Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1898-08-19

what Attorney AckersOn based MS
charges and the extent of them as pre-
sented to Secretary Alger. Among the
regiments mentioned as being victims
of the abuse were the Third New York
and the One Hundred and Fifty ninth
Indiana. The Third New York Is made
up from the separate companies Of wes-
tern New York, the personnel of several
of them being quite prominent.
'sWord reached Attorney .Ackerson
that Private Townsend of Company E,
Third Regiment, had peen called before
his colonel charged with having sent
home the information on which the
charges were based, and he, Ackerson,
then addressed letter to Capt. Mclean
of that company, stating that Townsend
was not responsible, suspicion having
been directed to him on account of his
being relative of Ackerson. It was
evident that all the army officials were
anxious to know the extent of the mat
ter. Ackerson was asked to make his
letter to Alger public, but refused for
several days, finally giving it ont It
was as follows:
1.-The Hon. Russell A. Alger, Secre-
tary Of War, Washington, D. C.-Dear
Sir: desire to bring to your notice the
fact that march made by brigade
from Camp Alger on the 25th of June,
including the Third New York and One
Hundred and Fifty ninth Indiana regi-
ments, was, as is alleged. an outrage,
and the officer who directed it notfst for
a cattle driver. The troops were march
ed fifteen miles in four hours and thirty
four minutes, through sitting heat and
I'dust, with but two stops of six minutes
each. More than half the men were
prostrated before the camp was reached,
and some actually died on the march.
Take Company E Of the Third New
York, for instance. Out of eighty -four
men only twenty six marched back into
camp, the rest were in ambulances and
stretched along the line of march. A
man in Company I, One Hundred and
Fifty y.ninth Indiana, was actually killed
and others are likely to die. And yet
all this was suffered by these men. not
in the service of the country, but, as is
claimed, that an officer might win bet
of two dozen bottles of champagne.
81 appeal to you to investigate this
matter, and if you discover the officer
who, it is claimed, seemed willing to,
and actually did, kill men in order to
win bet, to deal out to him such pun
ishment as he deserves, for he is guilty
of nothing less than murder. Respect
fully yours, Fred M. Ackerson.'
'The last heaad from the matter from
the front that Gen. M. W. Sheafe, COM
manding the First brigade of the Sec
ond division, was making an investiga-
tion. Attorney Ackerson has the conf
dence of the people, and it is said that
he will not let the matter drop until
justice is meted out to the officers gull
ty of the cruelty
People will begin now to understand
some of the reasons why the officers of
the First regiment did not want Col.
Sheafe. The public may more accur-
ately judge the wisdom of Governor
Lee in appointing another man to CON-
mand the South Dakota volunteers.
With the present officers in charge the
parents and friends of the South Dakota
boys need have no fear that they will
be made the victims of drunken Off
Ger. They will not be marched to death
to win a case of champagne. Col. Bar
nett, of the Indiana regiment, had i'm
mediate charge Of the men, under the
general charge of Col. Sheafe, and only
followed instructions. At least such
are the allegations. The following edi-
torial in the Chicago Tribune of the
11th inst, sums up the situation, learn
cd from later dispatches: