Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1885-03-17
GEN. HAZEN,S TRIAL.
Interesting WHIST Judge
Mackey Proposes 10 Shsw.
WASHINGTON. Marc

I WASHINGTON, MArSn 10.
/ In the Hszen court martial today, the coun-
sci for the defence called Gen. Hazen TO the
stand.
/ He was asked: 'sBy what authority and
| by whom was the Lady Franklin Bay expedi-
I ton organized and set in motion?"
1 The judge advocate objected to the qaes-
4 ton.
! Judge Maekey, counsel for the accused,
said: 1T is eminently material who set this
/ expedition in motion. Our purpose is 10
/ show that the President set il in motion bv
an executive order signed by his own hand,
and not transmitted through the secretary of
war; that one President directed the organi-
zation of the expedition, and another appoint
/ ed its commanding officer, and that upon this
| field the Secretary of war was an intruder,
! except TO disburse funds upon the requisition
| of the chief signal officer"
The court refused To allow the question to
| be asked
| The witness testified that prior TO Septem-
ber, 1888, he had on several occasions, by
| communications addressed to the secretary of
war, questioned the wisdom of the latter $
| decisions IN relation 10 matters pertaining to
! the signal service. and protested against such
| decisions, and that on several occasions such
decisions had been revoked in consequence
of his protests. He said that in none of these
instances had he first asked permission of the
/ secretary 10 address a communication to him,
and he said he knew of no law or custom re-
quirtng him to do So
| Gen. Hazen testified further that he had
never knowingly been disrespeotfnl in Ian
any OF his superior officers.
In the argument upon objections the eoun-
sci for the accused several times violently
assallei the late secretary OF was, Mr.. Lin
coin. On one occasion ne asserted that the
accused has thrown against ann the great
weight OF the war office, the great weight af a
name once honored by an illustrious citizen" Z"
In the course ot the examination Gen.
iiazen admitted having written TO the seCre-
tary of war as charged in die first specitica-
ton that after the return of the Proteus
party i'll 1888, there was still time to send an
expedition TO the relief of Lieut., Greedy, and
he also admitted having stated in "A commun-
lcatlon to the secretary Of war that the traa c
termination of the Greedy expedition was
finally due to the decision of the secretary
not to send an expedition north in the fall of
1883. lie gave as his reason for making
these statements that he had been held to the
most serious responsibility for not efiectually
rescuing the Greedy party, aud that in his
own defence he simply wished to state as a
fact that Greedy could have been rescued,
and that he (Hazen) did all in his power to
have him rescued. He also admitted having
written the letter of Feb. 3. 1885, to the Sec
retary of war, and he said that at the time he
wrote he possessed proof of each and every
statement made in the letter.
Judge Mackev called the attention of the
witness to the fact that his letter to the secre-
tary dated Feb. II, last, was endorsed by the
secretary as having been received at the war
department Feb. &c, and also to the fact that
the statement concerning the contents of this
letter was published in the Chicago Tribune
of Feb. %, and asked where the letter was
kept prior to Feb 26.
Gen. Hazen replied that it was kept in his
desk
Judge Mackey asked whether within a re-
cent period, official letters have not been pur-
loined from the desks in the signal office and
taken to the secretary of war.
The judge advocate objected to this ques-
ton.
Judge Mackey said the purpose of the de-
fence is to negative the presumption that the
accused circulated the contents Of the lette-
He said he proposed to show that letters have
purloiDed from the desks in the signal Office
and taken to the secretary of war by the per-
son purloining them, and that that person
received special employment after purloinng
! the letters. He said he wauted to show the
general course of administration with refer
ence to the chief signal officer that nothing
was safe nor sacred in the office of the chief
signal officer from the hand of the secretary
of war by dav or night.
Pending further examination of Gen.
Hazen, the court adjourned till tomorrow