The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1899-03-23
ALGER'S PETTY
SLAP At MILES
Orders That Censure
Two Generals.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

Call headquarters, wellington Hotel,
Washington, March %.
The Secretary of War, in an order,
which will be published through official
channels tomorrow, has censured Ma
jor General Miles and Inspector General
Breckenridge for attempting to exceed
their authority in military matters.
The censure is in consequence of the
tour of inspection which General Brock
inridge is now making in Porto Rico
and an investigation recently made by
Lieutenant Colonel Ernest A. CARING
ton of the inspector generals depart
ment in connection with the charges
made by Miles about the character of
beef served to troops in the field. :
General Breckenridge was ordered
about two months ago to proceed to
Cuba and Porto Rico for the purpose
of inspecting the military camps in
those islands. His orders were issued
by the Secretary of War. 1t has since
been reported to the War Department.
however, that Breckenridge is engaged
in gathering evidence to support the
allegations of Miles, and in so doing has
proceeded to- places to which he was
not ordered by the Secretary of War,
and has been devoting time to work for
the benefit of Miles and outside the in
structions issued by the Secretary.
Colonel Darlington recently went to
Chicago, ostensibly to- make certain In
vestigations coming within the province
of the inspector generals department.
He did not go by authority of the Sec
rotary of War. It was recently aScer-
tanned by the War Department that ne
was devoting time to making inquiries
with which the board to investigate the
charges of Miles about canned and re-
InP
undertaking without authority of the
department to make an independent in
vestigation of matters with which
board composed of his superior officers
and appointed by direction of the
President had been intrusted.
When these facts became known to
the War Department an official in
quiry was made to ascertain by whose
authority Breckenridge and Darlington
were making Investigations which had
not been sanctioned by the department.
1t is said the department found that
Miles and Breckenridge were RESPONSE
BILE. AS a consequence, the Secretary
of War will, tomorrow, issue an order
providing that hereafter officers of the
Inspector generals department shall
not proceed from point to point for the
purpose of making Investigations with
out the authority of the Secretary of
War.
Secretary Alger was not consulted as
to the trip which Colonel Darlington
has just completed, and was forced to
take the action contained in the order
from the fact that officers of his own
department were making independent
Investigations of which he had no
knowledge, evidently intended TO I'M
dermine the authority of the head of
the department and that of the board
of officers appointed by direction of the
President.
This is taken as a direct slap at
Miles, who, during the war, notified
Secretary Alger it was not his (MilesJ
business to make inspections, but to
order them made; in other words that
the inspector generals department was
directly responsible to the commanding
general.