The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1899-03-07
THE CANNED BEEF COURT
An Interesting Session some SeDsa.
tfOnal TestimOny-W Witnesses Flatly
Contradicted-Mties, Position fsefOre
the Court

Washington, March 2.-There were
several interesting developments in the
beef court of inquiry today. It was a
| field day for the volunteer men Of he
service, the waiting Dol being filled
| all day with members of the various
volunteer regiments which served in
| Cuba and Porto Rico. The first of
these, Clearance Walters, of the First
; volunteer engineers, told a sensational
story of hardship and inhumanity suf-
fered during his service, describing the
canned roast beef in harsher terms
than have ever before been applied to
that much-discussed article.
: Later in the day, Lieutenant Sewell,
United States army, who was major
of the volunteer battalion in which
Walters served, contradicted his story
completely.
An important development was the
denial of the story by M James For
man and also attributed to DR.. Max
we'll Christine of Philadelphia, that they
had seen beef injected with chemicals
in an Omaha packing house. DR..
Christine explained that what he had
seen was the picking Of corned meat
the brine being injected into the meat
to save several weeks time in the
picking vat.
The question of counsel for General
Miles before the court is still in abey-
ance, some correspondence having
passed between the general and the
court but both sides decline to give out
the letters till a settlement is reached.
General Miles has not asked to be
represented by counsel presumably
because that would put him in the po-
sition of admitting himself On trial by
the court, which up to date he has de-
clined to admit. On the other hand,
the court does not feel able under the
articles Of war to permit Major Lee
or any n else to cross question wit
nesses unless he "a be recognized
officially as counsel for the defense. 1t
was stated that this matter probably
will settle tomorrow.
TIL court expects to start west Tues
day Or Wednesday of next week.
Walters, in his testimony, said that
the first can of beef he saw opened on
the transport going to Porto Rico had
worms in it and a few minutes after
being opened developed such a putrid
odor that it was impossible to have il
about. He ate some Of 1t and was
made violently SICKLE said he had
been On sea trips before and was never
seasick. The men of his company
complained of the meat and nearly all
the men Of his battalion were sick
throughout most of the voyage as a re-
suit of eating this meat. Alter reach
ing Porto Rico he was sick for a week
as a result of the voyage. At least
two-thirds of his company were fully
as sick as he and from the same cause
Captain Herbert Hicks, of Company
NJ, Second Massachusetts, followed
. with an account of the canned beet
used by his command in Cuba. His
! description of the meat did not make
it quite So repulsive as that served to
Walters in Porto Rico, but he said ii
was a '.slimy stringy mass, n~auseatine
to the taste, without nutriment and
without form that could be recognized
as meat except by the melted fat with
which it was caked-" Witness was
shown several Of the cans on hand
with the commission, but said that they
were not the same that he had seen In
service. Walters made the SAM
statement on being shown some cans.