Omaha daily bee., 1895-09-30
SHOULD HAVE IGNORED ARMIES
General schofeld Makes a Mistake in No.
tiCing the Letter.
GIVES THE MAJOR HIS OPPORTUNITY
Alleged grievances Against the Lnte
commandments of the
Army May Now lie Thor
ougbly Aired.

today, declined to say what he would do In
the case of Major Armes, who was arrested
Friday night on the order OF General Scho-
field for insubordination 81 have not yet
had time,' said he, Ito give the matter
consideration
At the Army and Navy club, the swell
organization of the city, and in department
circles the affair has been pretty thoroughly
discussed. The dominating opinion is that
General Schofeld committed a grave mistake
in ordering the arrest Of Major Armes. There
las been a bitter feud between the men, dat
ing back twenty-five years. Major Armes is
an eccentric character who has lived In
Washington for a generation or more, and who
Is prominent in the business and social life
Of the capital. He Is a truculent, disagree
able person, and has been in trouble so often
and under such peculiar circumstances that
he has come to be regarded as, in a meas
ure, irresponsible. His freakiness, however,
has not interfered with his money making
faculties. and he has amassed a fortune Of
81, 900, 900 in real estate and other operations.
He dates his hostility to General Schofeld
to an occasion twenty-five years ago, when
the latter was instrumental in having him
dismissed from the army, unjustly, as he
says. Armes was afterward reinstated by an
act of congress. He was placed on the re-
tired list In 1888. He has never for a min
ute ceased to d~enOunce General Schofield as
the head Of a conspiracy to degrade, humili-
ate and prosecute him. General Schoield has
denied the charges, but there is nevertheless
some foundation for the allegation.
ARMIES is DISAGREEABLE.
The fact is hrmes was a very disagreeable
Individual, hard to get along with and uncon-
trollab,e. He was a kicker and not amenable
81, tha prIinary rttlac nf iii spip1ipn G,nh la;p.
the case. It was, by one Of those lac thy Under
stood arrangements, determined TO get rid of
him., and 1t so happened in the carrying out
of this unwritten design that General Scho-
field was obliged to figure more or less act
lively. In the language of an old army officer.
when 1t is decided in either the army or
the navy to double team against a man he
is a 'goner.'" They "doublo-teamed on
Armes, and he himself describes 1t as having
made his "life a hell" But having lots of
money and influential connections, he con-
tinued to poster the men who had 'tdowned'
him and secured an honorable reinstatement
on the retired list. He has always said that
he would have it out with Schoield before
the latter retired from active service, and
his letter to the general rsciting his wrongs
and demanding an apology was the result.
III the general OF the army had been as big
a man as he would like to have himself re-
garded he would have paid no attention to
the half-crazy demonstration, but the biggest
OF men make themselves exceedingly small
when under the influence of passion, and this
is what Shofeld did when he took advantage
OF his brief authority as acting secretary of
war and placed under arrest a man with
whom he had been on terms of personal hos
tility. The impression made upon the public
mind by the performance Is that Major
Armes may have substantial grounds for his
charges against his commanding officer.
If Schofeld had been a big man he would
have ignored the letter from Armes. The
arrest was exactly what the latter wanted.
He has thus bsen given a chance to exploit
his grievance to the world. and II the gen.
eral insists upon going through with the mat
ter Armes will have the opportunity of tell
ing a very ugly story. which, whether right
or wrong, will be a scandal Schof eld's
friends may well wish had been avoided.
1t is a cloud upon the last days of the gen.
erals active career.
Whether Armes secures his liberty by
writ OF habeas corpus or whether his case
Will come before a court-martial, or both,
are matters which will be developed in due
course of time. Whatever course is pur-
sued, 1t is already assured that a vehicle will
be created for the widest airing of an affair
which might have been hushed up to the ad-
vantage of everybody concerned If General
Sehofeld had only exercised good judg-
ment In the premises and not been carried
away by the heat of passion.
ASSAULT ON GENERAL BEAVER.
Major Armes brought himself into con-
spicuous notoriety in 1889 by an attack upon
General Beaver of Pennsylvania in the Riggs
house. General Beaver was grand marshal
Of the Harrison inaugural parade, and on that
occasion Major Armes was one of his aides.
In his anxiety to show off Armes under
took to take virtual charge of the proceed
ings. He pervaded the whole city, and his
eccentric behavior compelled Beaver to an
null his appointment as aide and order his
retirement from the field of activity. This
action incensed Major Armes to an extraor-
binary degree. and meeting General Beaver
in the Riggs house the next day he pulled
the latter's nose. General Beaver, though
q one-legged man and not in robust health,
made an ugly fight and would have soundly
thrashed the major but for the interference
OF bystanders. For this offense AImes was
taken before a court-martial and would have
been dismissed but for the Interference of
General Schofeld, who pleaded for Glenn
ency on the ground that Armes was insane.
General Schofeld's action produced such an
effect that the ignollinious dlmissal recon-
mended by the cour;-martial was spared him,
and In lieu thereof he was sentenced to i'm
prisonment within a ffty-mile limit of Wash
ington for a period Of five years. This SEN
tence was committed after two years.
Armes says that he would rather have
been dismissed In disgrace or shot than have
been granted mercy on the plea Of insanity.
He holds that General Schofield was in no
manner authorized to act in his behalf and
that the insanity defense was the very re-
inement OF revenge on the part of the com
handing officer. IL was the browning act
in what he terms "A long period Of persecu-
ton, and In tbs majors opinion II consti-
tutes his chief grievance.
PROSECUTED HIS DAUGHTER.
Another incident in Major Armes' career
which has been revived by this affair is his
persecution of a daughter who desired To
marry a very worthy young man in this
city. He pursued the young woman and
her afianced with a revolver, Threatening
the lives Of both, and would not be appeased
until long after their marriage, to which Re
drove them in haste one day In extremity.
He was finally reconciled to the young peo-
pie, who are In every way worthy Of the
highest regard.
Major Armes lives at a splendid country
home near Chevy Chase. an arlstocratic
suburb FIVE miles north Of the city. During
his first term President Cleveland began
negotiations with the major for the pur-
chase Of the place, but the chief executive
found the infammahle army officer too tough
a customer to do business with, and the deal
fell through. 1t is stated that on the &C.
casion Of the presidents first visit TO
"Armslelgh," the name OF the majors
GENTRY home, the host had prepared a most
elaborate banquet. but that the distinguished
visitor never got beyond the porch, Armes
. ordering him on the place in q 1T Of furious
.AA A..Aa aA-AA 40