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| Surgeon-General George Miller Sternberg. |
Cortland Evening Standard, Thursday, September 1, 1898.
HOSPITALS AT CAMP THOMAS.
Their Condition Made Known to Secretary Alger.
GEN. BOYNTON'S REPORT.
It Differs From the Numerous Newspaper Accounts.
WASHINGTON, Sept. 1.—Secretary Alger has received the report of General H. V. Boynton upon the state of affairs in the hospitals at Camp Thomas. The report is dated Aug. 29. The general says that his instructions were to report the number of sick, character of illness, number of tents, floor space per patient, the adequacy and suitability of attendants and whether the medical officers have discharged their duties faithfully and with intelligence and to make any recommendation in the interest of all concerned. He says that he visited all the hospitals in the camp without giving notice of his purpose. Says General Boynton:
"Believing the death list of this camp to afford an excellent standard by which to measure its conditions as to health and hospital service, a full report was obtained of all deaths in the camp and in its hospitals since its establishment, the middle of April last. The result shows a total death list of 198, up to the 22d of this month, when the breaking up of the camp began. Between these dates, including regulars and volunteers, fully 75,000 troops have been in camp at Chickamauga. The records of burial in the National cemetery at Chattanooga show a total of 120 volunteers and 2 regular soldiers. Of the latter one was killed by falling from a railway train."
The report takes up in detail first the two permanent hospitals, Leiter and Sternberg, and states with the greatest minuteness the exact accommodations afforded by each. The first is at Crawfish Springs under charge of Major Carter, and was converted from a large summer resort hotel into a hospital receiving the worst typhoid cases from the camp. Each patient has abundant room, over wire and hair mattresses and abundant bed clothing. The ventilation is perfect, plumbing entirely new and bathing facilities entirely ample. The number of attendants when all are well is entirely satisfactory and attendants are on the way to take the places of those who are broken down.
Major Carter has secured a herd of cows and has arrangements for pasturing them without expense to the government. He has sufficient money from the hospital fund to buy whatever is wanted in the way of milk, ice and other delicacies. There has been at this hospital full supplies of ice, milk and commissary stores, and delicacies such as the sick ought to have, and the funds have enabled him to buy all that has been needed in the way of canned and potted goods, soups, clam juice, sago, malted milk, eggs, koumiss, jellies, preserves, relishes, ginger ale, appollinaris, champagne and claret. The entire hospital is furnished with distilled water.
The sewerage of the hospital is excellent and contrary to persistent assertions, none of the sewage has ever drained into the Chickamauga river or approached it at any point.
Major Carter has a corps of doctors which he regards as amply sufficient to care for all the patients in the hospital, and reports them as faithful and efficient in the performance of their duties.
Taking up the Sternberg hospital in charge of Major Griffen, General Boynton shows that it is one of the most complete field hospitals ever seen, according to the veterans of the late war. All the tents are closely floored and they are separate at present only four men being in any tent, and in addition to the tents there are nine large board pavilions. Every tent and pavilion has woven wire mattresses, iron bedsteads and hair mattresses. There are especial diets, five cold storage rooms for delicacies, separate refrigerators for each row of tents and every proper measure of sanitation is observed with respect to the sinks. Further the report says: "The whole place is most carefully policed daily and the whole establishment within and without its permanent buildings and its tents is in the most perfect order.
"Since the establishment of this hospital everything asked for in the way of supplies of every variety has been promptly furnished. Sixteen to 24 barrels of distilled water to drink, from three to five tons of ice are used daily. Three hundred gallons of milk are purchased daily and 150 gallons furnished by the Red Cross society.
"All money necessary for the purchase of delicacies of every kind suitable to the sick has been furnished by order of General Sternberg. Soon after the hospital was established he telegraphed as follows: 'To the surgeon in charge of delicacies of every kind, something necessary for the comfort of the sick. Apply to me for additional female nurses and for money to buy delicacies when required.'
"A careful inquiry develops the fact that all varieties of medical supplies required or asked for were furnished, both from Washington and from medical headquarters at the camp with the greatest promptness."
It is stated in addition that all the hospital refuse is burnt in a crematory and according to Major Griffen all but 1,000 patients now sick in the entire camp could be safely moved now. The diseases are more of a typhoid-malaria character than typhoid fever strictly, the death rate being very low, only about 8 per cent of the worst cases.
AT CAMP ALGER.
An Alarming Number of New Cases of Fever.
WASHINGTON, Sept. 1.—An increase of fever cases at Camp Alger has caused some consternation among the members or the Sixty-fifth New York regiment, which is soon to be mustered out. During the last 24 hours 25 such cases were reported, following a record of 15 of the previous day.
The men of the Seventh Ohio, whose camp adjoins that of the New Yorkers, were sent to the hospital suffering presumably with fever.
A number of the officers of the Sixty-fifth New York called on General Gobin and asked that if the regiment could not be mustered out at once, that it must be sent to Middletown or some other place. No change, however, is likely other than to some location within the precincts of the camp.
The departure of the Thirteenth Pennsylvania regiment disposed of all the troops from the Keystone state at Camp Alger.
EPIDEMIC PRECAUTIONS.
Every Effort Being Made by Major Brown at Camp Wikoff.
NEW YORK, Sept, 1.—A tug having on board Theodore K. Gillis, president, of the Newport hospital, and Mrs. A. Livingston Mason, president of the Rhode Island sanitary relief association, has arrived at Camp Wikoff with a physician and several nurses. They will return to Newport with about 15 of the typhoid patients.
Major Brown, who has been in charge of the general hospital at Camp Wikoff since the day the first patient was received there, says he is taking every precaution to prevent an epidemic. He has directed that the swamps be filled in and that the grounds around be sprinkled frequently with antiseptics. He has also ordered that the drinking water be boiled before being used.
The Rough Riders will be mustered out at once and the work has really commenced, as an accounting of their equipment is in progress.
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| Admiral Winfield Scott Schley. |
MILITARY NOTES.
Brief Telegrams Relating to Our Conflict With Spain.
The transport Allegheny arrived at Montauk Point, having on board 500 men of the Ninth Massachusetts and the last detachment of the First Illinois men. Fourteen soldiers of the Ninth Massachusetts on board the Allegheny died during the passage from Santiago, Cuba.
The Puritan, Amphitrite, Terror, Hannibal and Montgomery have sailed from Ponce, Porto Rico, for Newport, R. I. The main object is to get crews of the vessels away from the tropical climate to northern waters.
Rear Admiral W. S. Schley and General William W. Gordon, members of the Porto Rico evacuation commission, sailed for Ponce on the steamer Seneca from New York.
The transport Panther arrived at Montauk Point from Santiago. She had on board 116 troops of different commands, 15 of whom are ill.
Advices from Candelaria, Cuba, report a state of dreadful distress, the result of fevers and scarcity of food caused by the blockade.
General Wheeler has received orders from the war department to muster out the Rough Riders at once.
Governor Black of New York, after thoroughly investigating the conditions at Camp Thomas, left for Huntsville, and from there will go to Lexington, Ky. The governor stated that he found things at Chickamauga much better than he expected.
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| New York, Ontario & Western inspection locomotive. |
A TRAIN WRECKED.
SWITCH ON THE N. Y. O. & W. R. R. DELIBERATELY MISPLACED.
Switch Lock Broken and Stolen—Passenger Train Went into the Switch Near Fulton—Three Killed and a Number Injured—Train Was Behind Time and Running Fast.
SYRACUSE, Sept. 1.—At 4 o'clock this morning train No. 5 of the New York, Ontario & Western railroad, one of the fastest express and passenger trains running on the road between New York and Oswego, was wrecked at Ingalls crossing, five miles from Fulton. The wreck was caused by the displacing of the switch.
The engineer, Benjamin Dowd of Oswego, Fireman Rowe of Norwich and Brakeman Osborne of Walton, were killed. The express messenger, baggageman and many of the passengers were badly injured.
The train was due at Oswego at 3:50 A. M. and left Oneida at 3:15 o'clock, one hour late. All steam was crowded on in order to make up time and the train was speeding along at a rate of a mile a minute when the crash came. The track appeared to be clear and the signal light at the switch was placed in its proper position. The first apprehension that the crew of the train or the passengers had that all was not right was when the cars began to roll as if they had jumped the tracks. The engine plunged from the rails, and instantly the cars were piled upon it in a mass, the locomotive with its crew being buried under the debris. Above the sounds of escaping steam could be heard the groans of the passengers and heartrending appeals for help. The tracks were completely covered with the wreckage.
Relief trains were sent to the scene from Oswego, Fulton and Oneida, and everything possible was done to rescue those who were injured.
An examination of the ground in the vicinity of the wreck shows that the work was evidently that of a fiend who had broken the lock fastening the switch, and then opened the switch, throwing the lock away. The train ran along the switch to the end, when it plunged into the field beyond.
Engineer Dowd and Fireman Rowe jumped from the engine and they were found under the tender by passengers. Dowd was alive, but died soon afterwards. Brakeman Osborne's body was torn in two, the trunk and head being found in the baggage car.
The dead are: Engineer B. C. Dowd, Oswego, leaves a widow and two children Fireman William Hall, Norwich; Brakeman A. L. Osborne, Walton, leaves a widow and three children.
The injured are: Baggageman Charles Desmond, New York, three ribs broken; David Mills, Oswego, face and legs bruised and scalp wound; John Golden, Oswego, burned about both wrists; C. A. Patten, Oneonta, hip sprained; John Ross, Italian, New York, scalp wound; George Chava, Italian, New York, burned about the arms; D. Bennett, Italian, New York, shoulder bruised; Peter J. Hawkinson, Swede, Wellesley, Mass., scalp wound; C. A. Johnson, Swede, Wellesley, Mass., scalp wound; Gustave Magnuson, Swede, Boston, Mass., injured about the head; Carl Svenson, Swede, Boston, injured inwardly.
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| Camp Wikoff. |
FROM CAMP WIKOFF.
Fred D. Pierce of Cortland Tells of His Experience on Long Island.
The following letter from Fred D. Pierce of Cortland, a member of Company L, Two Hundred Third Regiment, New York Vols., has been received by his mother, Mrs. J. D. Pierce of 4 Cleveland-st. Fred is now stationed at Camp Wikoff, Montauk Point, L. I., and is a clerk in one of the departments connected with the hospital.
CAMP WIKOFF, Aug. 29, 1898.
DEAR MOTHER—I thought I would drop you a line to let you know where l am. Arrived here Friday night at 11 o'clock. Left Camp Black at 1:26, a distance of about 100 miles. Talk about your tedious rides!
Am working every minute. Yesterday (Sunday) worked from breakfast until 10 at night. I am a clerk in Major Hysman's department. We have to keep records of all the patients that come here. All the telegrams of inquiry we have to look up; and the people that come here looking for their friends. Then all furloughs are granted in this department. There are fifteen clerks. I tell you we have some sad cases. People come hundreds of miles to find the one they are looking for dead. One day last week a man and his wife came from Massachusetts. Just as they were coming up the hill some men were taking out a corpse to bury it. The man inquired who it was and when he was told he said, "That is my son." Men that were big strapping fellows when the war broke out are now reduced to living skeletons. The cause of all this is that the poor fellows were starved.
You cannot imagine what a great thing that Red Cross Society is. They are doing everything for the soldiers. Carloads of food, clothes and medicine come in every day from them. They have about 100 women nurses here, and about 200 men. There are four ships of troops here waiting for space. Don't think it strange if you do not hear from me as often as you may think you ought, for I am so busy. There were fourteen volunteers from our company to come down here.
Hoping this letter will find you all well, I am as ever,
Your loving son, FRED D. PIERCE.
Death of Miss Fitzgerald.
The death of Miss Belle Fitzgerald, second daughter of Hon. and Mrs. L. J. Fitzgerald, occurred last night at 11:45 o'clock. She had been seriously ill for upwards of three weeks with what proved to be appendicitis with complications, but had not been thoroughly well for two years previous. All that professional skill could do for her was done, but to no purpose. At the last it became evident to all the medical attendants, including Dr. Van Duyn of Syracuse, who was called in counsel that the only hope lay through an operation. The operation was successfully performed early last evening, but failed to save. Miss Fitzgerald rallied and knew all her friends, but gradually sank away till the end came, as stated, shortly before the midnight hour. Her age was 29 years.
The blow is a crushing one to the family. As the oldest daughter in the home since the marriage of her elder sister seven years ago she had been the one upon whom all the others had come to depend in large measure. Bright, sparkling and witty, and at the same time kindly, loving, thoughtful and sunny in disposition, and efficient in every line to which she turned her hand she was the center of the household circle and her presence was a constant joy to all.
And not only in the home will she be missed, but among an unusually large circle of friends as well. No one knew her but to esteem her highly. She was positive in character, and that very trait and its manifestation in her proved an additional attraction. All the qualities that go to-make up the ideal woman seemed centered in her, and no gathering of young or old among her friends seemed quite complete without her. She was an earnest Christian, and the principles of her faith were firmly embodied in her daily life. Always thoughtful and considerate of the feelings of others, she was never heard to speak lightly or bitterly of any one. She was quick to see and appreciate and speak of the good traits and qualities in others, to apologize for their weaknesses and to leave everything else unsaid. Her sympathies were very acute and her friendships warm and cordial, and many of the older people among her acquaintance because of her constant thoughtfulness and kindliness had come to look upon her with a loving tenderness very different from that felt for the usual friend among the younger generation. It is doubtful if any one ever said an unkind word of Miss Fitzgerald or had a hard thought toward her. She was just coming into the prime of life and it seemed as though a long and useful career might be opening before her. Her death will be a general loss to Cortland, to old and young alike.
The funeral will be held at St. Mary's Catholic church Saturday morning at 10 o'clock.
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| Cortland Normal School. |
AT THE NORMAL.
Preparations for the Opening of the Fall Term, Sept. 14.
Janitor Seeber of the Normal [School] building has a force of men and women washing windows and scrubbing floors and conducting a general house cleaning preparatory to the opening of the fall term on Sept. 14.
The old seats in Normal hall have all been taken up and crated and nearly all them shipped away. The new opera chairs with armrests and bookracks with which Normal hall is to be reseated have arrived and will soon be put in place. The rostrum has been moved from its former location at the west end of the hall to a place on the north side about midway of the hall. It is a great improvement and makes the room look much more symmetrical.
Prof. Booth is giving the electric bells a thorough overhauling, recharging the batteries and putting them in condition to require the minimum of attention during the term. He is also preparing a lot of homemade apparatus for his classes in physics to perform experiments with during the coming term.
CORN ROAST
And a Hay Ride to the Home of A. B. Freeman, Blodgett Mills.
Mr. Ralph Freeman of Blodgett Mills entertained a number of his Normal classmates at a corn roast and supper at his home last evening. The start was made from The Kremlin, where Mr. Freeman met the party with his big wagon and hayrack full of hay and a jolly ride was enjoyed to his home. After the corn roast, which occupied the early part of the evening, supper was served in the house and various games filled the time until the return trip.
Those present were: Misses Bertha Powers, May Morgan, Emily Lamont, Stella Sears, Florence Nixon, Aldine Watrous, Sarah Ross, Ethel Gilbert, Mary E. White, Belle Tanner, and Messrs. W. T. Tower, A. J. Sears, Clifford Tanner, E. K. Tanner, and Harris Burgess.
BREVITIES.
—The annual picnic of the Fox family is being held at Freeville to-day.
—The order of Red Men will work the adoption degree at their meeting tonight.
—After Monday, Sept. 5, the store of\ McKinney & Doubleday will be open evenings.
—The annual picnic of Cortland Union Beekeepers will be held at Riverside park, Freeville, Sept. 8, 1898.
—The funeral of Fred I. Stevens, who suicided by taking strychnine yesterday morning, will be held to-morrow afternoon at 2 o'clock.
—New display advertisements to-day are—Bingham Bros. & Miller, The Finishing Touch, page 4; McGraw & Osgood, Opening Day, page 6; J. B. Kellogg, Ten Days' Sale, page 6.
—All the members of the Odd Fellows' organizations are requested to meet at John L. Lewis lodgerooms, Sunday afternoon at 2 o'clock, to attend the funeral of Mr. Wilber Maltby.
—Mrs. Margie Hunt, wife of Lewis Hunt of 158 Port Watson-st., died at 8 o'clock last night at the age of 22 years. The funeral will be held at 4:30 o'clock to-morrow afternoon. Burial in Cortland Rural cemetery.
—Owing to a change in the local wire at the stock exchange the stock report will not be received in Cortland for a week or so and consequently cannot be published in The STANDARD. Its publication will be resumed as soon as possible.
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