Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-01-13

military law, availed himself OF the war
commission, according to his friends, to
redress his grievance.
Personal Issue.
According to this view, therefore, the
matter has narrowed down to personal
issue between the two officers, for, from
the reasons already stated, neither the
President nor the Secretary of War will
take cognizance of it.
Persons who take this view of the con-
troversy between Gen. Miles and Gen.
Eagan say that in it's present phase it is
not one that will admit of the calling OF a
court of inquiry. This IS entirety apart
from the question of the right to order
court-martial. In the latter case, under
the strict rules of military law, the court
would be obliged to take under considera-
ton certain specific charges. such as an IN
suit or an attack upon brother ofhcer, ana
would not be permitted to go beyond that
matter. even to the extent of inQuiring into
the truthfulness of the charges made IN the
attack. The court of inquiry, however as
its name implies, has a broader field OF ac-
ton, and might, without being bound close
w. inquire into all of the facts. not even
confining it's inquiry to the officer alleged
to be the offender, but perhaps, as mas
been known in the past, to turn IN nnd-
ing that required the court-martial of more
than one officer. In other words, court
of inquiry in a case like this might indict
for trial before court-martial both OIL the
parties TO the controversy
Bad Feeling fro Some Time.
1t has been known for month past that
a bad feeling existed between the com
mandfng general and the commissary gen
eral of the army, yet such has been the ef-
feet of thorough military discipline that
this has not manifested itself openly. 1t is
true that the two men have not come into
close contact frequently, and their relations
being confined strictly to the exchange of
official communications, there was no oc-
casion for the development of personal
friction. Still it was known that Gen.
Eagan resented very bitterly the failure of
Gen. Miles to take notice promptly of his
request preferred month ago for a re-
pudiation or acceptance of his statements
made relative to the beef supplied to the
army Therefore it was with some anxiety
that the friends of the two officers saw
them meet last week. the occasion being
periodical session of the managers of the
Soldiers Home. Gen. Miles is ex-officio
president of this board, and Commissary
General Eagan is a member. But the two
officers met, sat at the same table and
transacted the routine business before the
board without the slightest exhibition of
ill-feeling and without showing a trace of
animOsity for what had gone before. 1t is
a matter of speculation, however, whether,
failing proceedings before court-martial,
or some other judicial method of disposing
of the issue between the two men, the re-
lations between them can be preserved to
the point where even official business can
be transacted.
What Gen. Miles Says.
General Miles was busily engaged at army
headquarters with military matters today,
as usual. and General Eagan was similarly
occupied with official affairs in his office in
another part of the building. They did not
meet and, so far as known, no communica-
tions except of d purely official routine
character passed between them. The
strained relations existing between General
Miles and the Secretary of War precuded
any personal communication between them
and it is known that General Miles has pur-
pOsely refrained from bringing the Eagan
incident to the attention of the Secretary.
General Miles, when asked what official
action, If any, would be taken regarding
General Eagan's attack, replied that he had
not made any statement on the subject, and
did not intend to forecast the proceedings
of the War Department.
When it was suggested that the War De-
partment was estopped from any proceed
ings against General Eagan, on the ground
of the protection promised by the Presi-
dent to all witnesses in their testimony De-
fore the war investigating commission
General Miles said that there might he
some question as to the dividing line be-
tween testimony and personal abuse. In
his opinion, any court of justice or for that
matter police court would have stopped
a witness who had used before it such
language as was used before the war COM
mission yesterday. General Miles said:
Il did not want to appear before the war
commission in the first place. When they
wrote me suggesting that | voluntarily ap-
pear before them, l replied that | believed
1t to be for the best interests of the SER
vice for me not to volunteer any testimony.
When l was ordered before the commits
sion, and they asked me concerning certain
facts that | then had in my possession
vas Obliged as a matter of honesty, to an
sWer them. Even then / did not tell them
all the facts which had discovered by my
own investigation. This investigation was
carried on quietly through the proper
branches of the War Department and was
begun as matter of duty by the COM
manding general after the receipt of an
immense number of complaints That in
Vestigaticn is still being prosecuted and !
stu think, as / said before, that it would
nave been much better to allow the officers
OF the War Department who have in charge
the care and proper feeding of the soldiers
to attend TO these matters quietly in their
own way"
Feeling at the War Department.
Secretary Alger showed unusual temner
for him when spoken to on the subject
Outside of the Secretary's immediate office
the impression was almost universal amonp,
the ofhclals of the department. military as
well as civil, that the War Department
must OF necessity take cognizance of Gen.
EaSanS s conduct on the broad ground that
ne mad committed an offense and a breach
OF military etiquette, to put it mildly that
could not possibly be overlooked Indeed
inns 1eellng was 50 strongly prevalent that
II was expected that the next stem in the
matter would be the arrest and suspension
OF Gen. Eagan preliminary to his trial by
cour--martal on charges of scandalous con-
cGct tending to the prejudice of military
discipline and conduct unbecoming an Off
Ger and gentleman. 1t seemed to be
taken for granted that Secretary Alger as
the head of the military establishment.
would take some such action, and the feast
mat he was expected to do was to call Gen
EaSan attention to the statements at
tributed to him in the public prints. with a
request for statement of the facts in the
case.
TO BE Ignored by the Department..
Nothing of the sort occurred however
much to the general disappointment. and
it was subsequently ascertained that the
Secretary Of War had practically conclud-
ed to ignore the incident entirely. on the
broad ground that the commissary general
was protected in his statements before
the war investigating commission by the
Presidcnts promise that no witness before
the commission should suffer because of