The age-herald., 1898-05-23
THE GOVERNORS ALLEGEO NErorIsM
From the Mobile Register.

NOW that the McFarland-J OnnSton lm-
 broglio has reached the acute stage, both
 sides having had an inning and the case
 made up for public Judgment, we can
 take cognizance of it being of course, the
 only supreme court qualified to act in
 the premises.
 The charge brought against Governor
 Johnston by Captain Mcfarland is that
 he is regarding the First Alabama volun-
 teers as the Governors Own" and treat
 ing it as family regiment" The an
 swer of governor is that Captain McFar-
 land Is lacking in information and in re-
 spect to the truth.
 Let us look into the matter
 Captain Mcfarland, editor of the Stan-
 dard-Journal of Florence. a supporter of
 Governor Johnso I, was detected by a Mont-
 gomery Advertiser reporter, wandering about the gorgeous union depot, compani-
 less and apparently oecupationless. A
 military man in such a DO sitfon in time of war naturally excited curiosity, ard the captain was interviewed. He gave up
 his story very slowly, but at last It was all out of him, and it showed that the cap tain had a grievance He had heard the wars alarm and had hastened to arm and equip himself, and surround hmselI with a band of brave boys,ready for the fray. Said band numbered twenty men. How to go to the war as an officer with | only twenty men when the regulations | called for eighty, wopuld have been some7 what of a puzzle to one less fertile In re- sources than Mcfarland, but, as the story will show this was small matter to the Florentlne volunteer. He proceed ed to Sheffield and Tuscumbia and there enlisten twenty men; and he got Captain Hay of Huntsville to promise to deliver him twenty more from Huntsville and Claude
 A. Allen promised him thirty-seven to be delivered in Birmingham.
 This was force enough and when the day arrived, the captain and his twenty
 started for Mobile, but at Sheffield he found fifteen instead of twenty men; at
 Decatur. Capt. Hay did not deliver any of his twenty men, but said it was all right Still Mcfarland having the sanguine Claude in mind thought he would take the full transportation and pull through in good shape. Accordingly he got a ticket for eighty men, and the train steamed on. At Birmingham, however, Claude flick cred to the extent of not having any men there to meet the command. He explain ed that he had sent thirty-seven men to Mobile for him, and that Captain Kennedy would turn that number of men over to
  | From this 1t would appear that by the time | the captain reached Montgomery he had | thirty-fve men under his command and | no more.
 | At this point contretempts occurred | when Lieutenant Jones' representing the | state came on board the train and asked | the captain If he had his full quota of men to which he answered yes and says | he intended saying that thirty-seven of the quota had preceded him, but the train pulled out so quick he could not say 1t. Now the captains trouble began In | good earnest. Reaching Mobile Captain Hay said he could not spare his twenty | and Captain Kennedys assistance proved also of no value, since the "thirty-seven, had already been transferred to other com panies. Not being able to show his quota of men, Captain McFarland's company was at once disbanded, by order of the governor.
 Finding Captain Boyd's company of Tal- 1adega short of men, Captain McFarland bargained with him for heutenancy Tn exchange for his thirty-fve men. This, he says filled up the company, but It put the official arrangements out of joint, the | dickcr having substituted Mcfarland Tor Lieutenant Mallett The company held an election and Mcfarland says he was elect | ed, and his name sent forward to the gov | ernor. but the governor turned the e1ec- | tion down and conferred the office upon l MT Mallett. said Mallett having no mill l tarv experience, but being relative or | Governor Johnston's wife and consequent | Iy according to Mcfarland. to be preferred l as an officer of the governors family reg | iment" | That is pretty long story but we had to tell 1t all or run the risk of having McFarland's position misunderstood. | Now hear the governors
 Lieutenant Jones reported to the goyer- nor that he asked Captain Mcfarland how many men he had on the train, and he re- piled eighty-four men and three officers. s'Then you have eighty-seven In all? | McFarland replied, ives eighty-seven." | The conductor reported to Lieutenant | Jones that he could only count sixty men | in McFarland's company. On arrival at | Camp Clarke Colonel Higdon reported | that Mcfarland had thirty-five men. The | governor wired Higdon to enquire of Me l Farrand why he had left Florence with I out eighty-seven men and officers on the ! train. Higdon replied that Mcfarland said | he had expected to get men from Hunts vile and from Lieutenant Allen. There- upon the governor ordered the company disbanded Tn this opening round the governor has certainly the best of 1t. Mcfarland delivered only ten men to Boyd but if he had delivered sufficient to make a full company, the governor saws he would not have commissioned him on &C., count of disobedience of orders and mis- representation, and taxing the state for the transportation of eighty men when he did nat have half that number. This is a shot straight from the governor through the captains superstructure.
 But the next one is a hot liner The governor says he has not appointed Mir MaIlett and he will commission anyone the Talladoga .comnany recommends The The governor adds that he is not sur- prised at the inaccurate statements made by MT. Mcfarland" to wit. that the gov- ernor has a family regiment" when but two officers of the forty-six in the First
 regiment are related to him either by
 blood or marriage. and certainly he is not
 related to Mir. Mallett in any way. As for MT. Malett. Sterling A. Wood
 volunteers the statement that he was for
 several years an officer of the North Car
 oIfna naval reserve, and has seen service
 afnat and ashore
 Tho governor seems to have come ont of
 the engagement without either killed or
 wounded. but if Mcfarland has a flag
 fying anywhere we cannot find 1t.
 Improbable Folly.
 From the New York Mail and Express