The San Francisco call., 1899-04-14
THOSE NOLAN
CHECKS MAY
RUIN NEALL
Not Sufficient Excuse
for Delay.
MORE DAMAGING TESTIMONY
DIVIDENDS WERE ALL DE-
CLARED ON CASH ON HAND.
The Evidence of the Cavalry Officers
Is Seriously Injuring the Pros
poets of the Accused
Officer.

AS the court-martial Of Lieutenant
Neall progresses it is becoming more and
more apparent that 1t is not so much
neglect of his accounts or the financial
tangle in which he found himself as it is
the explanation he made that will do him
the most damage. 1t looks as if he could
explain away most of the charges based
on shortages or at least account for his
actions to the satisfaction of a lenient
court; but the prosecution is proving its
charges Of deception, unless the defense
can counteract the testimony of the off,
GERS of his own regiment.
Lieutenant Slavens, to whom fell the
duties laid down so summarily by Neall,
was under examination during the morn
ing session, and the evidence he gave did
little good for the accused.
He said the post exchange council would
not declare a dividend if there was no
money on hand, and he considered the
fact that dividends had been declared in
January and February as proof that
money had been on hand in sufficient
quantities to pay them all. 1t was the
duty of the post exchange officer to pay
these dividends at once. The council
meets every month, he said, and 1t is the
custom to settle the accounts at that
time. If there is any surplus money
dividend is at once declared. BY refer
ence to the books Slavens testified that
on January 1, 1889, there was on hand
1882 S6 on February there was S4545 O5,
and on February 10 $4935 80. These
amounts were in cash. There was due
from the exchange on February Is $34S2 81
on various bills and an Overdraft Of
sl54 r. The dividends for January and
February had not been paid.
The reason for this delay had been ex-
planned by NealI TO the adjutant as being
his inability to secure the Endorsement
of the Nolan checks by Mrs Nolan as
administrators of her husbands estate,
and so the witness was led on to tell
about those disputed papers. The checks,
he said, could have been turned over to
him when the exchange was transferred
TO him. and he would have considered
them as assets. When he did get them
they had not been indorsed and ne Sc
cured the necessary indorsement without
trouble When Neall had told him he
could not turn over the exchange until
the checks had been indorsed the witness
said he believed him, but later on, Nnen
the transfer was still in allegiance, and
only because of those checks, ne began
to suspect something was wrong.
~ know now" continued the witness,
that the statement made to me by
Lieutenant NeaI so far as the post eX-
change was concerned anu as tlilueiic"eu eati'i "
by those particular checks was raise.
''.Do YOU know the intent OF his state
ments?' asked the judge advocate.
II believe the intention was 70 deceive
me and TO prevent the execution OIL the
order detailing me as post exchange ot11-
Ger, from the fact that he could not MAKE
a showing of FUNDS.
never seen any evidences ol Aneltd4 l14~A-
bility on the part OF Neai -
Mr. Thornton then took up the cross
examination, and under his question the
witness said he had found all papers ac-
was possible to form fair ana accurate
statement of the financial condltlon OF
the exchange. He was asked II there had
heen a showing of funds at the meet
ines of the council which declared the
dividends for January ana Fepruary. he
said he presumed so, because II was re
nuired bV the regulations. de refused TO
admit that under such supposltloh any
shortage that had occurred must have
occurred after the last showing OF
funds at the meeting IN fepLua[y' nor nor
than that the showing of funds ought
To have been made. The dividends he said
are declared on cash on hand, not on olIls
In conclusion the witness declared he
had been deceived by Neall in the reason
he gave for not turning over the eN-
change He would have receipted for
everything in sight had Neall seen hit to
turn the place over to him, and he be-
lieyed at first the reason Neall gave Tor
delay was to Neall good and sutf1cient.
L
was not.
William Commit, post commissary SER
geant, was called to give some idea OF the
financial condition Of the commissary de-
partment when Neall turned it over to
his successor, but his evidence was mainly
to corroborate what had gone before.
CAPTAIN Henry c. Danes, commanding
Battery !. Third Artillery, was called to
tell that his battery had not received the
dividend for January nor the one for Feb
ruary from the post exchange. He said
he had never applied for it officially.
Captain John A. Lockwood, commanding
Troop NJ. Fourth Cavalry testified to the
same state of affairs regarding his diVi-
dends.
Captain Lockwood also testified that a
check he had sent to Neall as secretary
Of the Preside Club, amounting to S27 and
in payment for his January account, had
been turned over to Posner and Levin by
Neall and had by them been cashed at
the bank He had received a second bill
of February and he had written to the
bank about the matter. The bank sent
the check back with the information that
ii had been presented and he sent the cor
.respondence to the secretary who sue
ceeded Neall. BY questions from the de-
Tense it was implied that the firm receiv-
ing the check had an account for cigars
with the club. and the check from Lock-
wood had been turned over to it in part
payment.
Lockwood was a member of the post ex-
change council when the January dvi-
dend was declared. He said the dividend
was declared on q showing of $2412 81. but
he was not asked If this was all in cash