The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1905-11-24
MER|NETHER
and BRANCH
CODE VICTIMS |.
Verdict Of Public With.
out Naval Court-Mar-|s
tidl Circle. l3)Is
DEATH WAS DIRECT
RESULT OF FIGHT
Hot Bath Was Not the Cause
But May Have Fastened
Branch's Death. sa
sS 3l
MERIWETHER's GALLANTRY
SAVED KNOCKOUT BLOW
Had Branch On Knees, and, Ac-1
cording to Code, Gould sss
Have Finished Him, But ~
Turned His Back. 81
Bare Fists in
Old Days.
Hot Bath Was Not the Cause
But May Have fastened
Branch's Death. 5S3S
MERlWETHER'S GALLANTRY d,
SAVED KNOCKOUT LOvvl
BY WALTER EDWARD, {, Z 7, 4 ARais. e, 8

BY WALTER EDWARD 5 u ARR :. Es:;S
Especial from a Staff Correspon
ANNAPo Oils. November. 2a. --rhrsA3
gray headed admlrals Of the American
navy. atttrsd in the dress uni orrn N oxs
their rank, four OF fflcers of lesser rank
also In dress unif form. Is and all seat ted
about a long table in the dimly lighted
section room, where the court ma tai ais,
sitting: a pale faced boy, wearing tties
sundress uniform OF a naval cad deta i1ISf
eyes bright with nervous itement. HI
face pale and Y haEgared with long S ner-js
vous tension, his lips occasionally VI cury-.sSS
Ing In q smile but more often qutYer1nSS
in: pathetic fashion; uniformed navel OF
ncers, eager spectators 3; cadet officers
in uniform: a dozen newspaper corre.s
sspondents trying to write at a six sby
six table, and about the open door rsss III
group Of marines and citizens eagerasto toN
hear the testimony being adduced stoH
/ show that Midshipman Merriwether had
caused the death OF his 9comrade, Md
shipman James r. Branch. sSs
This is the picture / carry IN mind stosS
night as I glance back at S the court "
martial proceedings at the Naval i. Acad2s
emy to-day. .sS s5sSss
Death Not Caused BY Bath Ii. B
It can scarcely be said that I'll u eYi ~ i-ss
dence adduced to-day was Important! t!s
~ established as cl early as the prosecu-s
ton could have hoped to egtnblish llIS,S
fact that in the opinion OF t ne enlIuants
medical men who attended NIdlhsip iprnans
Branch after the fatal fight. liislsa shag
blows received from the fists Of Alidship-A
man A1er1wether were the cause of DEATH
But this could hardly have been serl lousS
I1yl4 SotYh tad II N "a ra 3a3-
lists, both Of them were absolutely une-a
fquivocal In expressing this opinion In-ss
deed, the only fea ture OF the testimonys
today which at all approached the sem
ssatiOnal was the declaration @concurred#
lin by all the men Of edicine that th6Ss
hot bath which was given Branch i:1l-ss
lmediately after the fight had nothin ngs9togs
do with his death. One OF them thought
1t might possibly have hastened the itraglcS
Termination, but all agreed that q t8 did
not cause It. M s 81 ". l$5g
Though the prosecution will not rest
until noon tomorrow. or possibly not
until the afternoon session, It cannot
hope to establish more certainly thAts
death ensued as a direct result OF the
fight between the two midshlpme en-. ThsE
defense is trying to show that the death
resulted from "a diseased condi itiona o.
the arterial system, due to the overr
training OF young Branch or thatatty
may have been the result OF cerebral
acmbolism induced by the fight. In which,
case the responsibility OF Merlwetheys (
would disappear. The effort has not thus
far been at all successful, Inc attempt
to show that death was the resul t & of
other than tho fight created some sur
prise on the part of the prosecutions
Spectators laugh when they discuss 3 the
attempt Of the defense. d ;Sass
The Binding Code."'s
There is one other fact which has been
even more clearly establishd than that
the death was the direct result OF the
fight. It Is that there Is a so-called code
at the Naval Academy. unwritten, but as
binding as II It We're inscribed In letters
OF blood that compels cadet to engage
in a hstic encounter with any comradof
who has given him a real or fapcled In
suit, and to accept challenge to such
encounter when ono is received
All Know Code in Existence. S
Furthermore. It has been most clearly
established that the authorities-that ISL
the cadet officers, IL not the commandant Il
and his commissioned stuft-knew OF the
existence of this code, and have known
nll the while. That tho cadet officers
knew OF 1t is evidenced by the fact .hat$
there cannot under the terms Of the cod
be a fight OF this character unless onaS
OF them Is present In the capacity OF 4
umpire Or referee. That the officers Of
the Academy knew of itais proven by tina \
manner in which old officers OF tho navy 3
sitting In Judgment on the boy who
however unintentionally, caused haS
death OF his comrade assisted ii
strengthening out witnesses who werDgs
trying to describe the manner in which.
the mills were conducted. ssa
The fact Of the existence OF such NJ
code Is admitted by naval officers. hui n
more than one say that It's terms are mo- Il
as they We're In the old days.
Formerly Fought With Bare N N
Knuckles.
When tho gray-ha'red officers Of toss
day were at the Academy the bouts weraSs
hstistlc encounters which lasted as long,
as both men were able 10 take and Riyass3
without any form of ruleAx4
to govern the contest. The bout In viii tnii "a
Branch and MerIwether engaged, thougllas
II was governed BY the provisions Or tasASS
code, was simply a prize do tssg
The Marquis of Queensberry rulea govrS
,crned. lust as they do In SlugKinRM "
matches In the prize ring. and the hRftt@
was 'pulled offn BY rounds In true pug W "a
listic style Fonr years ago a prize fikhIsEs
err In New York, lighting UNDER exactiys
The rules which governed the fatal col.gSs
tsst at the Naval Academy on the Stl,ss N
10 hl