The Savannah morning news., 1901-12-22

VI all cltlzenS. When l said that had
no sympathy with those who had en-
oeavored to destroy the reputation of
nigh officer, who, like ell other Off
GERS regards his honor more sacred
tnan lie, l had in mind and referred
10 those assaults against which the
ADMIRAL had appealed for projection
and justification, and certainly not to
ment.
L request that this note be laid be-
iore the President, and have no OBJ
lection of its being made public. Very
respectfully,
Nelson A. Miles,
Lieutenant General"
Secretary Roots Reprimamd.
The reprimand is contained in the
following letter of Secretary Root to
Gen. Miles:
War Department, Washington, Dec
Il, 1901. Sir: By direction of the Pres
ident, l communicate to you his con-
clusions upon your course in the in
tervlew to which your attention was
called by my letter of the 18th instant
Your explanation of the public
statement made by you is not satisfac-
tory. You are in error if you suppose
that you have the same right as any
other citizen to express publicly an
opinion regarding official questions
pending the course of military disci-
pline. The established and invariable
rules of official propriety necessary to
the effective discipline of the service
impose limitations upon the public ex-
pressfons of military officers, with
which your long experience should have
made you familiar. Your duty is to
express your opinion on official matters
when called upon by your official su-
periors or in the due course of your
official reports and recommendations,
and not otherwise. The first article of
the regulations governing the army of
the United States provides:
Deliberations or discussions among
military men conveying praise or CEN
sure, or any mark of appreciation, to-
ward others in the military service,
are prohibited.
This provision has been a part of
the army regulations for at least half
a century, and the highest obligation
to observe it rests upon the high Off
GERS whose high rank should make
them examples of their subordinates.
Any other rule of action in the mill
tary service would be subversive of
discipline. 1t will not be tolerated in
subaltern and it will not be tolerated
in any officer of whatever rank. The
present facts are that for several
years there had been an unfortunate
and bitter controversy in the Navy
Department, controversy gem
orally deplored even by the
participants ,as tending to bring the
service into disesteem at home and
abroad and to destroy those relations
Of mutual confidence and friendship
between naval officers which the inter-
ests Of effective service require. In this
controversy, the army had not been in
volved and no bar had been raised to
that good feeling and friendly relation
between all the officers of the navy
and all the officers of the army which
is essential to the successful and har-
monious' cooperation of the two SER
vices in preparation and in action. A
court of inquiry had been held on the
matters in controversy and report had
been made in which one member of the
court had dissented in some particu-
lars from the majority, and the report
was pending before the reviewing au-
thority. At this point you, the lieuten-
ant general of the army, saw fit to
make public expression of your opin>
ion as between majority and minority
of the court, accompanied by a criti-
cism of the most severe character,
which could not fail to be applied by
the generality of readers to the naval
officers against whose view your opin-
ion was expressed. 1t is of no conse-
quence on whose side your opinion was,
or what it was. You had no business
in the controversy and no right, hold
ing the office which you did, to ex-
press any opinion. Your conduct was
in violation of the regulation above
cited, and of the rules of official pro-
priety, and you are justly liable to
censure which l now express. Very
respectfully, ..-... ......-...
"Elihu Root Secretary of War"
ITO Lieut. Gen. Nelson A. Miles,
headquarters of the army.
"P. S. Your second letter of explana-
ton, dated to-day, and received since
the above was written, does not change
the case. The necessity for repeated
explanations but illustrates the import
ance of the rule which you have vio-
lated.
"Elihu Root,
Secretary of War"
To Clean Up the Whole Business.
The fact that simultaneously with the
publication of the Miles correspondence,
Secretary Root gave out copy of Sec
retary Longs letter, directing that
Maclay's resignation be requested,
taken in connection with the publica-
ton this morning of the final chapters
of the Schley case, so far a sit has fig
ured before the Navy Department is
taken as an indication of the Presi-
dents purpose to clear the official rec
ords of all pending issues in that mat
ter. Secretary Roots publication of
the Maclay letter is explained by the
fact that he left the White House some
time after Secretary Long had been
there, and thus was in position to carry
out the Presidents latest wish in the
matter.