The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1898-08-30
ADJUTANT GENERAL HENRY CLARK CORBIN,
of rhe officials Department
Miles Has Made Charges
you Jointly agree upon. Matters should

you Jointly agree upon. Matters should
be settled promptly
r. A. ALGER, Secretary of War
This dispatch recognized Niles as
the commander and gave him authority
to act Shafter was entirely ignored
In the face of this situation Secretary
Alger, through General Corbin, sent a
dispatch to General Shafter assuring
him that General Miles did not come to
Cuba to supersede Shafter in any way.
This dispatch General Miles refers 10
as secret, for, he says, he did not know
1t had been sent, not having been notl-
fed from Washington and General
Shafter saying nothing to him about 1t.
After the surrender General Miles still
retained control. He authorized Shaf-
ter to appoint peace commissioners,
and, Judging from Skaters report, that
all was over. he instructed him as to
the disposition of the troops.
July Is General Shafter wired
General Miles that the surrender was
not as complete as was thought,
and said: please do not go
away with the achievements, as may
yet need them Miles promptly replied
by wire from BatQuiri that the sur
render is complete and the Spaniards
must surrender.
ION July 16 shafter wired Miles that
the surrender was finally complete.
And General Miles replied through Ad-
jutant General Gilmore as follows
The commanding general is very
much gratified to hear that the sur
render is complete. He directs that
you telegraph anything of importance
and the condition of your command
daily General Miles then reported
the condition of affairs TO the Score
tary of War, with whom he had been in
conference.
I'm one of his kilograms to Miles
Secretary Alger says: AS soon as
Santiago falls the troops must all be
put in camp as comfortable as they
can be made and remain, l suppose,
until the fever has had its run
Miles urged the return of the army
10 the United States as soon as posi-
Bile. July II Shafter wired as follows
to General Miles:
sIBoNEY, July IT, s:4s P. m.
(received July 1s).-General Miles,
on board Yale: Letters and orders In
reference to movement in camp re-
ceived and will be carried out. No one
is more anxious to get away from
here than myself. It seems from
your orders given me that you re-
gard my forces as part of your COM
mand. Nothing will give me greater
pleasure than serving under you,
general, and I shall comply with all
YOUR requests and directions, but I
was told by the Secretar- that you
were not to supersede me in COM
mand here. will furnish the infor-
nation called for as to the condition
of command to Gilmore, adjutant
general, A. n. @.
SKATER, Major General.
General Miles very promptly replied
as follows:
PLAYA DEL ESTE, Guantanamo,
July 10, 1870 a. m.-General Shat
ter: Telegram received. Have no de-
sire and nave carefully avoided any
appearance of superseding you.
Your command is part of the
United States army, which 1 have
the honor to command, having been
duly assigned thereto, and directed
by the President to go wherever l
thought my presence required, and
give such general directions as I
thought oest concerning military
matters, and especially directed to go
to Santiago for a specific purpose.
You will also notice that the order
of the Secretary of War of July Ii
left the matter to my discretion. /
should regret that any event should
cause either yourself or any part OF
your command to cease to be part
of mine. Very truly yours,
NELSON A. MILES,
Major General Commanding United
States Army.
General Miles then gave Gen
eral Shafter final instructions and
left hurriedly for Porto Rico, for rea-
sons already known to the readers of
the Star. In view of the situation as
revealed by the above kilograms the
following statement contained in the
New York Herald Of recent date is
quoted:
Shafter. informing him that Major Gen
eral Miles was not sent to supersede him
in supreme command of the troops in
the field at Santiago de Cuba, prevented
the storming of the city on the day of
it's surrender and resulted in the saving
OF lives which otherwise would have
been lost in the attack. then ! am repaid
for sending II a thousandfold."
This statement was made this after
noon by Secretary Alger apropos of the
publication in the Herald of yesterday
setting forth the doings of Major Cen
eraI Miles during his brief stay in Cuba.
The Secretary told me he did not pro-
pose to enter into any controversy re-
garding the Santiago campaign with
| ANYBODY. The results spoke for them
| selves, and they were a sufficient justi-
! fication for the policy which had been
pursued by the War Department in the
/ conduct of the operations against San
| tiago.
my cablegram to General Shafter, u
he continued, was simply due to my de
| sire TO assure him that l intended to
be absolutely fair Before his departure
| from Washington General Miles and ]
! talked the matter over, and he started
! for Cuba knowing that he was not in
any way to interfere with the operations
| which were under the control of General
| Shafter That there could be no doubt
whatever, cabled to General Shafter in.
| forming him that General Miles had left
| for Cuba with instructions not to in any
manner supersede him as commander OF
| the troops In the field at Santiago de
| Cuba, and as have said, If my message
prevented a battle on the morning of the
| day the city Slrrendered then am re.