The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1899-02-04
The President Determines to Insti-
tute Formal Inquiry
Respecting The Character Object Furnished
the Army During the War.

| ter, However, Until the War In
vestigatdon Commission Has
| Concluded It's Hearings and
Submitted It's Report.
| WASHINGTON, Feb. 3-The pur-
pose of the President to terminate the
unsatisfactory state of affairs that has
existed for some time as the result of
numerous charges and counter charges
and interviews respecting the charac-
ter of the army beef, by instituting a
formal inquiry into these matters and
endeavorlng to place the responsibility
where it belongs, was made known to-
day The inquiry will not be under,
taken before the commission to investi-
gate the conduct of the war has made
its report to- the President.
| The scope of this new inquiry has
not been defined, but it certainly will
embrace the allegations by General
Miles as to the character of the army
supplies, and will involve that officer
to the extent that he must make these
charges good, and to that degree will
be on trial himself in a preliminary
manner. Should the charges be found
we'll established, a. heavy responsibility
would be placed upon the packers and
persons connected in the meat inspec-
ton, and perhaps others; should they
fall unsupported, General Miles may be
| obliged to answer to a court-martial
| for rejecting upon the character of
other officers.
j There are two methods by which such
an investigation may be conducted, ac-
cording to established military usage.
/ The first is by the appointment of a
court of inquiry, and the second by
the appointment of what is known as
an Officers or Inspection Board. In
the former case it would be necessary
to name some officer who is the sub
| ject of investigation. In the latter
the board is charged simply to inquire
| into a state of facts, or alleged facts,
without reference to any particular
person, and to place responsibility, if
possible, for anything of which COM
plant is made. Their findings may serve
as the basis for court-martial quite as
effectually as the findings of a court
of inquiry, and has some advantages
in that it does not begin with the pre-
sumption of court of inquiry.
Where a court of inquiry is ordered
reflection upon the officer named. Be-
cause of this, when the Navy Depart
ment requested the War Department
| to order a court of inquiry to investi-
gate the circumstances attending the
killing of a number of Spanish prison
ers on board the Harvard, the latter
instead ordered an Inspection Board,
| considering that the ordering of the
court of inquiry might be looked upon
as a pre-decision against our troops.
Such Officers Boards are frequently
ordered to fix responsibility for the
| loss or damage of stores, and several
of them have been appointed during
the war to look into the loss of meats,
notably in the case of that shipped to
Porto Rico and returned to MOntauk
Point Like a court of inquiry these
boards return statements of facts de-
veloped by them upon which the SUI
perior authorities can act.
1t is not possible at present to learn
in which direction the President leans,
but he has been in conference on the
subject with the Secretary of War and
the Attorney General, and the matter
has been discussed in the Cabinet to
! some extent. AS before stated, how
ever, no action is to be taken on either
plan until the report of the War In
vestigation Commission is submitted.
! 1t is the expectation that the War In
vestigating Committee will submit it's
report to the President next Monday.
No one outside of the commission is
supposed to know what the nature of
the report will be.
The method which is to be adopted,
namely, a court of inquiry, to pass up
indicate a knowledge on the part of the
Administration of what the report will
have to say as bearing upon the Miles
charges.
The common impression is that a
court of inquiry can be ordered only
upon the demand of the officer whose
conduct is to be made the subject of
investigation. While that is usually the
case, there is, however, reserve pow
er in the President to order such a
court, regardless of the wishes of the
officer concerned. The authority is con-
tanned in Article 115 of the Articles of
War. The Article is as follows:
IA court of inquiry to examine into
the nature of any transaction Of or ac-
cusation or imputation against, any of
ficer or soldier may be ordered by the
7 President or by any commanding Of
ficer, but as courts of inquiry may be
perverted to dishonorable purposes and
may be employed in the hands of weak
and envious commandments, as en-,
gineered for the destruction of military
merit, they shall be never ordered by
any commanding officer except upon
demand by the officer or soldier whose
conduct is to be inquired into''
It is asserted in some quarters that
the above quoted regulation does not
permit the President himself to order
a court of inquiry in the absence of a
demand of the officer interested, and
General Miles friends say that he has
not yet made any demand. But legal
authorities are against this contention,
and it is explained that the resolution
makes a very clear distinction for a
purpose expressly defined between the
powers of the President and of the
commanding officers.
The purpose of the court of inquiry
is to investigate the conduct of an Off
Ger. 1t is expressly provided by the
regulations from venturing any opinion
on the merits Of the case unless directed
to do so by the appointing. authority.
Upon the presentment Of the facts made
by the court of inquiry, the President
must determine whether or not q court
martial shall follow.
General Miles, on being informed of
Z