Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1906-01-02
DECATUR IS STILL ON TRIAL.
Standing On Head Demonstrated
At Today's Session.

\ noise liKe standing ON the heat
played a prominent part in the testi-
mony of the witnesses for the dptenCa
in the court martial proCet diugs
against Midshipman stephen Decatur.
Jr., charged with the haziug of
Fourth CIassmeu Isaac A. McClnry
and Gaylord Church, all of them say
ing that il was a distinctive and
characteristic sound aud would havo
been recognized by them il il had
taken place in an adjoining room.
\ large number of midshipmen were
brought ON the stand to tell what had
occurred in the room of Decatur ON
the cay when the officers aud petty
officers had their pictures taken, this
being the event by which McClary
fixed the occasion of the hazing. They
stated that they had been i'm the room
on this day and that they bad seen
no fourth classmen. They all thought
that they would have seen them If
they had been doing stunts in tha
closet and that while they admitted
that they might not have been able to
recognize No. rs and the leaning rest
by any noise made by the victim, all
were sure that standing ON the head
made a sound that was not TO be con-
fused with anything else,
The midshipmen who testified this
morning were Charles s. Keller, John
+. Cox, Robert V. Lowe. Peroival r.
ID. Maggie, Carroll s. Graves, S. X.
Davis, Harold Jones and Claude b.
Mayo. The defence attempted to
prove by them that there were In the
room McClary aud Church alleged that
the hRzing was done and that nothing
of the kind took place Both Lowe
| and Graves, il is understood, are an
| der the suspicion of the authorities in
regard 20 hazing and their trials are
to follow shortly.
The Coffin trial disclosed a situation
which many members of Congress
| believe demands an Immediate invcs-
| tigation of the Naval Academy by Con-
gress. The successive oourt-martials
will develop the ground work for this
| investigation and as soon as they ara
completed Congress will take hand
| in the matter. The difficulty with tho
military trials is that they are not
only ,hampered by the rigid regula,
| tions Of the navy hedging trials by
court martials but are not Thought 60
| be elatsic enough to break down the
barrier presented by the code of honor
existing among the midshipmen. A.
| Congressional commission would not
be restricted by these handicaps aud
would not tolerate any such declara-
tion as 81 caunct identify the ac.
cused. -
| Congress through "A special commit.
tee investigated hazing at the Mill
tary Academy at West Point early in
1900. Tie inquiry was searching
one and in addition TO fixing the in
dividual responsibility succeeded in
ferreting out every inner secret of tho
cadets respecting their self constituted
ode of honor. Many Congressman be-
lieve that as rigid au investigation OF
the Naval Academy as was made at
| West Point will dislose the fact that
| conditions are as bad at tho Naval
| Academy now and practically the same
as they vera at West Point just be.
fore the Congressional investigation.
If the court martial which recently
/ tried Midshipman Coffin and Van
| Derveer at the Naval Academy on the
| charge of hazing recommends tile dis
m!ssal of those young men nothing
less than special act of Congress will
reinstate them as midstipmen at tho
| Academy. Under the law governing
| the punishment of midshipmen for
hazing it is not possible for Secretary
of the Navy Bonaparte to set aside th9
| sentence of dismissal and even tho
| President il is said at the Navy De
| partment is powerless to reinstate tho
offending midshipm even though he
| NAV nardoD them