The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-04-25
Col. Garlington's Great Mass of Evil
dence Rejected at the Final Open
Session of the Board.
MAJOR LEES SUMMING UP
MILES'S COUNSEL READS A CAREFUL
LY PREPARED PAPER,
Giving His View of the Testimony-He
Contends the Charges of His SUI
periOr Have Been Proven.

WASHINGTON, April 24-The Wade
court of inquiry, appointed 10 investigate
the allegations made by Major General
Miles in his testimony before the war in
vestigation commission concerning the meat
furnished the army during the late war
with Spain, held it's last open session to-day
and is now engaged upon the preparation of
its report. The court has been in session
almost ten weeks, and, in addition TO daily
hearings given in this city for several
weeks, sessions nave been held In Chicago.
Omaha and Kansas City TO afford the men,
bers of the court an opportunity personally
to inspect the canning and refrigerating
processes of the packing houses. Several
hundred witnesses nave been examined.
most of whom have been officers and en-
listed men in regular or volunteer service,
and over 1850 pages of testimony have been
submitted.
This morning the court decided not to &C
cept a report made by Lieutenant Colonel
Darlington. of the inspector generals office.
This report had been transmitted TO General
Miles through Inspector General Breckin-
ridge. The report of Colonel Darlington
covers about eighty typewriter pages and
goes exclusively into the reports made by
officers and men without drawing any gen.
tTdl CONCluSlODS. Inc DOdTQ, IN explanation
OF its refusal to accept this report in the
evidence, gave out the following statement:
The report of investigation conducted by
Lieutenant Colonel Darlington. inspector
general. under the orders of the major gen.
eral commanding, contains the results of an
inquiry carried on, for the most part, at the
same time and in the same places as that
intrusted to this court by the President.
~
Colonel Darlington has submitted the
names of witnesses and from time to time
has suggested subjects of inquiry, all of
which have been fully considered by the
court. The reports which were furnished
him by officers of the army have been al
ready read and submitted in evidence. In
view of these facts. and, as it does not APP
pear that Colonel Darlington had any other
or better means of Information than were
accessible 10 the court at every stage of it's
inquiry. 1t is ordered that the report be not
received in evidence"
CANNED BEEF CONDEMNED.
AT the afternoon session Major Lee, who
has been Major General Miles representa-
tive before the board, summed up for his
side of the case. Recorder Davis read brief
reports from General Breckenridge, the in
hN LIZ oiSo 4lOll tnO VI lis
subordinates. Major Philip Read and Lieut..
Col. Darlington, as TO the results of their
individual work and observations. General
Breckenridge condemned the canned beef ra-
tio1, and, speaking generally. said that
while the army ration fulfilled all the scien-
tific requirements as TO food values. its COM
ponent parts should be changed to meet
was fixed by law this was a matter for
Congress to remedy. He also suggested that
articles required by sick and convalescent
soldiers should be added. Major Reads
report was mainly devoted to the lack of
certain camp equipment among certain reg
iments, and that of Col. Darlington to the
result Of his personal inspection OF the var
ious camps of the country. The court then
decided that If any of the dispositions for
which General Miles has called should be
received prior to the completion of the re-
port of the board they SHOULD be admitted
as evidence, subject to the boards limita-
tions.
claiming at the outset that he was acting as
counsel for Major General Miles in a tech
meal sense. and adding that he had been
there simply to present and elicit evidence.
He read his argument from carefully pre-
pared manuscript and was given careful
attention by the three members OF the court
and the recorder. no one else being present
except the representatives of the press. His
statement consumed about an hour and
when he concluded with the statement that
the TENDERS Of the board must decide
whether the great fraud and great crime
which he believed had been committed
should be carried before the courts
In opening his statement Major Lee dis
claimed any intention of rejecting upon any
one. He had appeared. he said. on behalf
Of General Miles to be present and elicit
evidence. Miles's allegations. he said. were
nothing more than the complaints Of Off
GERS and men in the late war. 1t was, he
said, the generals duty to present the facts
concerning those who had suffered from a
new departure. an untried experiment"
The overwhelming evidence of 80 per cent.
Of officers and So per cent. of the men
showed beyond q reasonable doubt hat the
so-called roast beef was all that Ii should
not have been" He neither denied nor al
legged that this unfit ration was furnished
by design; only that someone had blundered
and that the soldier was the sufferer. The
subsistence department. without adequate
test purchased this ration by millions OF
pounds. 1t was rejected by the soldiers and
enough abandoned cans were left by the
troops to erect a monument TO the memory
of the packing houses. Not a dollar for
the government.
REFRIGERATED BEEF.
Concerning the refrigerated beef, Major
Lee said tina with it was undertaken an
| other experiment, new and novel in the ex-
| treme. OF attempting TO supply IL 10 an
| army in the field in a campaign. He said
| that Che seventy-two-hour clause in the
| contracts was impossible of satisfactory
| fulfillment, and therefore a preservation
process seemed a sine qua non. 1t was
| clearly shown, he said. that a p~reservative
process was under favorable consideration
before the opening Of the bids on Tune 13,
and that il could or would he used seemed
to be established beyond question. Sum-
ming up as to Standardization Major Lee
said: Witnesses unimpeached and unim-
peachable. uninfluenced and disinterested
without a motive for stating anything but
the truth, have come forward and testified
as 10 facts within their knowledge, and all
the statements OF interested parties, all ey1-
| dence Of those who neither tested nor in
vestigated, cannot avail against those who
gave clear, direct and uncontradicted testi-
mony as 10 facts" After referring 70 spe-
cihc testimony Major Lee said: Such tes-
timony as the above being introvertible, II
cess was used with meat at that point
(Tampa) similar use would no doubt be
made of such process at other points. or for
all shipments where IL might be deemed
necessary as a preservatory Of the refrig-
Grated beef"
In conclusion Major Lee said: "It is evil
dent that whatever preservative processes
may have been used. as testified 10 by Mr..
DAILY and others, they failed OF effect and.
as stated by those witnesses. corroborated
by circumstances, the results of their use
were deleterious upon the health OF the
men.
1T was perfectly practicable to have had
at all times herds of fat cattle at every
| camp in the United States TO meet any and
all exigencies OF service as they might
arise.
AT no time during the war was there
any emergency calling for food supplies by
other than the safe methods OF proved ex-
perience.
1T was perfectly practicable TO have
landed beef cattle with the armies in both
- RI IA.h