The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1899-03-19

| the general commanding the division, L
have the honor to submit the following
| report on the case of Colonel II. A. Al
ger, Fifth Michigan Cavalry, stating the
time at which he left the command. LOT
what purpose by what authority and MS
| present whereabouts.
Colonel Alger left this command the
morning of August Is, as 1t marched
through Harper's Ferry to reJoln the dl-
vision near Halltown. He has been ap-
sent since that date. | was not aware
of his absence until this brigade halted
| to feed near Halltown, when Assistant
Surgeon St Clair of the First Michigan
| Cavalry. informed me that Colonel Alger,
owing to some indisposition, had remain
ed at a house in Harper's Ferry. At the
same time Assistant Surgeon st. Clair
presented for my approval an application
| from Colonel Alger for leave of absence
| for twenty days.
| LAS Colonel Alger had two or three
times previous to this applied for SINH
lar leave of absence when in my opinion
he was fit for duty, and which opinion
/ subsequently, proved to be correct, as 1t
! has in the case now referred to, l re-
| turned Colonel Ayers application with
out my approval. He failed to join his
| command ] first heard of him again as
| stopping at the Eutaw House in Balti-
more, Md. 1 now have authentic and re-
| liable information that he is staying at
| one of the hotels in Washington, ID. C..
and that he has been placed on duty In
| the latter city as a member OF general
court martial How he came to be de-
tailed l cannot say.
"He left his command without author
itv and after having been refused a leave
| of absence from these headquarters, and
| I have directed that he be reported alb
sent without leave on the muster rolls
of his regiment"
General Merritt made this indorse-
ment: Respectfully forwarded for the
action of the chief of cavalry. The case
mentioned within is the third in which
| Colonel Alger has absented himself from
| the command without proper authority
since the commencement of the present
years campaign. Severe measures should
| be taken to prevent recurrence OF this
evil
| And General Torbert said: Respect
| fully forwarded. with the recommends
| ton that he be dismissed from the serv-
| ice for absence without leave, subject to
! the approval of the President. Such cases
are too numerous, and the scarcity of Of
| fcers requires immediate action to be
| taken"
To this General Sheridan added Re
specially forwarded. l understand that
| Colonel Alger is on some military duty at
! Washington, but 1t Is evident that he has
| left his command without authority, and
| it appears that he has done so before. /
| have always considered Colonel Alger a
good officer but I cannot excuse his con-
duct or withhold my approval to the rec
ommendation of his immediate command
| ers."
Irregular Resignation.
Here we see that the very men who had
been his Jealous friends in endeavoring to
secure for him promotion had condemned
| him-condemned him regretfully but firm
| 1y. But Alger was in Washington and
| was not idle. He says he was Ill. but he
| was not too Ill to put such machinery in
motion that his resignation was accepted,
| though IT was very irregulariy offered
that is, not through his immediate COM
| manders. They were within a day of
| Washington He preferred, however, to
| get out without any assistance from
them, and so, on September 6, 1864, he
sent his resignation directly to the Sec
rotary of War, giving as his reason for
throwing up his commission the necessity
for his presence at home This resigna-
ton reached the President and Mr.. Lin
coin wrote on it Let this resignation be
accepted
| Something appears to have gone wrong,
for nothing more was done with the AL
ger resignation. 1t may be that Mr.. Stan
ton, who was sometimes law unto him