New-York tribune., 1903-06-09
WOOD md RUNCIE.
an offer to Prove Charges Which
CHALLENGES AtfentiOn.

The editorial published by "The New-York
Sun" yesterday morning puts in more circum-
stantial and detailed form than they have ever
before had the charges respecting the relations
of General Leonard Wood and Major James e.
Runcie, which were brought to public attention
some xiIne ago by The New-York Evening
Post under what proved to be mistaken idea
of the facts at its command. "The Suns offer
to produce documentary evidence to sustain its
serious charges challenges attention and clearly
cannot be left to rest where it is. The article
is follows:
The New-York Tribune recognizes the gravity of
the statements which we have been reporting
Major James e. Runcie as having mace during
Woods participation in the attack on General
Brooke in The North American ReViem; ,an ,jg Gug
neighbor now returns 10 the subject re1carkiiiS
with truth and force: - :. a.
tionably true that if General wood participated in
the Runcie attack and then denied ms share i IN n
has been bearing false witness against Genera! neral
@ Wood @ ne should be phS9G1 II bes d about either
he should be exposed The truth ABOUT TINS aiAail
This does not put the case too strongly The
truth should be made known, and 1t is not a fnat,
ter for newspaper trial, but for lnVestsaIoh ny
competent tribunal, with power to compel teSu-
The truth would probably have been made known known
two years and more ago if General Brookes proper
Oh MAJOR & nIaelS; aS '1 Aada1 Review had been
Wood. to whom at Havana the matfer t1g was Sa re
some sort of an explanation. which must be OF rec
ord in the department, and Major Rlncle IN mn
tary offence went uninvestigated and Hnpunsnedi. =
Being an officer the retired list of the regular
establishment Major Runcie is stII w1{Lh b now 5Ws
then. to military discipline re Is 3uSt as ;biIed
General Wood in private communications to various
persons he then for having attackea1 HT bi
eral Brooke in a published article to Whlch MS
At this stage, of course, two separate questions
jf,--O1 1Sad Thp frST II
Major Runce has made the statements which nay nave
Initiative in the preparation Of The article attack
ing Mo0fT of for his part That being
true the second question is whether Major tsucle'
in those statements, has told facts or IalsenoIs,
AS to the question first in order, our neighbor'
The Tribune said yesterday: 49,, ro~,o,,s;l1a an
thor Of the charge that Major RunGs s5d Se It's
@snfe T6s Wf0d duty S IS p P1Bn5h edenee
that statement withdraw it ..+ 20
For clearness, we here repeat the stateen m rbe ne
Sun of Tuesday last June ?: ..,to,, ~. ba We
reason believe have been made by Major Rqnele e1e
earlier in date than the so-called withdrawal of Of
fRs fRs b Rhe fen eneTa Woods Closest
friend and unofficial counsellor and IegaI steeIeI
Santiago prepared the article attacking I General era
Brooke at General Woods request that Wood had
told Runcie it was highly desirable to get BROOKE
IF likewise vi eg n good fat Bele4hg that Brooke ought
gestion of Wood and intrusteG the manuscript to a
person whom Runcie had never seen before az ana q
time and for that purpose brought to him ana intro
duced by Wood that RunCies understanding was was
that his name not to appear In connection Win
the matter he had prepared at Woods request, n ST.
and General Brooke indignantly demanded ed that att
Runcie be court martialled. the demand was. py
at Havana, who reported back to Washington that
his understanding was that. while Runcie had wit
he pubIished as an article but had given it to a
friend of his (Runcies), to be used as the pass or
editorial comment in some newspaper and that TINS
sDonsfbiiity for the article The North American
ys Of hm v s' friend d whom he had trusted i'm
plicity and the occasion of the break in the close
relations previously existing between them" ,ox
One of our reasons Tor belleVlng tlst y va iSe
origin of The North American Review article is
We hold the signed declaration of more than one
reputable and responsible witness to the fact that
Major Runcie has to each of them stated at VARIOUS
times during the last years that he wrote the
article at General Woods request, and th9t Wood
knew its contents If the nvestgation OF the trI.n @
neighbcr The Tribune participating prominently g
to the public the names and exact terms Of the
Statements of these Witnesses II on the 0tael
ton is at last meet with response in the shape
of an official inquiry under the regular forms OF
al the right time to the investigating authorItes
a second reason for the belief which The Tr1D-
we have seen the sta tement in Major Runcies own
i Ila ~ .,I,a FSenne Posts publication in re
gard to the supposed interlineat tons, and not in,
tended for publication. The aforesaid statemen'
in Major Runcies own hand was that ne, 6uiIcde, @
wrote the article at Woods request, Tor nhan
him for the purpose and has never seen since; and
that when Brooke's demand for ILaI ~
at Havana Wood thereupon stated to MashiineItofI
that his understanding was that WhlIe 5ucit W At b
published as article but had given II 10 irItnG
Of his Guncies) to be used as the basis Oh edtofla
comment newspaper.
THAT is What Major Runcie himself has written
--s-----