Show I A BOOST FR ALGER War Secretary Again Tells What He Has Done DEPEW TO THE RESCUE ASKED AGER TO REVIEW m OWlT RECORD Cuncey Then sten to Spread It Beforo the Public Alger Preset Pre-set the Extraordinary Feats Accomplished But Ignores Charges of Icompetency New York Aug 21Ion Chauncey liL Depew has receiveda letter from the sec retar of wr and has consented to Its publication The letter which was written writ-ten in reply to a request for Information on the subject referred to is as follows War Department Aug 13 hIlt My Dear Mr DepewThe great pressure pres-sure of business has prevented me sendIng send-Ing to you t statement you were kind I enough to ask as to what has bEen accomplished I ac-complished In the way of ouUltng the army for the Held conduct of campaign etc Also the chiefs oC divisions have been too much driven wIth work to compile the data requested Ono not in the midst of the worn can hardly realize what an undertaking un-dertaking I is to cal 12OO men Into th field at one time coming from all the states and to have them mustered and gathered in caps on 50 short notice and this too when we had scarcely any outfIt out-fIt for their accommodation all having to be provided for by the war department as you know when war was declared there was no equipment whatever for the volunteers In store That this was sue cessfuly accomplished with very few accidents is a mater of record Subsequent Subse-quent calls including the regular army which numbered about 20 men when war was declare made a total of 2S5 men To accomplish all in so short a time has been a great work Of course gatherings this vast number of men together in a large measure under untrained i regimental and company commandersI mean in actual Held dutythe lack of knowledge as to the sanitary conditions to be observed ob-served the carelessness in not observing Instructions which were furnished as to the proper use of them added gratb to the work of the medical department Thus from the home at 2160 volunteers has constant great anxIety been felt as to what might happen to their soldiers and hundreds of Inquiries made by letter and telegrams have been received ever day concerning individual soldiers The feeling feel-Ing upon the part of these people that the war department is responsible for the care of them Individually ha natural I aroused sympathy in case of sickness and death and created much sorrow There is nothing young men in robust health are so prodigal of a their health that they gone Men go Into camp feeling that they can stand anything and everything and cannot be made to believe to the contrary con-trary untl stricken with disease FIELD OFFICERS RESPONSIBLE Every effort has been made from the beginning to furnish every camp wIth all appliances I asked for but of course the commanding officers In the field are the ones who have direct charge of these men For Instance one army corps commander com-mander has division orders and enforces them respecting sanitary affaIrs and he has today but a fraction over 2 per cent on the sick Ulst Others have not been successful and the consequence Is that ecebrid J typhoid and hfe have bred and spread to a considerable extent One regiment regi-ment in the Chickamauga camp has a colonel who enforces sanitary rules In his regiment requiring all men to boil all water they drink keeping the camp cleanly clean-ly and the result Is that there arc less than 2 sick and the camp too is in as I unfavorable a locaton as any In the command com-mand Others more favorably situated have ten times that number on the sick list One of the regiments or the second call not yet reroved from Its state sends biter complaints of typhoid feverS fever-S SANTIAGO CAMPAIGN Concerning the Santiago campaign when the ships left Tampa they had on board three months provisions and an abundance abund-ance of hospital supplies They had lighters to unload at a point of debarkation debarka-tion These lighters WEre lost in severe storms on the way As soon as we were notIfied of the fact two tows of lighters were sent from Mobile and New Orleans which were also overtaken and lost by storms The navy supplied us with lighters light-ers and one of these was wrecked The army disembarked getting oft a portion of its supplies and medical stores and Immediately marched to the front to fight the Spaniards The great dlmcuJ of landing supplies subsequent was that the wind sprang up every morning at 10 and made a high surf rendering almost Impossible the use of small boats with one lIghter which was all they had left for the purpose Of the packers who were employed 6 or more fell sick and heavy rains falling every day the roads If they could be caned such became impassable Im-passable for vehicles Pack animals had to be employed to carry food to the army which being extended to the right around Santiago increased the distance from the coat every day and made the task more difficult SHAFTERS YISDOl However in the result and the subse qunt sickness that has broken out in the army showed the great wisdom of General Shafter in moving forward to make an attack while his men were in vigor I was a movement bordering on audacIty but it succeeded and the persistence of the attack I have no doubt greatly dia I heartened the Spaniards The result was one or the greatest victories for the men engaged of modem warfare The number of prIsoners taken exceeded the attacking force by nearly two to one When yellow fever broke out and the fever list increased into the thousands it was for a time supposed that it was prin cipaly yellow fever rhe bringing of troops north at once after the surrender under such conditions would have been I certain death to a vast num1er but upon Inquiry it was ascertained that a very few ot these cases comparatively were yellow fever when It was at once decided I possible to bring the men home as speedily as EVERY EFFOR MADE Ever tlfg hat human ingenuity could I devise has been doneto succor that army not the ingenuity of the secretary of W1 but the result of the combined counsel I of those who have had a lifelong experi once in the field Some men have been I neglected on the transports coming home there is no doubt all against positIve al aginst 1osltvo order due perhaps tp carelessness and I negligence largely on account of not having the medical force to sparemany ot whom were sick from the camp at Santiago Many medical officers sent with the transports were taken m on the way home DEIARTMENTAL WORK To give u a little idc of the work that has been done I append the following fol-lowing The work of the adjutant con I erls department has been to 11lster and order to their station to be precise 21 40 volunteers and 240 of the regular army This with a reduced force as many of the staff olUcer from all of the departments had ben promoted and ordered to the field The chief of engineers reports an ex pendiure of 5s0joh for harbor defenses building emplacements of heavy guns mortar batteries and mines gns The surgeon general has had the foremost fore-most work of fitting up hospitals organiz lag the medial corps employing male and female nurses contract surgeons or surgeons employed from civil life bc I sides those commissioned as corps hri gada ant division surgeons furnishing medical supplies and answerIng the demands de-mands of them all over the country and camps at Santiago Porto Rico and Mania The work done in this line is almost al-mOst beyond comprehension The commissary general had purchased i and distributed up to Aug 1 110907235 pounds oC rations which have ben transported trans-ported and distributed to aU armies in the field here and at Santago Porto Rico and Manila besides the large quantity Cuban distributed among the destitute The quartermaster generals report is 00 long to even give an approximate Idea oC his work in the way oC transportation to Honolulu Manila Santiago and Porto RIco and return home There have been sent SG men with artillery equipment artiery and supplies B y train In this country tnero have been transported 9700 officers 233962 enlisted men also 5 90 ofcers sides thousands of wagons artillery and artiery other quartermasters commissary ordn ance and signal scrvlce stores The total number of artIcle of clothing and camp equipment distributed to the army by the I I quartermasters depart it has been I f44G hich 1 can mention a few artIcles as oUom Blankets 273 I blouses 26 trousers 403 hats 3 lO canvas field uniforms S2 shoes 518 pair undershirts i696 tents 17914 etc etc The total weight of food and forage distributed daily to the army is approximately O tons Added to this Is the large feet of transports chartered and purchased the management of the same in conveyIng troops supplies and ammunition The paymaster has promptly paid the army and Is deserving of very great credit for his work The signal corps has provided splendid service furnishing cable telegraph telephone and signal service to the different commands In the field feldI you had a day or two to sparc 1 would like to sandwich in a lIttle 1ork for you I would like to send you these statements in detail which I think would hewitder you it anything can Sincerely yours R A ALGER Honi Cliauncey M Depew New York |