The daily gazette., 1880-01-31
SECOND EDITION
The Sherman Scandal.
CHARGES AGAINST THE GENERAL OF
THE ARMY.

THE ARMY.
WASHINGTON, Jan. 30.-Mr. .Boynton,
the well known Washington correspon-
dent Of the Cincinnati Gazette, has for
mally presented to the Secretary of War
charge against Gen. w. T. Sherman of
"conduct unbecoming an officer and
gentleman" The matter of difference
between these parties has for some days
been subject Of gossip here, but has
low taken shape in the manner referred
TO. The letter of Boynton to the Secre-
tary claims that ''the legal right of citi-
zen to prefer such charges is fully rec
ognized in an OPT nion recorded in vol.
l6, page 423, Opinions of the Judge Ad-
vocate General OF the Army" and says
these charges are preferred for the fol-
lowing reasons:
"On the 18th instant q reporter for
newspaper-one e. III. Cowles-ap-
preached Gen. w. T. Sherman, in the
headquarters OF the army, and bis opin-
Ion OF the reputation of the undersigned,
explaining TO Gen. Sherman that he and
some others associated with him had
published the undersigned as a liar; and
that Gen. Sherman's Testimony was al
so desired TO add to their own on that
point TO show to the public what a
fraud he (the undersigned) is':
sin the course of the conversation
which followed, In which the reporter
acted in his capacity as such, Gen. Sher-
man said TO him, with the full under
standing that what he said was solicited
for publication, among other false and
slanderous things of the understandable
is entirely without character you
could hire him to do anything for mon
ey.' For thousand dollars he would
slander his own mother aud that he
vas very persistent and energetic in
manufacturing falsehoods."
These things being spoken to report
er for publication, and being uttered In
the presence and hearing of others, con-
stitute the crime of slander as defined BY
the laws in force in The District of
Colombia.
"Further, four days after this CONVEX
sation with this reporter, and when his
printed version of the interview with
General Sherman had arrived in Wash
iDgtOn, the undersigned, feeling conf
dent that however severely General
Sherman might criticise the review Of
his Memoirs by the undersigned, of
which he was more particularly speak
ing to the reporter, he would not so far
forget what belonged to his high Office
as to use language at once so coarse, so
false and so unofficer-like, therefore call
ed the attention of General Sherman in
writing, to the reporters article, and
asked If the words attributed TO him
were correctly stated.
EkInnouoI
them in language in som, respects still
more gross than that to which his atten-
tion had been called.
"This letter he subsequently exhibited
to others, by which exhibition he again
violated the laws relating to the crime Of
SANDER.
Gas this second offense was committed
in cool moments, and when even the
poor excuse of sudden heat developed by
a discussion with the reporter Cowles of
The criticisms of his Memoirs did not ex-
ist, there was but one course left to a
man claiming to possess a good character
among his fellows, and that was to give
General Sherman an opportunity to ex-
bibit the grounds for his grave asser-
tiOns. The undersigned therefore gave
him notice through the press that he
would in due time select tribunal and
a form of action, which, without inflict-
ing any personal indignity upon the Gen
eral of the Army, would afford him am
pie opportunity to prove the truth of Lis
charges, and in case of his failure would
place him before the public as a reckless
slanderer.
"The undersigned therefore respect
fully requests that General Sherman may
be given an opportunity of asking to ap-
pear before such a tribunal, to make
good his charges, TO clear himself from
the above direct allegations of crime,
and also to establish, if he can, the accu-
racy, the fairness and justness of his
"Memoirs," for criticising which, in the
light of the official records he has seen
tit to charge me with deliberate false
hood, with the garbhng of the records
and with general baseness, as more for
mally set forth in the charge and specifi-
cations herewith inclosed.
"If these charges are not in proper
form, the undersigned respectfully asks
that others may he drawn to cover the
ground indicated, and that they may
then be forwarded to General Sherman,
in order that, if he feels confidence in his
ability to sustain his charges against the
undersigned, or to meet those here with
presented against him, he may avail him
self of his right to ask for Court to set |
tie the points thus formally placed at |
issue"
The charge and specification are theA
set forth in legal form. Nothing has yet
transpired regarding the view which