The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1899-01-26

GENERAL c. p. EAGAN.
statement was true he (Eagan) SHOULD
be drummed out Of the army and in
carcerated in state prison." the COM
missary general continued:
'If his statement Is false, as I as
sert 1t to be, then he should be drum
med out Of the service and incarcera ted
In prison with other libelers. His state
ment is a scandalous libel rejecting
upon the honor Of every officer in the
department who has contracted for or
purchased this meat, and especially on
the commissary general-myself. In
doing 50 General Miles is liar when he
makes this statement. I wish to make
1t as emphatic and as coarse as the
statement itself. ! wish to force the
lie back into his throat. covered with
the contents OF a camp latrine
IT wish to brand 1t as a falsehood of
whole cloth. without a particle Of truth
to sustain 1t, and unless he can prove
his statement he should be denounced
by every honest man, barred from the
clubs. barred from the society OF de-
cent people, and so ostracised that the
street bootblack would not condescenI
W bPCaN W ioh hS haS louiVu
own nest, he has aspersed the honor
OF a brother officer without a particle
OF evidence or fact to sustain in any
degree his scandalous libelous. mali
cious falsehood that this beef or any
thing whatever was furnished the army
under the pretense Of experiment.
General Eagan. referring to newspa-
per attacks, asserting that the secretary
OF war had nothing whatsoever to do
with the furnishing of refrigerated
meats or timed meats. Nor had he
attempted to control the contracts,
awards or purchases. and in this con-
nection In heated language he attacked
three New York newspapers and their
editors and proprietors. whom he said
should be indicted and tried for treason.
Having traversed General Miles
statements" ne said, having shown
him to be a liar, having demonstrated
the animus that pervades the whole
matter l now 60 back to his state
ment that in his judgment food was
one Of the serious causes OF so much
sickness and distress Of the troops.
The design to say, to imply. to assert,
to insinuate that sickness was caused
for such reason in Porto Rico Is to
make an assertion wholly untrue. de-
void of facts. devoid Of truth, and can
only be prompted by a base motive and
under cover Of the qualifications, In
my judgment"
General Eagan said General Miles le-
gally had no such control Of the purse
as he assumed in Porto Rico. nor does
the law authorize him to set aside food
furnished under the law, but 1t does
determine how to hold accountable the
party furnishing improper food.
General Eagan concluded as follows:
1.-THE damage that has been done by
these statements is believed to be very
great, but I indulge the hope and the
belief that my statement will offset the
statements made by General Miles. and
will, In some measure at least, do Jus
tice to others that have been wronged,
maligned and libeled. For myself, I
content myself with expressing my
profound belief that either General
Miles or should be put out of the SER
vice: either he or am right: either
he dishonors his uniform with his false
statements and libels or I dishonor
mine in feeding soldiers with poison
GUS beef. causing their sickness. and
doing 80 under 'pretense Of expert
ment.'"