manila, as the situation
in the Ladrones is extremely critical.
Great preparations are being made at
Yigo and Pontevedra for the repatriated
soldiers who are expected to arrive there
shortly. All possible sanitary precautions
are being taken.
WASHINGTON, Aug. 27.— While Acting
Secretary of State Moore said to-night the
State Department had no information
from the Ladrones, it is learne<f"that the
War Department has received ad%nces
confirming the Associated Press dispatch
from Madrid. The officials refuse to dis
cuss the dispatch or reveal the nature of
the trouble.
BODIES CAST AWAY
TO SAVE A BURIAL
CAMP THOMAS, Aug. 27.— Brigadier
General Boynton was out in the park
to-day on an inspection tour. I ■ came
upon four mounds which are thought
to be where some of the many dead
have been cast away to save the ,
trouble of burying th^m.
For some time General Boynton has
been hearing that bodies have been
buried in the park, and he intends to
search every spot to see what truth
there is in the rumor.
SPANISH SOLDIER? IN
PITIABLE CONDITION
Thirty Per Cent of Them Expected
to Die While in Transit
to Spain.
SANTIAGO DE CUBA, Aug. 27.— The
transports San Augustine, Lienora and
San Francisco will go for 6000 Spaniards
at Guantanamn Bay. The Cheribon, a
hospital ship, left to-day with 1000 sick
Spaniards. The condition of all Spanish
soldiers, who have left or are about to
leave, is pitiful. Physicians say that
30 per cent of them will die before reach
ing Spain. Throe thousand remain here.
"GUIDELESS WONDER'S"
LAST RACE IS RUN
CORTLAND, N. V., Aug. 27.— Marion
Mills, the guide-less pacing mare, died to
day. The mare stumbled and fell on tne
track of the Cortland County Agricultural
Society here ypsterday, sustaining con
cussion of the' brain. She was unable to
move after falling. The mare had *een in
the Western circuit races and wa» «a
route to Bangor, Me.