The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, August 3, 1898, Page 2

(] THE SAN" FRANCISCO CALL, MEN ON THE CITY OF PEKING OFTEN WENT TO SLEEP SUFFERINGS OF CALIFORNIANS EN ROUTE TO mMANILA Private Healy Pictures the Sad Conditions on the Big Transport. Evidence That the Boys’ Most Despicable Foes‘ Are Not Those They Were Sent Across the Ocean to Fight. BY FRED A. HEALY. BOARD THE TRANSPORT ACITY OF PEKING, CHINA SEA, June —When old General Sher- man ventured the suggestion that war was akin to the sort of hereafter that overtakes the evildoer of this earth he unconsciously gave a remark- abiy true prophecy in regard to the life of the First California = Volunteers aboard the good ship City of Peking. On the morning of June 4 we left Honolulu and. started, under the pro- tection of the Charleston, on what we * then -thought was to be an uninter- rupted trip across five thousand miles of ocean to Manila. The discipline, which had been greatly relaxed during | stay in port, was again were organized, drills enforced, inspectigns carried out | and all hands were commencing to set- tie down into the monotonous routine | Joard ship when on the second al from the Charleston ews that .our first stop | bé at ‘Guam, an island of the sdrone group. The place was to be » American flag raised over ere the'regiment. chosen to Charleston in_the work. that was positively known, agh: - The 1maginations lied all the details that and General Anderson impart. The wildest ru- ce bécame the theme of gen- 1-and for the next twelve ¥ word heard on board the | £ 'Guam.” As our own regi- ital officers, with the possible ex- ion of the colenel, were as ignorant Guam- and" all *pertaining to. that' si | man has. that Uncle Sam feeds his regular en- | 1isted men of the army and navy well; | moreover, he appoints officers and ‘‘non | coms” who know how to look after the rank and file and see they get that | which is their due. lcould make a meal. For, be it known, | 1sm are left to get along as best they may. | After breakfast comes an inspection | of arms and accoutrements. . The man who has over an inch of rust on his rifle is sure to be punished by at least twelve hours in the guardhouse, where he drinks cold water and gently re- creates himself by pulling a punkah when the officers dine. Following inspection comes setting- up exercise and then sick call. Those who are ill go down to the doctor, where they acquire a pill, the panacea for all troubles, and considerable pes- simism, while their brethren of good health and uninterrupted digestion take to the bath. The bath is a great institution, and about the only consolation the enlisted Large cans, with their bot- toms punctured, are rigged up In dif- ferent parts of the vessel, a hose is | run into them at the top and a delight- | ful saltwater shower is the result. The hours for bathing are about 10 o'clock | in the morning and late in the after- noon. The boys strip naked, and, as long as the water is allowed to run, laughing, struggling, skylarking groups of young soldiers are to be seen wrest- ling with one another under the sparkl- | ing salt sea water that comes splash- ing down over them. With the conclusion of the bath 18 Men: who leave | | comfortable homes and give up good | | A L 7 7 0] T TN i \\!!\\k‘A\lflllibiiflilillmfi)\!l'/}’/’@ T ‘ :\“%‘,'u mflll?,\'.'l‘.l\\“&'(‘@\“!llllllfllsl"%\iill'“"fil\\‘“(fll\‘flll’ oy NATIVES OF SAN LUIS DE APRA. | | positions from motives of pure patriet- | From a Photograph Taken for The Call by a Naval Officer. | wrong somewhere. Since the regiment | left home “there has mot been a single | meal served that has contained any- thing like the full ration, and in several | instances the supply has been so short that, though no one was given enough, | yet many went to bed without anything | at all. Moreover, the food that is served is | so unsuited to the climatic conditions in this part of the world that many of the boys are covered by terrible sores from the top of their heads to their an-’ kles. The sores are generally accom- panied by a painful swelling which, in some eases, has completely closed the eyes of the unfortunate sufferers. The medical staff has termed this malady “water pox,” and they tell us it is quite common on long sea trips. Perhaps it | is, but T have had some little experience | afloat and have never known of a sim- flar trouble on a thirty-day voyage with two stoppages in it. When not lining up for meals, bath- ing, or performing some duty assigned to them the boys lle around the decks and play cards, sing or tel: stories. Reg- | ulation costume is not insisted on in the warm weather and as a consequence every sort of costume may be seen, the | favorite’ one being a pair of trousers land a smile. From the way the rain falls in these 7 N N CHURCH place as the privates and as I am here as an enlisted man and not as a cor- respondent I tried to find out some- thing by asking those who ‘were doing most of the talking. The result of my investigations was rather startling. I learned that Guam was a continent, island, peninsula, i$thmus and cape; that it had three millions of inhabi- tants, and that not - 2 person lived there; that there were two gunboats, three forts and fifteen thousand soldlers &t the place. Also that no official save a blind collector of customs had been fn Guam for over thirty. years past; that we were to capture the gunboats, storm the forts and slaughter the Span- 4sh soldiery. Likewise that our mission was one of peace and we were merely going to drop in for a friendly chat, a Alittle fresh water and a few cocoanuts. :After collecting this information I de- sisted. But the days wore on, work and drill, gossip and play, retrospection and an- ticipation combining to help the hours -along. ! The hours for meals were changed and the boyg fed a la tropic. At 5:45 reveille was sounded, and all hands lined up for rollcall. Then came break- fast, consisting of two biscuits that a quartz-crusher would have had trouble to digest, and a half-filled tin cup that contained a mixture alleged to be cof- fee. Sometimes this decoction con- ‘tained sugar; more often it .did not. “Those among us who had money would ‘go down to the sailors’ mess and pur- chase biscuit and coffee on which we IN SAN LUIS DE APRA. From a Photograph Taken for The Call by a Naval Officen finished the last routine occurrence of the day save the rolicall at retreat in the evening. Meal hours in most com- munities and under most circumstances are generally supposed to be routine occurrences, as they generally come around with more or less regularity. But as on the Peking the regularity is considerably less than more, I can hardly class our mess as a regular rou- tine institution, whether speaking of the hours at which the meals are served or the material of which they are com- posed. If things are propitious and there has been no more than the average amount of rascality around the commissary de- partment, we are sure of receiving about half or three-fourths of a ra- tion of beans, salt pork and coffee with anywhere from no ration at all to about a one-half ration of sugar. Bread ac- companies this delightful menu when we are fairly lucky. Sometimes it is a little hard bread, sometimes it is a lit- tle soft bread; it is never enough of either. & o The hours at which thi~ ~-"ation is supposed to be served are 10:30 in the morning and 4:80 in the afternoon. As a matter of fact the men are served when the cooks at the galley have. tired of the pastime of quarreling with each other and wish to experience a diver- sion by giving the food to the men and then listening to thoge unfortunates in turn curse the cooks, the commisary, nected with the army. There must certainly be something one another and everything: else con- | latitudes I am inclined to believe the angels congregate near the equator to weep over the sins of fallen humanity and that the night is the particular time chosen for the celestial lamenta- tion. The atmosphere below is so hot, close and foul that it seems like a cross be- tween purgatory and hades. As a con- sequence all hands would bring up their blankets immediately after re- treat had sounded and proceed to make themselves comfortable on deck. They would get nicely settled when a weep- ing contest would be called and the tears would fall in such profusion as to form one solid sheet of water. Then there would be a hurried bundling of mattresses, pillows and blankets and the boys would fall over each other getting below. % On June /20 Guam was_sighted and, concealed by a heavy mist and frequent rain squalls, the four /vessels, the Charleston in the lead, stood in toward the land. We remained in the harbor of Guam, which is called San Luis de Apra until late in the afterpoon. The men were not allowed ashore in a body, only those going who were sent after pro- visions. Colonel Smith took a trip to the little native village of De Apra, and, wishing to take in everything that was comjng, insisted on riding in a native canoe. He was accompanied by Cap- tain Kelleher. They are both gentle- men bullt on rather a grand scale, as becomes the exalted stations which are theirs. Their united weight was too | horizon. much for the canoe, which went under and the two officers were pulled into another boat, presenting a picture more watery than warlike. The day before we left the Sydney came inside and anchored with the rest of the fleet. One of the Oregon boys on board her had died outside and was buried at sea. Who he was or what the cause of his death we did not learn on board the Peking. On the 28th land was sighted a little before noomn, and shortly afterward the smoke of a steamer appeared on the The stranger approached rapidly and soon came near enough to enable us to distinguish the Baltimore's familiar lines. She sent a boat aboard the Peking for her mail and received it, though she could tell us nothing in return save that she had been walting in the vicinity for eight days expecting our arrival. The Baltimore joined the fleet forma- tion, and the five vessels passed to- gether through the Straits of Bashee anl iInto the troubled waters of the China Sea. During the night an English tramp steamer and a stranger, . whose na- tionality we did not learn, were sighted and the Baltimore chased them until she succeeded in satisfying herself that they were what they purported to be. Shortly after sighting land a very sorrowful castrophe occurred. Private Robert Allen of Company E, a young man whose parents reside in Alameda, became violently insane and had to be taken below and strapped down. He will be disabled and returned home as soon as possible, as the physicians hold out no hope of recovery for him under the existing conditions. What was the immediate cause of his misfortune I cannot say, but when active cam- paigning under a tropical sun com- mences it will be fortunate if we have not many such cases to report. Fortunately, with the number of men aboard ship, the exceedingly hard de- tails, such as bunk scrubbing, guard duty below decks and kitchen police, come so sejlom that a man has plenty of time to recover from the fatigues of his twenty-four hours' duty. Probably the hardest regular duty of the life aboard a transport is that con- nected with the culinary department. As soon as the man chosen for the de- tails awakens in the morning he reports to the galley and from there until long after sunset he passes tkrough a sort of a horrible nightmare fraught with buckets of coal, water and refuse, and walks in the steaming mists of a labor- ious trance. Could some of the mothers left at home see their delicate darlings, almost as naked as the day their infant smiles first gladdened the old home- stead, in the hold of the ship packing heavy boxes on shoulders buried under an inch of coal dust, flour and dirt, or could they take a glance into the gal- ley at meal time and see the scions of their houses and hearts, stripped to the walst, standing over the great caul- drons and ladling out steaming pans of beans and reeking joints of pork, while the perspiration streams down their bodies, soaks their trousers and forms puddles of water around their feet, I am confident they would come to the conclusion that war is not all glory, powder, gold braid and the blaring of trumpets. There is one thing that the boys do complain of, and complain bitterly. That is the manner in which the expe- dition has been outfitted. The only ar- ticle of clothing that is regulation and is supplied to all is shoes. Aside from this there is not one single company that has a complete outfit of such cloth- ing that would be serviceable in any part of the world, and in the whole reg- iment there is not a single enlisted man who is fitted out, in the slightest par- ticular, for a campaign in the tropics. If we see hard service some of us may die by Spanish bullets; but there will be many a lonely mother at home whose boy’s blood will call out for vengeance against his own countrymen. Everything we have is of the poorest quality and served on the same _in- efficient scale. Our officers are not to blame. They are good, able men, and have done all in their power to look out for the welfare of their men. The fault lies with some one at home, and whoever he be he should be severely dealt with. There is one department aboard this vessel that has worked hard and un- ceasingly since the first day it came aboard and whose labors have resulted in a state of cleanliness and consequent health, aboard the Peking, that is not énjoyed by any other vessel in the fleet. It is the medical department, and Ma- jor McCarthy and the captains under him cannot be praised too highly for the efficlent manner in which they have performed the duties intrusted to their care. 1 The Peking 1s éntirely free from ver- min and (save the water pox, which is not dangerous and which I have al- ready spoken of) has a clean bill of health, while the Australia has had | considerable sickness and the gray- | coated roomers on- that vessel have been thick both fore and aft. To-morrow we expect to reach Ma- nila, from where 1 hope to have the opportunity to send home news con- cerning the regiment which will cause rockets to illuminate with their lurid | glare the California skies and the hills | of ‘San Francisco to ring out together in proud and joyous te deum. I have said nothing concerning our plan of operations after landing as, through some curious oversight, Gen- eral Anderson has neglected to con- fide his intentions to Private Healy. So you must be content to learn what the boys themselves are doing and that they are all well and burning for a chance to mix things with the chivalry of Spain, and when that chance comes the aforesaid chivalry will be in about the position of the goat which butted the stone wall—up against it hard. LITTLE TIME LOST BY OTIS AT HONOLULU HONOLULU, July 27.—General Otis has decided not to go- into camp here. It is his intention to leave immediately for Manila upon the arrival and coal- ing of the other transports, which are expected to reach here on July 30. Every one in Honolulu expected Gen- eral Otis had come to perform the cere- mony of raising the American flag, and many came from the other islands to witness it. It was a great disap- pointment to the visitors when it was learned that the ceremony would not take place until the arrival of A_dmlrul Miller on the Philadelphia in the early part of August. The Hawalian flag on the Executive building is the only flag visible in Honolulu that is not the Stars and Stripes. This city is a bunch of American flags and colors. The Peru finished coaling yesterday and moved to another wharf to make room for the landing of the Deric. General Otis called aboard the Mo- hican, which is lying in the harbor here, the day following his arrival, and yes- terday made an official call, accompa- nied by members of his staff, in full uniform, upon President Dole at the HOW Cc@PT. HUNGRY GLASS TOOK POSSESSION OF THE LADRONES Old Glory Flung to the Breeze " From the Parapets of Fort Santa Cruz. Americans Cheered the Flag and the Guns of the Charleston Thundered Forth a Salute. BY SOL N. SHERIDAN. N BOARD THE U. S.. S. CHARLESTON, HARBOR OF S8AN LUIS DE ABRA, ISLAND OF GUAM, June 22—While Lieu- tenant Braunersreuther was 8o ably preparing the task which had been set him of taking everything in Guam to which Spain had title, and while the Peking was transferring to the bunk- ers of the Charleston 140 tons of coal to help the cruiser on to Manila, Cap- tain Glass was quietly preparing a dip- lomatic stroke on his own account which would seal the work he had come so far to do. It is 2200 miles from San Francisco to Honolulu, and even without the com- pleted farce of annexation Honolulu can never be other than a dependency of the United States. It is 3300 miles from Honolulu to the harbor of San Luis de Apra, which has been called the best harbor in the middle Pacific. It is in round numbers 1800 miles from San Luis de Apra to Manila. It is 1340 miles from San Luis to Yokohama. Here is the completed chain—and the nation that has a store of coel at the island of Guam would be in a position virtual- ly to control the Pacific. The nation holding Manila, if that nation be the United States of America, must hold the island of Guam if the farther pos- session is to be considered safe. As a strategist of experience, above all as a naval strategist, Captain Glass saw this possibility at once upon en- tering the harbor of San Luils de Apra. It was his first visit to the place, but possibly he was no more in ignorance when he made his way so easily through the. coral reef than had been the authorities who sent him there. He saw~&f ‘once all the possibilities of the harbor, and to-day, just after Governor Marina and has staff had been brought on board the Charleston, the captain wigwagged his purpose to Captain Gibson on the Peking, and then called away his gig to go and raise the star spangled banner over the heavy walls of Fort Santa Cruz, in fact—to raise it, in effect, over the whole Ladrone group. The Charleston had been cleared for action when she steamed into the har- bor. She was still cleared for action when, with First Lieutenant Blocklin- ger, I accompanied the captain dcross the harbor, threading the' coral reefs that surround the island on which the old fort stands, and as the flag was run up on the ancient structure break- ing its beautiful colors to the breeze, 21 guns belched from the Charleston; while from the transports - came - the shrill treble of the cheers of the men. Spain had been deprived that day of a group of islands. The action of Cap- tain Glass in raising the American flag does not, in international law, amount to the annexation of the group for the reason that he was authorized by his orders to leave nobody in control, but the territory was conquered territory, the first, absolutely, to bé . so won by an American force, and the title of America to the Ladrones is better now than can be shown by any other na- tion under the sun. There is the whole case in a nutshell. The Spaniards have been dispossessed. The Americans are Mot In possession, although by the mere act of raising and saluting the flag Captain Glass has put America In better position to assert a valid claim than any otheér power pos- sibly can be. Of course not all the: men who saw the flag go up over the Ladrones re- alized this. They cheered the banner they had shown their readiness to march to death under as they would have cheered it under any eircum- stances. The far-seeing leaders of the great expedition ‘know that there has heen made to-day in the far-off bay of San Luis de Apra a move that will be felt in the diplomatic centers of the world—that may cause commotlon in all those centers, but that will never redound to' the aiscredit of the United States. Robbed His -Brother-in-Law. Archie McNeill, 26 Henry street, swore to a complaint in Judge Conlan’s court yesterday for the arrest of Valentine J. Schneider, his brother-in-law, on. the charge of burglary. He accuses him of breaking into his house about a month dgo and stealing a dlamond ring and a gset of carvers, which he pawned. Mc- Neill says it is not the first time Schnei- der has done so and he and his wife have got tired of it. f ADVERTISEMENTS. 20 % SAVED. Giving wholesale rates to families on reasonable quantity par= chases is how it is done. Executive building. General Otls was recelved by President Dole and the members of his Cabinet. A company of the Hawallan National Guard acted as a guard of honor before the Execu- tive building, while the military band furnished music during the hour of the eption. x‘eg‘ogda,y all the men from both the Peru and the Puebla were given lunch on the executive grounds. The ladies of the Red Cross were in charge and walted upon the soldiers while the na- tive band rendered patriotic airs. This large number of is the first time any the men have been allowed ashore to- gether. Heretofore only several de- tachments at a time h;:)m elnch trans- ort have been given shore leave. X Colonel Kellogg of the Fourth Cav- alry is In command of the forces on board of the Peru, and Major Robe, Fourteenth Infantry, is in command on the Puebla. A regular military order of the day is observed each day. Guards are stationed on the ships and a con- tinual watch and lookout kept. Oc- casionally there is a fire drill aboard to accustom the men to_their duty in such an emergency. Instead of the usual military drill the men are put through setting-up exercises daily after breakfast. Aside from these exercises and the guard detail the men have all the day to themselves. The trip was longer than need be as it was ordered that the vessels proceed slowly. By doing this some ninety tons of coal were saved, representing about $800. It is expected that the other trans- ports will reach here next Saturday, in which case General Otis says he will sail on Monday for Manila, reaching there, he expects, about August 25. Victim of Typhoid Fever. HONOLULU, July 26—Charles H. Watson, bandmasiér of the Thirteenth Minnesota Regiment, died in this city on the 21st inst. of typhold fever, con- tracted on the voyage from San Fran- cisco. - ADVERJISEMEN"S. You Will Stand the Heat Much more easily and comfc tably by putting and keeping your body in trim condition by taking Hood's Sarsapa- rilla. It makes good blood, promotes proper circulation and keeps-every or- ganic operation free from friction. Hood’s S%asiia Is America’s Greatest Medicine. Hood's Pills 5% S " named. «] have saved money buying These prices good all the weck in lots from you” is what every cus- tomer writes us. A substantial advantage shall be given thosc who trade here, always. We maintain our own well=ecarned su- premacy as the greatest value=givers by each and every price in this list, but cspecially so this month on the following : $1.00 BUYS EITHER OF THE FOLLOWING : 6 cans best Lobsters. b tins extra fancy 3-Ib Table Fruit, assorted 28 Trs Sago or Tapioca. 1-gal. tin pure Luoca Ol 1 ‘bag (50 1bs.) first-class Fam- ily Flour. 5-b. tin Baking Powder—always gives satisfaction. 1 case California French Mus- tard, in oil, 24 bottles. 9 Ibs. Roast Coffes, Lion brand. 8 lbs. Roast Coffes, Arbuckle. 5 The. Roast Coffee, genuine Java, slightly broken, 10-1b. chunks Maple Sugar. 3 1-gal tins cheics Syrup. 3 Ibs. Folger's or Schilling’s Best Baking Powder. ; 4 Ibs. Knorr's Erbswurst. 15 bars Splendoréfih Sapolio. 8 Ibs. good Green Coffes. = 100-Ib. bag Sal Soda—washing, SENSATIONAL! Flour, Fruit. Choice - Famil r Ev: d A e el B0 | - AThen DY Sugar. 17 Ibs best fine dry granulated ..$1.00 Macaroni. | Beof Extract. The - smadl /boxés, . [ <Be 3-0n, s, 350 WOOA racusinnaer- BOC | :&;‘;;g;;;x Cfltu 3 v~ Co. Coffas. o Jare.. .. 006 E ound, oo 12%e | pail sound, Klondike, 5- & 3. d SRERY o= §1.25 foee {gm, ‘sound, 7 Ibs....280 4 Tuabs. B O e | PR, SR - b jon. NoO. 3 No. 3, gk 857 f.',lenl)e PSR g TRt 1-gal. tins, Antonini | Elive Oil......$3.50 Stoven. Jeweit's Roled s | e ey g Prunes. Lawn Mowers. Chotes, swest | Best made, cuts 10 sound, 71 Tbs.... 266 | ine e 3198 Salt. INCheES ..., .. 8%, -1b b table.2850- §Ib Dag Ot fable..ce | Beans. 3-1b tins, in tomato Baking Powder. 88UCe ......vins. 100 i1ling’s r Fol- s"ér'“:i z°‘%na.1u Alarm Olook. Far West, s, | fow better.... . S0o| . Regular. 31 ook, Freesers. - 2-qt.. sixe, . =i al. . Vinegar. a edal ey Usual b-gal. kes, 50 | 4-gt. s grain ... "84 25 L8195 The Secret of Our Ask for our 40-page Furniture Cat- alogue. Ask for our 40-page Hardware Cat- alogue. : fracery Success Is “Good Goods.” WE DELIVER Family Orders Free by Express Daily to Berkeley, Oakland, and ‘Alameda,” Before Dark, In Any Quantity. Why doe sensible Deron reds aaywhere clse-than at . o0« « - No. SMITH ' “ORIGINATORS OF MAIL ORDER B §’ CASH STORE, 27 MARKET STREET? USINESS ON. THE COAST.