Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1902-02-13
THREE MONTHS OF ROOSEVELT
Something for the Critics of the
President in the SchIey Affair
to Reflect over.


troversies that come before the
American people. That there are two
sides to the controversy between the
president on one hand and the friends
of Gen. Miles and Rear Admiral
Schley on the other is shown in
"Three Months of President Roose-
velt." in the Atlantic Monthly for
February.
In this article, says the Chicago In
ter Ocean, Henry Loomis Nelson cites
the rebul<e administered to Gen. Miles
as an illustration of the presidents
attitude toward the army and navy,
of the strength of his determination
to compel discipline, and of his fear
lessness in the discharge of his duty.
Here is Mr.. Nelson's statement of the
case:
"Vha disastrous controversy N the navy
touching Admiral Schey had been aggra-
waited by failure on the part of the eXecu-
tive to suppress it by quick and decisive
action. 1t had lived mainly because the
right thing had not been done at the right
time. If the judgment that was rendered
by the court of inquiry had been rendered
by the executive as soon as the partisan
and sectional campaign in Schlcy's behalf
had broken out, the claims finally made for
him could not have lived "A moment in the
face of the ridicule with which they would
have been greeted.
But the SCandalouS talk went on.
The events of the campaign faced out OF
the public memory; the real commander
in chief, suffering from the injustice of
the country to himself and his loyal cap
tairs, was forgotten, or, if remembered
was made the victim OF the coarsest in
whole naval service was in a state Of in
tense evaporation, to the detrimcrt of its
discipline and to the threatened injury of
the country. Finally, the admiral of the
navy who had done so much and received
so much, threw oil upon the flames by fly
ing in the face of all the facts; by denying
| the decision of the court, by doing his best
to take from Admiral Sampson the honors
that were his, after denying him the right
| to be heard in his own defense.
AT such moment, when the navy was
almost in a state of INSTRUMENTATION
| against the admiral who had been so un-
just and so ungrateful when passion was
at it's hottest Gen. Miles. forgetting his
duty of subordination, careless of the obIi-
cation that rested upon him to set an ex-
ample of discipline Indifferent to the wei
rare OF the two services, and to the noces-
sity of preserving active good will between
| thtm Joined in the controversy"
Here is criticism for Admiral Dewey.
for Rear Admiral Schley and for Gen.
| Miles. The unpleasantness of the
statement is not all in its language,
but in the suspicion that will be har-
bored by the friends of all the gentle
men named that it is true.
The president and the secretary of
war have been criticised for the sever
/ ity of their rebuke to Gen. Miles. The
critics forget the serious character of
/ the provocation and the tactics of Gen.
! Miles. which forced the president to
disregard even his own personal feel
/ ing and do his duty.
Mr.. Nelson considers Secretary
! Longs Endorsement of the decision of
the court of inquiry as severe re-
1 bulle to Admiral Dewey as Secretary
| Roots letter to Gen. Miles, and in this
/ censure he insists the president had
no thought but to do justice and to
/ teach Il lesson of discipline to the lieu
| tenant general of the army. at the
| same time putting an end to Il disrupt
| ing controversy in the navy, and he
| adds:
'In doing this he invited a storm of criti-
| cism, faced an angry mob in and out of
! congress, but taught needed lesson to the
! two services, and incidentally, to the
! heroes who abuse their popularity to the
/ injury of the government whose welfare
! they are bound to put above their own am
! bitions."
Here is another unpalatable state
ment. But who will say there is not
an element of truth in it? 1t raises a
question whether there is not to be a
reaction in public sentiment on contro-
versies of the present, as there was in
the case of the controversies OF 1862
and 1868, in which ambitious men
sought to involve Gems. Grant and
Sherman to their disadvantage.
There was then great bitterness
against these two officers. But in the
end the people took up the cause of
the man who said nothing, who bore
in patience unjust criticism and who
| lived to speak generously of all the
men who had striven to destroy his
reputation.