Arizona weekly citizen., 1882-04-30
BIDDLE-WILLC0X.
\ Spicy Chapter from the History of
 the Late Indian Campaign.
Riddle Strikes Hard and Wilcox weaksnS-Col- Kauiz Puts n hiE Oar-Hilitary Mat
 ters at Cam Thomas

e horrors, and some of our best ranehme b and tbeir families are slaughtered. O l receipt of the news from San Carlo 9 Col SchOfeld, the commanding office B at Camp Thomas, took the field wit r his cavalry and pursued the Indian } to Ash Creek, making a march of fort
 miles and then went into camp hungrl
 and for lack of rations was compelled {
 return to Fort Thomas and then make
 new beginning. But what IS the use c
 his handful of men attending to chec those bloodthirsty scoundrels who hay
 at least one hundred and fifty warriors
 No support whatever has been given u
 from below. Thomas has just been de
 pleted by one cavalry company and cam
 Apache by two. These. it is said, ar,
 sent down to the border to make new
 push for the benefit of the ring. Tn,
 commander of the troops in the feld
 seems to be permanently located at Will
 COX. None of the great commander
 ever get past that delightful city. Won
 der if the great @ name it bears attract,
 them? Why, in the name of God, cannot the Government send us man of brain. capability or honesty of purpose to com
 mand this department.
 The enclosed paper has been circulat. ing around here for some weeks and as 1t k public document and not having yet seen it in print procure a copy and send it to you. It shows up military mat ters in Arizona somewhat. CITIZEN.
 RIDDLE KICKS HARD.
 FoRr GRANT, A. T., April 9th, 1882
 To the General of the Army, Washington. D. C. Chrough Hd. Qrs. Dept. and Mil Div. of the Pacific.
 GESERALs In the Army and Navy Journal of March llth 1882, appeared an extract from the report of Bvt. Major General O. B. Wilcox, commanding the Department of Arizona, and my com manding officer. The article was headed "Gen. Wilcox and Gen. Carr" and it reflects great discredit upon me, and is, to all intents and purposes false, in this, that took nineteen Q9) squaws from the C"yotera and Chiricahua camps, or that the Indians broke out on account of "Major Biddle's manner of proceed ling" Then the unfortunate proceeding "Of Major Riddle which resulted in 'stampeding the Indian camps all of which are false, and I can find no evidence in the researches I have made for the Department Commander to base such n reflection upon, and if he has no other information than know of, and I have made every effort to get it as the enclosed papers will show, he made it knowingly and with forethought In speaking of Major Sanford the report reads,
 AND TOOK 47 PRISONERS, ALL MALE
 WARRIORS"
 The word "tOok" as used, IS adroitly put, but it is an artiice to cast a mirage over the report that would mislead the uniformed reader Its animus is ap- parent, think. and intended to banter with my character as a soldier and yet is a fact Major Sanford "took" the prisoners
 FROM THE GUARD AT SAN CARLOS. They had been captured" and turned over, and even some of them had escaped while under guard lSee Col. Tiffany's report, marked No. 0, but nothing had been said of the escape. It was evident there was no one to be reflected upon but me. Why assimilate dissimularity al q couple Major Sanford's and my name as they are m the report? To me there IS a seeming vindictiveness and that cannot account for. There is not the slightest charge in tue Department Commanders report of dis obedience by me, and am assured now that if there had been the slightest grounds, it would have been seized on but too readily, and made the basis of but there evidently is an eI- treme effort to
 LAssO A sCAPEGoAT,
 That he may be paraded before the pub lie in the journals Of the country.
 will now give a brief history of the whole matter:
 was ordered to go to the sub-agency on Sept. 3Oth, 1881, where would find four companies of Cavalry and one con- pany of Indian scouts, to arrest George and Bonita and their bards. Upon ar irving at sub-agency. saw It was issue day, which I did not know before. The Indians were mIngling to the number | Of about one thousand. l saw the diff | culty under which would have to oper- ate. felt 1 would have to be more | than eau ious owing to the feeling that existed of want of confidence. Enclosed (No. D is my personal report to the Department Commander, dated October list, 1881. He called upon me for it. The latter part of that report, to ssh, ulder it myself" does not appear like his report which has been published. My report shows there were no squsws nf the Coyotera or Chiricahua bands taken by me, and 1t shows my reasons for taking the ones I did, and fine, the Commander, believed me to be a truthful officer he should have accepted my statement in good faith. If he did not, then was the time to reflect | on me when the report went Tn. But he lid not, or not officially, which latter IS the only way a true and honest soldier ,an reflect on another.
 My report shows that was in telegraph c communication with him most of the lime; that he knew of my acts and if he lad the slightest desire to disapprove of .hem, he was but few yards from the office and could easily nave lone so; but the only thing I received rom him was about these words: Bring llong the sick scout also when you ,ome."
 The sworn statement of John Mylett, private, Troop 4 9th Cavalry, (marked 9 ,n duty as my clerk at the time, who sat 1y me at the wire and remained there liter had gone. shows that I reported he facts fully and awaited an answer. Was there design in not answering, to zee what might turn up and then shout
 HEADS I WIN, TAILS YOU LosE" In either case? Letters marked No. 8 Is be opinion Of all the officers but TWO, md one of those is inclosed in letter marked No. f Doctor Byrne never saw be endorsements of the other officers.