The Portland daily press., 1884-06-11
THE SWAIN INQUIRY.
Finding Of the Court Laid Before
the President.
THE GENERAL TO BE COURT
lTARTEALED.

! w AsHlNGTON, jane 1U.-The record OF the
Conrt OF Inquiry in the case of Judge Advocate
General Swain was made public TODAY, The
court reviews the evidence regarding the loan
pf S5OO0 by Gen. Swain to J. Stanley Brown
70 enable the latter to increase his interest in
Inc nrm Of Bateman & Co., the subsequent
withdrawal OF Brown from the firm and giving
q q due bill to Swain by Bateman & Co., for
SoOUo IN payment of loan to Brown. During
ana alter Mr. Browns connection with the
nrm OF Bateman & Co., the court says Gen.
oWalm bought and sold stocks on margins
through its agency, the usual account being
Kept by the firm During all his dealing with
bateman & Co., Gen. Swain kept but one &C
count with them, which included all stock
transactions, and such other monetarG dealings
as ne had with them. Disagreement about
the accounts or failure on the part OF Swain
70 understand them occurred and on several
occasions bank statemenes were furnished him
ana offers made,to explain such items as he did
NOT understand. In November, 1888, con-
soildated statement of his accounts was
furnished to Gen. Swain BY the bank showing
a balance in his favor of $685. Gen, Swain
caused O statement OF his accounts with the
pank TO De prepared, but as these omitted
some transactions they were incomplete, and
Mr: Ferry protesting to be an expert ac-
count2nti was sent with one of these state
ments (prepared by himself to the bank by
Gen. Swain to get some explanations and to
complete the statement by reference to the
books. The books were shown to him and all
the information asked for at the bank was
given in the consolidated statement furnished
by Bateman & Co. to Swain. He is credited
under date of July 20, 1882, with $1,000 deposit
ed by Brown on leaving the firm; and as
against this and other credits Gen. Swain
IS charged with checks drawn on
his stock operations, etc. About February Is,
1854, Swain assigned the duekbiil by endorse
ment to Bright, Humphreys, & Co., builders,
to collect and credit to him on his account with
them. Humphreys testified that Swain told
him to collect whatever was due on the due
bill and credit him with whatever the amount
might be. Mr. Beal, the cashier of Bateman
q Co., testified that Mr.. Humphreys presented
the due bill to him as q representative of the
firm and demanded payment of its nominal
face value, principal and interest. Bateman
@ 20. refused payment and thereupon Gen.
SwsiB directed Bright, Humphreys & Co. to
bring suit, he promising to defray the expenses
OF the litigation. Suit was brought for $4,000
With interest and costs. Swain maintains
that he only brought that suit to determine the
difference "a few hundred dollars) between him
and Bateman & Co., but that statement
does not appear to have been known to Bate
man TILL after he had preferred charges against
Swain.
On the 10th Of April, the day upon which
the suit had been instituted, Mr.. Bateman
preferred his charges against Gen. SWAIN, and
on the next day NJ. M. Parker, who appears
as the friend of both parties to the controversy
brought them together at his office for the pur-
pose OF reconciling and arranging their diff
cult1eS. This meeting resulted in an under
standing, record evidence OF which appears in
the guarantee of Gen. Swain for the surren-
der of the due bill to Mr.. Parker, and an
agreement of Gen. Swain and Bateman to
submit their business differences to the arbi-
tration of Hon. Benjamin Butterworth, In
the conversation leading to these arrange
ments, reference was made to only so much of
mr.. Bateman'S charge as related to the due
bill and suit. Bateman denies that the nue.
bill was to be submitted to arbitration, but
both Swain and Parker testify such was their
understanding of the agreement.
That agreement having been made Bateman
addressed his second letter to the secretary of
war Withdrawing his charges, and conceding
that they mad been made under a missap-
prehenslon OF facts. The secretary OF war,
however, on the 18th of April transmitted both
OF Mr.. Bateman's letters to Gen. Swain with
endorsement calling for a report or explana-
ton upon the subject, and Gen. Swaim's reply
was returned the same day. After publication
OF Swaim's reply to the secretary of war Bate
man IN personal interviewwith Swain charg-
ed that his reply was untrue and declared that
It had put an end to the agreement between
them.
Meanwhile the secretary of war not being
satisfied WithSwsim's explanation reported the
M after TO the President recommending court
OF inquiry. In addition TO the charge of fraud
IN the matter of the due bill Bateman in his
letter OF April 18th, accuses Gen. Swain of
assisting in negotiating with his firm of army
pay vouchers which he knew to be fraudulent.
The facts as shown by the evidence are thai
Col. A. L. Morrow, at that time an aid-de-
camp to the General, and now Lieut.. Col of
the Sixth Cavalry went to Gen. Swaim's office
accompanied by Maj. D. b. McKidden and
stated to him that ne was deeply in debt and
wished to borrow from Gen. Swain about$SOOO
on pay vouchers and other securities zen,
Swain declined to lend him the money but re-
terred him to bankers and brokers in this CITY
who did such business, at Col. Morrow's re-
guest and gave him note of introduction to
Batemsn 8 Co.
The weight of the evidence is that Swain
did not know the pay vouchers referred to by
Col. Morrow we're fraudulent, and that he had
nothing to do with the negotiation of them.
By the requirement. of the court. and in view
OF the last paragraph of his letter to the Secre-
tary OF War. Bateman submitted as his only
additional charge against Swain statement
that some time after an arrangement had been
made by certain brokers of this city, Mr. Bate
man being one and Col. Morrow, for an adj
Justment OF his accounts with them, Gen
Swain said to Bateman, Nov Bateman, if
Cook and the rest OF you do not chip in and let
me out on what Morrow owes me, l will
squeeze him at the department so that YOU
wont any OF you get your money" To that
statement OF Swaim's Bateman testified under
oath. Gen. Swain testified that he made no
such statement. Parker, in whose office the
conversation took place, and who was present
part of the time testified that he heard no
words OF that kind but that he heard General
Swain say something about court martial
and that if Colonel Morrow was court mar
tailed they would all lose their pay. The
weight of testimony is that some remark was
made by General Swain conveying this warn
ing or intimation but the exact words used
cannot be determined.
The court is of the opinion that while it is
net prepared to say that any specific act devel.
oped by evidence is actually fraudulent vet
the evidence does show series of transactions
discreditable to any officer of the army and
which especially demands the severest con-
domination when engaged in by an officer hold
ing the high position and peculiar rela-
ton to the administration of Justice in the
army held by Brlgadier General Swain.
The Secretary of War laid the report before
the President today and it was decided to or
der court martial for the trial OF General
Swain, and the detail for the court will be
made in a few days.