Arizona republican., 1895-11-28
MILITIA OFFICERS FREED. End of the Trayer Epi-
 SOde. The Governor ReVerSeS the
 Court t-MartiaI. Order Calling the Court Was Illegal. Powers of the Regimental
 Colonel.

Perhaps the most troublesome matter that. has come before the executive during his incumbency, has been the sentence of the court martial at Tue son in the case of Captain J. M. Trayer and the officers of the Mexican" mi litia company at that point. The com mand, contemptuous of the order of Col. John Martin, left the ranks of a Fourth of July celebration. The off, i cers were court martialed and sentence imposed. The governor has held the papers ever since, though under strong pressure for a finding. Taking his time he has consulted with Judge Ad- vocate General Campbell and other attorneys on the subject and finally has issued the folloing order, that settles the disputed point:
 Phoenix, Ariz, Nov. 27, 1895.
 General orders No. '.
 General order No. 5, dated Head quarters of the National Guard of Ari- zona, July 15, 1895, converting gen eral court martial, to meet at Tucson i July 15, 1895, for the trial of Captain J. M. Trayer, First infantry, and such other persons as may be properly brought before it, having been issued without lawful authority, is hereby re voked, and all proceedings of the gen eral court martial appointed by said general order No. 5, are set aside.
 Captain J. M. Trayer, Lieutenant D. L. Hughes and Private R. Brophy, Company D, First regiment, infantry National Guard of Arizona, are re- leased from arrest and restoration to duty
 I General 4 order Mo- 4, dated at the the adjutahf generals office July g, 1895, discharginggter ertain enlisted men of Company F, First regiment infan- try National Guard of Arizona, having been issued without lawful authority, Is hereby revoked.
 l Any order issued by Col J. H. Martin, commanding First Regimen. infantry, National Guard of Arizona, general order No. are hereby set aside.
 For the instruction and future guid- ance of the National Guard of Arizona attention is called to the fact that had the order apointing the court been lawful the proceedings should have been set aside on other grounds
 The order then recites that. in de- fiance of the articles of war, time for proper defense was denied the accused, and asserts that the prosecution was rushed.
 A very important distinction is drawn lby the governor in the following outline of the duties of a colonel for the N. G. IA:
 ''Col. J. H. Martin is in command of the First Regiment infantry, National Guard of Arizona, for administrative purposes, and cannot command them as troops without the regiment meets as an organized body, either in en- campment or ordered out for the pur- poses of suppressing riot, or insurrec- tlon or during war. He cannot place himself on duty by virtue of his con- mission, but must be placed on duty by virtue of an order from higher author ity. The colonel of a regiment, in the absence of such an order, could by TO means or authority of his own, be in command of Company D, First Regi- ment of infantry, on the 4th day of July, 1895. If not in command it would seem he could issue no order; conse- quently there was no disobedience, no violation of any lawful order"
 Again, as the battalion formation had been discontinued, the two comaanies could not have been commanded as a battalion. If it had been a battalion parade, the major would have been in command, not the colonel.
 Relative to the duties of the colonel, the order states: There is no author ity of the law for the commander-in- chief to fix the station of the regi- mental commander. and no officer can assume command by virtue of the ac- cldent of his residence, and that garri- sons of militia are unknown except in actual war, insurTection or riot.
 ''The sentence of the court martial in addition to dismissal from the ser vice, inflicts upon the accused terms of punishment in the jail of Pima county.
 Section g, article 10, Military Code, expressly provides that in time of peace, no sentence, other than dismis- sal from service, shall be inflicted.
 ''It is difficult to understand how the court composed of such intelligent off, cers could pass such a sentence with . this plain statute before them.
 Attention is called to the import ance of rigid discipline in all branches of the service of the National Guard of Arizona, and that the rules and regu- , lations governing the United States army be strictly compiled with, to the , end that every violation of the same may be dealt with in s.rict conformity to law.
 Respect to superiors and obedience