The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1899-01-13


Causes an Executive Session
WASHINGTON, Jan. 12 = Commits
sary General Charles P. Eagan today
reappeared before the war investiga-
tion commission to answer the charges
of Gen. Nelson A. Miles concerning the
commissary supplies furnished the
army during the recent war. Gen.
Eagan's statement furnished the SEN
| sation of the war commissions his
! tory, and was regarded by old army
! officers as one of the most remarkable
attacks ever made in the history of
the service. Gen. Eagan's statement
to the commission was a bitter per-
sonal attack upon Gen. Miles, so entire
ly unqualified as to scope and Ian
guage that the war commission, on
hearing its conclusion, ordered brief
executive session, after which the doors
| were reopened, the witness was recall
ed and business resumed in the usual
way.
The subject in controversy was Gen.
Miles now famous "embalmed beef
testimony, and the letters and docu-
ments supporting it.
Gen. Charles P. Eagan, commissary
general of subsistence, recalled regard
ing the charges of Gen. Miles that "enl-
balmed' and processed beef was fur
nished the troops in the field had pre-
pared typewriter statement cover
ing his side of the case and was al
lowed to read it. Gen Eagan referred
to the fact that Gen. Miles had refused
to be sworn, and commented on the
fact that he was the only one of 400
witnesses who had SO refused. Gen.
| Eagan said he himself preferred to be
sworn.
Gen. Eagan began by calling atten-
tion to Gen. Miles appointment OF
Maj. John D. Black. civilian as his
chief Of staff, and said that this was
largely responsible for trouble that fol-
lowed. He said that Maj. Black had
been furnished $4,000 before starting for
Porto Rico, and that he had apparently
| not known enough to provide himself
| with a check book, and had not left mis-
| signature with the secretary of the
| treasury nor made any other prepara-
| tions for availing himself of the funds
| at his command. There were expert
| enced disbursing officers in the island
| who had in the aggregate over $409, ,000
| in their possession, and yet Gen. Miles
! had complained that there We're no
| paymasters in the islands, so that the
| soldiers had no money with which to
buy food for themselves. Gen. Miles
had then called upon the department
to put $4,000 more in the hands of Mai
Slack, and this Gen. Eagan declined
to do, putting $4,000 to Maj Blacks
! in,
ferred to the mysterious manner in
which papers disappeared from the
files of the war department He said
that while Gen. Miles was at Tampa
he wired to the commissary general
to know what stores and supplies were
on hand at Tampa and some other
point. Gen. Eagan replied in the usual
way, although at the time the railroad
tracks at Tampa were piled with mil
lions of rations
GEN. EAGAN AsTOUNDED.
Gen. Eagan said he was astounded
the following morning to see in the re-
ports of certain papers that Gen. Miles
had severely reprimanded the commits
sary general, the chief of ordnance and
| the quartermaster general for the un-
prepared condition of their respective
| departments. Gen. Miles had no right
In law to declare such reprimand,
and witness at once had enclosed the
clipping to the adjutant generals Of
flee, requesting an inquiry as to the
authenticity of the report. No such
reprimand was ever received by him,
and the general commanding had TAX
en- no notice of his inquiry nor ever
taken the trouble since then to declare
the unauthorized character of the press
statements. 1t was such Indifference
as this that had given license to the
yellow journalistic knaves who had
misrepresented and bounded govern
ment officials throughout the war
Gen. Eagan subsequently had tried to
get his letter of inquiry and press
clipping from the adjutant generals
office. but it had disappeared, and was
nowhere to be found.
Witness charged Gen. Miles directly
with disarranging and hampering the
administration of the war department.
by calling officers from duty where
| their presence was absolutely necessa-
ry. This was the case in taking Col.
John Weston away from Cuba to serve
In putting Maj A. L. Smith, a very
efficient officer, who was assigned as
depot commissary in Porto Rico, to
work on some transport duty" when
his services were demanded on shore
Gen. Eagan said the commanding gen.
eral went clearly outside his power in
doing this, and intimated that Gen.
Miles was moved to do so by igno-
rance and inefficiency of his own ap-
pointee, Maj. Black, who was supposed
to be the chief commissary officer on
Gen. Miles staff.
Gen. Eagan referred to Gen. Miles
testi lony that he had "telegraphed
the department from Porto Rico for
complete and proper rations.'' and said
that, If the commissary generals Of
flee had received any such message, he
should have considered it as the re-
quest of q very Ignorant, in-informed
person." Continuing, Gen. Eagan re-
ferred to- Gen. Miles expressed prefer
ence for native beef, of which he said
| there was plenty. He asserted that
| there Were no cattle whatever IN the
neighborhood of Santiago. The native
beef Gen. Miles referred to Gen. Eagan
characterized as runts, bulls and over
worked cattle. The use of such ami
mails the department would never al
low Gen. Eagan, quoting Gen. Miles
allegation that, in his judgment, there
was serious defect in the refrigerated
and canned beef, said Gen. Miles would
not say this was ything more than
his Judgment.
| said Cen Ea Qau "palie