The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1899-02-21
The Court Appointed to Investigate
the Charges Of Gen. Miles
Makes a Good Start in the Investigation
at the Opening Session.

=
the Day-Says the Published In
terviews in New York Did Not
Fairly Represent His Opinion in
the Case-Dr. DAILY to Appear
Before the Court To-Day.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 20.-The Miles
Court of Inquiry to-day made a good
start in its work The court was COM
fortably quartered in the old meeting
room of the War Investigating Com
mission in the Lennon Building, With
accommodations for representatives of
the press associations and the local
papers. Calls of ceremony on the Pres
ident and the General commanding the
army occupied a large part OF the fore
noon, and Immediately thereafter Cen
eral Nelson A. Miles appeared as the
first witness He and three other army
officers summoned as witnesses We're
examined and disposed of before the
courl closed its session at 3 o'clock.
General Miles testimony, of course, was
the feature of the days proceedings.
Colonel Frank Micheler, his Chief of
Staff. and a gentleman in citizens
clothes, who took seat by the fire.
place and gravely watched the course
of proceedings, retiring with the Gen
eral as silently as he had come, accom-"
panied the General to the court room
General Miles appeared in fatigue
uniform, rather striking in its contrast
with the display of scarfs, bullion and
buttons en- the full dress uniforms Of
the court He submitted to the ques-
t.oning of Colonel Davis, Recorder of
the court, with equanimity, except for
flash of mingled Indignation and irony
when he Informed the Recorder that he
was not compelled to report to the
Commissary- General of the army. This
was in reply to a question as to whether
or not he had reported to the Commits
sary Department the fact that COM
plants had been made to him as to the
quality of the meat being issued to the
troops. An Instant later, General Miles
resumed his cool and carefully consdd-
cred replies to the inquiries of the
court.
indicated by q letter OF the Adiu-
tant- General, read by the Recorder of
the court. the scope of the inquiry was
limited tc. the attentions of General
the quality of the army beef land the
matter purporting to have been fur
nisheG to the public press by the same
official
Only two interviews were called up by
the court, the first an interview with a
New York journal representative
early IL the beef controversy, in which
General Miles was quoted as charging
that certain chemicals were used in the
preservation of the army meat. and an
other of the New York Herald" under
date CT February list, covering about
the same ground.
General Miles was very slow and
careful in his replies to the Recorders
questions on this point. He called at
tention tc the fact that in both in
stances he was credited in the inter
views with refusing to answer certain
questions, and insisted that these re-
fusals should be given due. weight in
considering the questions to which he
did not reply. He said. in the case of
the interview of February list. that he
had letter from the man who wrote
the story Offering to swear that Cen
eral Miles had refused to be inter-
viewed, and that the whole story was
made up in the Office from the writer's
general knowledge of the facts.
Notwithstanding this, when his final
answer was asked as to the authenti-
city of the interview. General Miles did
net spec;t'c aly deny it, but merely said
that it Gid not quite fairly represent
his cwn opinion in the case. Tho same
qualified denial as to the Journals"
interview of December 23d was made,
leaving the witness on record as not as
Stunning any responsibility for the news
paper statements, but tacitly admitting
that there was a good deal i'm them with
which he agreed
The trend of questions put to the
other witnesses indicated that so long
as they agreed with General Miles as
to the quality of the meat furnished
the troops in the field the only criticism
of their position the court had to make
was why they had not taken some Of
fetal steps to have the meat remedied
at the time. In every instance their
reply was that the circumstances in
which the army was placed, in sickly
foreign country, with a large amount of
fighting and great scarcity of trans
portation on hand, precluded the posi-
bility of any such action. In each in
stance the question WAS puSHeu iio Luz
Their on this line.
It was said after the court adjourned
that Dr. DAILY whose original EN-
balmed beef report was the genesis of
the meat controversy, probably would
appear at to-morrow's session.
The court assembled shortly after 10
O'clock this morning preparatory to its
formal session. Brigadier General
George w. Davis and Colonel George
L. Gillespie. members of the court. and
Colonel George B. Davis. Recorder, and
the Judge Advocate were first to ar
rive. Major General James F. Wade,
President of the court, came later, and
at 1875 the court, in full dress uniform,
proceeded to the White House. where
IT paid its respects to the President and
then to the War Department, where it
called upon Secretary Alger and Major
General Miles Meantime members of
the press who were accorded places in
the court room had assembled, and on
the outside were many other cores
pondents and a number of artists spec
tally detailed to attend the inquiry.
During the morning several army off,
GERS who are in the city as witnesses
reported to Colonel Davis, the Record
er, but remained only few moments at
the rooms of the court.
The court returned at 1906 from its