Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1883-12-09
FINISHED.


Conclusion Of the Court Martial of Cant,
MeKihben--The Defense Puts in its Argu-
ment-The Cosrs Finishes its INQUIRIES
and Adjourns.
Fifteenth infantry, held its third and final
session yesterday MThe proceedings were
quite brief. All the members of the court
were present as on the two preceding days.
After Judge Advocate Myrick had read the
official copy of Fridays proceedings Capt.
McKibben read to the court his written
argument. The facts upon which
It was based were presented fully in the
GLOBE yesterday. The accused at the
outset of the trial acknowledged that his
pay had been twice drayn On the dates
named in the charges, bat he denied that
ii was done with any fraudulent intent.
The loss of his memoranda in 1881 con-
tanning the dates for which his pay &C.
counts had been turned over TO his sister
was the cause of the errors being commit
ted, but throughout that period Captain
McKibben was constantly in position to
control, and did control considerable
amount Of private funds belonging to
himself or his relatives which was at any
time available to him if be needed it, The
utter absence of any motive for the mis-
doing was the gist of the argument, the
reading of which only occupied about ten
minutes. The utmost gain that can be
achieved by an army officer
duplicating his accounts for any
one month is the use of the
money for perhaps twenty -eight days and
that would certainly be small eonsidera-
ton to induce him to barter away his
commission and his honor. Toward the
conclusion q his reading Captain McKib-
ben said to the court with evident feeling
that if from the evidence, coupled with
his record and the testimonials he had
presented to them and from their own per-
sonai acquaintance with him they thought
he was guilty of fraudulent intent, it was
their duty to purge the service of such an
ofieer-but if his career during twenty
t"o years Of army service, combined with
the evidence showing lack of motive for
committing fraud, satisfied them that there
was no such guilty intent, then they owed
it to the army, to themselves, and to him
to wipe away the stain which the charges
cast against his character. The document
read by Captain McKibben occupied ap-
parentIy only three pages of legal cap
paper.
THE CoNoLUsIoN.
The judge advocate made no reply to
the defense, but after reading for the in
struction to the court the secretary of
wars ruling in the recent case of Lieuten-
ant Robertson, Eighth cavalry, he submit
ted the case in the court without argument.
The court was thereupon cleared, and its
further proceedings were conducted pri-
vately. The members look q recess for
lunch and then reconvened, remaining in
session until about 3 o'clock in the after
noon, when they adjourned, having, it was
rumored, in the meantime reviewed the
whole subject, found their verdict, and put
the finishing stamp upon the record of
the proceedings. The matter was then
ready to be submitted to Gen.
Terry, whose action when an
nounced will be the first positive
notification that will be had if the nature
of the verdict. 1t is confidently be-
lieved, however, that the latter was one of
asHuital.
rApT. MoKIBBEN's RECORD.
In CONCLUSION lS-es remarked By those
present that Capt. McKIp'en did not seek
to introduce into the proceedings ference
to the details of his record IS an army
officer That record, however, is one
which is attested to by several wounds, and
that will well challenge respectful consid-
Grafton. His entry into the service was
noteworthy. In 1862 he accompanied The
the army Of the Potomac TO the peninsu-
la as sutler to the Fourteenth U. S. infan-
try. On June 9th of that year, the day
after the battle of Mechanicsyiile, he was
obliged, in the change of the arrny's posi-
ton to destroy his tents with all their
valuable contents, and he wound up his
business effectually by throwing his books
of account into the flames and thus oblit-
er!ting ali record of the amounts due to
him from the command. Then he re-
placed his citizen clothing with a soldiers
uniform, and borrowing musket, fought
CALAMITY ell DAY in the memorable battle
of Gaines Mill. His conspicuous bravery
attracted wide attention and after the
'seven days retreat,'' the officers of Sykes
regular brigade" Of tie Fifth corps joined
in g Recommendation to the secretary Of
war that he should receive a commission.
Secretary Stanton promptly acoeded, ac-
companying its bestowal with a warm
commentator of its recipient.