Evening star., 1898-09-30
THEY MUST EXPLAIN
Men Who Make Statements Must
Give Their Authority.
War INVESTIGATING COMMISSION
General Assertions to Be Carefully
Sifted.
War INVESTIGATING G.
PLANS TO BE LLOW ED

to consider letters of complaint that have
been received by them directly or through
the President. The President today sent
them another batch of such letters and
their own mail is daily increasing in size.
There were four members of the commits
sion present today, as follows: Col. Den
by, chairman; Gen. Wilson, Capt. Howell
and eX-Gov. Woodbury.. The morning ses-
sion lasted from 10 until II 30 O'Clock and
at 30 the commission reassembled to con-
tInue the same work it had been engaged
on during the morning. The members of
the commission now in the city are not
acting on important questions relating to
the policy to be their guide during the in
vestigation. deferring all such matters un-
III The full membership is present at their
deliberations. They are occupying them
selves with work that has already been
outlined. to transact which the full mem
bcrsIp is not necessary.
Ihe most significant act of the commits
SION thlS morning was in relation to an ed
it"riaI published in the Brooklyn Eagle
some tne az" commenting on what was
claimed to be an awful instance of cruelty
on the part Of medical officers in one of
the hospitals.
Calling for the Facts.
In relation to this editorial the commits
sion authorized Secretary Weishtnan to
send the following letter to St Clair Nc
kelway. editor of the Brooklyn Eagle
Dear Sir: The attention of the commits
sion has ben called TO an editorial article
in your newspaper Cdatc not gfvenD entitled
Medical Murders, Their Victims and Their
Cause am directed By tie presiding Of
fcrr TO ask you whether you have any
ltctS within your personal Knowledge upon
which You have based the charges set forth
in that article. and whether if so. YOU will
"bIEe the commission by furnishing them
with those facts in compact and explicit
form.
Permit ne to submit To your notice by
way OF illustration. an extract from the
EDITORIAL article In question:
pi d III ce with this case was the dis
I'atch at night, cn foot, Of fifteen i'll and
ftVer-fTauEht soldiers back from the gen
eTal hospital, miles To their camp amid the
CaTk1rSS. because those who had hroIght
them to that hospital in the army convey
aHc" nad lost the list of their names en-
route They We're not taken back in the
conveyance Tn driver was not sent back
70 get now list Of their names. The wag-
On was il~uSed, the inyalids were sent out
E1rAy able to stand and CgInutIIed over
nI-eS oi space 70 find their way. or lose il
as many Il them did 1t mattered not which
I" those who thrust them forth. of piece
NllA tHlS was the Imbecility Of putting
Down wooden floors in the tents Of regi-
ln~iltS, not while the regiments Were. there
but the day they left and the day after
ana of a piece with il is the imbeciiitv Of
not ordering into those canDs C5el2teIIv
made comfortable the regiments still there
and suffering for the want Of Just such
f'"ring to their tents
" 'THese arr but " chapters o frnba.ir
itE and cruelty. They mate with many
chapters in the same camp They ,nata
" MMtih thousand iHs'ancos in other camps
They STe the things not seer hy AIl-a. or
NchiEIey. when they make their tours
abroad Ih'y are things carefully kept
from ller hearing or conc a cd fro-n :hesr
N-eW Eut they arr things which are max
ing their way among the people: things
Niil'4 are N'S"ldtlug homes breaking
- = anu II tLc adm' m'nlstration viii take
20 's.sr Vie" yi II. things that are inceus-
L'E Fo.tfS 10 Indignation and TO revenge
huch things as these renter the scratching
. - ~" surface or ellis tlippant insult to
" .'d" ana I" the dying. and to the IA ok
-, q" Wh"m even death is denied. They
'h'-'F lht snowy "rraignme1t Of imbeci,e
ItiH@ OF bureaus parody on remedy and
..r,t
- - ."iiIti SION would he glad to have
~tiil4.iE 'I KIND that can be used in
I.IS lt'fz'iSatIoH, not only relating 20 the
IN 'si.-',S "ltenIlnE the deatL oS Lieut.
60 - ~ a. lamp w lh"ii. as alleged i'm the
rrake rsfrs 60, u, n, hut also relat-
- Sun teSl.hlony l. tXattiy
~ 10 ne o'Her incidents 70 which you
N-'at m ComIniSst"n wants. VIII you
."---" ii!ls hoay with what you have at
~ ,,'-SPtS'4 or can obtain for the pur-
pS''
commission.
] no sHtiHg Of this letter indicates what
the commission rr--r,5ss- ,l,5r,,, H. - ,-
,,4.,t..-- 90 . - al q Ia' SS
whenever the attention
o. '"+ commission IS called to extravagaut
statements Of NjSmauageu,ut or NEGLECT
g. the conduct oF IN. ,-ar ~ :,
~. md. -. ,,-,..,.- ''' "l'elier theE
-. ''.'''iSi7. ministers IN their
l"'i-'9 or i''tuirfS on the platform. those
I'~i'i.HlH Hlr Tor them VIII be .sked 10 state
tAi@I'llLy IL writing Oh what Information
my based their statements and TO give
81 dates. names and locations nec4s-arS T.,
-rInll tn" commission TO INQUIRE fJrTbar
lHio Jh= cases a number Of very seyera
g. .--tEl.-f.,- In Pronounced on those
many Of them y-hGs .r,s,,.I t7ls' tsIs' anu
reported in The newspapers viii he aSkeJ
20 com neiere the commission and suit
before tl,4 ro[rr,iz,'. - II Ihty fall TO 60
fail 10 sub-tantia,a ,hair SJ.iis l}.aseior beiore H.
facts VIII be made public '''o''
- Gums = H:Tnhn, pastor of the
~ oI Sl'' ''Nt thtHl IN this city recent
- - glyH e sermon III which he made
a. . ,''!. ti''.i@SS relating TO the con-
= iii ~ W, t.1N u ls quite likely that
- " -'o q -'t'tl SiTllar 10 that for
-, ~ - .-t-Cr OF jhe Brooklyn Eagle