Los Angeles daily herald., 1890-01-24
THE RUSSELL INQUIRY.
A Court-martial Recon-.
mended.
THE CASE STATED AT LENGTH
An Exhaustive Document-The Old
Difficulty to be Cleared Up
at Last.

The report of the committee appointed
ON July 9, 1889, to investigate the con-
duct and financial affairs of Colonel w.
H. H. Russell, commanding officer of
the Seventh Regiment, N. G. O., was
submitted yesterday to General E. r.
johnson, the commanding officer of the
First Brigade. The circumstances at
tending the appointment of the commit
tee and the nature of its findings were
outlined in yesterdays HERALD. The
committee consisted of W. G. Cochran,
Lieutenant Colonel and Surgeon of the
First Brigade; g. Wiley Wells, Major
and Judge Advocate, and Fl. q. Osborne,
Captain and A. D. @.
In April of 1887 court of inquiry
composed of Major George II. Bone
brake, Major E. L. Stern and Captain
w. G. Stephenson, was appointed, which
made q report to General John R
Mathews, at that time commanding
the First Brigade. One paragraph ir
bn6u xOROku AObuo 10 AOLOW6s
"There was one fact which was proven
to our satisfaction: That the sum oi
$11 ,213 80 had been received and handled
by Major w. Il. H. Russell belonging to
the Eagle Corps company and battalion
between November IS, 1881, and July l,
1886. Major Russell presented an ac-
count to the court showing that the SUM
of $11, ,213 80 had been received by him
as above stated, and the sum of $14, ,185. .43
had been expended by him, or by per-
sons under his direction or authority.
OF the total sum expended by him be
presented to the court vouchers to the
amount of Sc, ,465 68, leaving an amount
of $7,719.75 without vouchers. He
therefore received and expended by his
own showing the sum of $7,719.75 for
which he has no vouchers"
The Eagle Corps referred to was the
organization which preceded the National
Guard in this city. When the latter was
formed the Eagle Corps became com.
panies A and G, and the accounts were
carried over from one to the other.
Major Russell was the Captain of the
corps and the Treasurer of it's funds.
The report of the former court con.
cluded as follows:
''The last hearing of the matter before
the court showed that different method
had been adopted by the Eagle Corps in
reference to money matters. A regular
system of books is to be kept, and a
committee of three is to disburse and
order the disbursement of all moneys
belonging to the battalion. y
[nasmuch as new system has been in
for keeping all books and &C.
counts and of disbursing the moneys of
he battalion, we do not feel justified in
recommending any further action in the
natter"
The report submitted by the present
)ourt Of Inquiry consists of a vol
lme of testimony containing over 400
,ages of type written matter. This is
by q synopsis giving q
General statement of the past history of
he case and reviewing the work OF the
ormer court, whose decision is quoted
'bove. After going over the testimony
# Colonel Russell and others on the
natter of the financial affairs which
we're in that officers charge, it sums up
as follows:
"rhe evidence shows that Colonel
Russell received, from the date of the
of the corps (June 9, 1881
to July 16, 1889, a total sum of $780,
298. so.
"The former Court of Inquiry reported
that he had produced vouchers to the
amount of Sc, 1855 He has produced
vouchers before this court for expend-
itures since that report was made to the
amount Of $12 2,250.20, making a total
expenditure for which he produces
vouchers of $1S,715 8S. For the balance
of the amount, $11, 1,5S2 81, no proper
vouchers have been presented to any
competent authority; and the vouchers
which he did present show that the
same were never audited by any audit
ing committee, or were ever properly be-
fore any regular meeting of the Eagle
Corps, or paid by warrant on the Treas
urer properly drawn.
''The most utter disregard for accounts
seems to have been the controlling mo.
tive, and certainly If it was not inten
tional it succeeded in Disgusting the true
disbursements and true condition OF the
corps as to their financial condition anl
standing"
The financial methods of Colonel Rus
sell, in the Eagle Corps, and the efforts
made to bring him to an accounting ar,
thus set forth in the report:
"The court find that the company
commander, Captain (now Colonel
Russell, assumed control of this organi
zation; that there were no proper book
kept or attempted to be kept; or at leas
none were produced before the court
and that every rule governing the organ
ization was entirely disregsrded; tina
the organization seems to have been rur
upon the idea of a personal one, rathe
than military organization or society
The method practiced and pursued from
the first date of the organization of the
corps up to the date when the last meet
ing was held, February 6, 1889, SEEM
to have been uniformly the same-ir
total disregard of the rights of the mem
bers.
"It is 10 evidence that at times Colone
Russell read from memoranda in hi
possession $50 much money. received
and so much disbursed." That was th,
only report in regard to finances tina
was ever made. That was the only
knowledge that the corps ever had il
relation to its finances. An attemp
was made at the meeting on February
1889, to reform the method of doing bust
ness in said corps, and for the purpose o
having the money regularly accounted
to Treasurer to be named, and all bill
first allowed by the corps, and tn,
moneys drawn from the Treasurer upor
warrants countersigned by the President
Upon this attempt being made
Colonel Russell declared that the motion
was out of order, and the meeting ad