The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-04-25
The Great Mass of Testimony
Condemns the Beef.
SOME ONE HAD b. UNDERED
Supplying Refrigerated Beef Was New
and Novel Observation-Disclosures
No Doubt That Preservative
Process Was Used.

gate the allegations made by Major
General Miles in his testimony before
the war investga ting commission con-
corning the meat furnished the army
during the late war with Spain, held
its last session to-day and is now en-
gagged upon the preparation of it's re-
port.
This morning the court decided not
to accept a report made by Lieutenant
Colonel Darlington of the inspector
generals office This report had been
transmitted to General Miles through
Inspector General Breckenridge. The
report of Colonel Darlington covers
about so typewriter pages and goes
exhaustively into the reports made by
officers and men. The board, in eX-
PLANTATION of it's refusal to accept this
report in evidence, gave out the fol-
lowing statement:
THE report of the investigation con-
Quoted by Lieutenant Colonel CARING
ton, inspector general, under the or
ders of the major general commanding,
contains the result of an inquiry car
ried on for the most part at the same
time and in the same places as that
entrusted to this court by the president
During the progress of the inVestiga-
ton Colonel Darlington has submitted
the names of witnesses and from time
quiry, all of which have been fully con-
sidered by the court. The reports
which were furnished him by officers of
the army have been already read and
submitted in evidence. In view of these
facts and as it does not appear that
Colonel Darlington had any other or
better means of information that were
accessible to the court at every stage
of its inquiry. it is ordered that the re-
port be not received in evidence"
At the afternoon session Major Lee,
who has been Major General Miles
representative before the board, sum-
med up for his side Of the case. Re
corder Davis read brief reports from
General Breckenridge, the inspector
ordinates Major Philip Reade and
Lieutenant Colonel Darlington, as to
the result of their individual work and
observations. General Breckenridge
condemned the canned beef ration and,
speaking generally, said that while the
army ration fulfilled all the scientific
requirements as to food values, it's
component parts should be changed
to meet the new conditions of service.
AS the ration was fixed by law, this
was a matter for congress to remedy.
He has suggested that articles required
by sick and convalescent soldiers
should be added. Major Reade's report
was mainly devoted to the lack of Ger
tain camp equipment among certain
regiments and that of Colonel CARING
ton to the result of his personal inspec-
ton OF. the various companies of the
country The court then decided that
if any of the dispositions for which Cen
eral Miles has called should be receiv
ed prior to the completion of the re-
port of the board the report should
be admitted as evidence, subject to the
boards limitations
Major Lee then summed up the case.
He read his argument from carefully
prepared manuscript, and was given
careful attention by the three MEM
bers of the court and the recorder. no
one else being present except the repre-
sentatives of the press. His statement
consumed about an hour, and when he
concluded with the statement that the
members of the board must decide
whether the great crime which he be-
lieved had been committed should be
carried before the courts Recorder
Davis arose and said simply:
II submit the case to the board with
out argument
Prefacing his argument, Major Lee
said:
Il may be permitted to remark that
l have not appeared nor do | appear in
any technical sense as the counsel of
the major general commanding the
army. If, as has been, and let us hope
enormously, maintained by some that
the inquiry under the order conVen-
ing this court, was as much for the
purpose of investigating implied accu-
sation or mputation against the major
general commanding for entering the
complaints and representations of his
officers and soldiers as to improper
food, as to investigate their merits,
then the role of counsel might be ap-
propriate. But the correspondence be-
tween the court and the major general
commanding shows quite clearly the
extent to which he has been represent
ed before this court, the purpose being
to present and elicit evidence pertin-
emit to the inquiry. His allegations are
nothing more, nothing less than the
complaints brought to his official
knowledge by the officers and men of
the army who participated in active
service during the recent war
Major Lee said the major general
commanding the army was obliged by
his position to institute searching in
quiry into the allegations concerning
the food supply of the army. He then
referred to that superb little army
which embarked from Tampa last June
for the invasion of Cuba and won i'm
perishable reward" adding that in less
than nine weeks the remaining part of
"a pitiable wreck in body and mind"
No one claimed any one article of food
was to blame. But" said he, the
overwhelming evidence of. we believe.
not less than 80 per cent. of the officers
and fully 30 per cent. of the men shows
beyond reasonable doubtthat the SOCIAL
ed canned roast beef as a meat ration
was all that it should not have been
and nothing that it should have been
for the American soldier who was for
humanity's sake perilng his life in
torrid cline in the interest of an OPP
pressed people.
We neither allege nor charge that
there was any intent or design on the
part of any officer of the army to fur
nish a bad or unfit ration, but the evil
dence-the unimpeacha BILE evidence
of regiment and company commanders
representing practically every soldier
there. shows that an irreparable mis-
take had been made; that some one had
Numbered and that the soldier became
the sufferer"
He contended that the canned roast
beef had been adopted as a ration
without adequate or proper test the