The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1910-09-10
EVIDENCE FAyORS
ACCUSED OFFICER
Colonel Consolvo Will Probably
Be Given Complete
Vindication.
DELAYS WERE UNAVOIDABLE
Captain opie Did Not Write
Editorials and Does Not
Prosecute.
DELAYS WERE UNAvoIDABLE e

While. in accordance with military
usage. no verdict was announced veg.
terday by the court of inquiry which
investigated the official conduct o!
Lieutenant-ColcnelC Charles II. Consol.
Yo. paymaster-general of the Virginia
Volunteers. no doubt exists that he
will be completely vindicated. Most
|, of the evidence adduced was favorable
to his cause. while he made statements
to explain matters for which he was
| criticized by some of the witnesses.
I The witness around whom interest
centred was Captain II. L. Opie, COM
| mander of Company A, Second Regi-
ment, of Staunton. He Is the editor
| of the Siaunton Daily Leader, in which
| appeared the editorials which s.ung
Colonel Consolvo into asking for a
court of inquiry as to his alleged mis-
conduct. These articles put the blame
on the disbursing officer for the delay
in the payment Of the troops on mill
tary duty at the Gettysburg ma
| noeuvres.
Was Not Author.
| Captain Opie denied that he wrote
| the articles, but accepted full respon-
| sibility for them. He also made Q
statement. which was a surprise to his
hearers that for the first time he had
| then learned that he was supposed to
! be the cause of the creation of the
court. He said that had he been ad-
vised that the onus of the matter was
upon him, he might have produced wit
| nesses and been prepared to go into
the case.
Inasmuch as Captain opie's conncc-
tfon with the matter has been stated
in The Times-Dspatch, and as the
officer Is a resident of the State, and
as such almost certain to be a reader
OF the paper, Lieutenant Tucker. the
recorder for the court, asked II he did
not read this publication. Captain Opie
said he did, but reiterated that he was
now advised of his share in the affair
was evidently surprised that the wilt
ness had not read an article in The
Times-Dispatch.
Case Settled.
The testimony Of Captain opie took
the point out. of the inquiry, leaving
nothing except Colonel Consolvo's de-
sire to set. himself right, which he had
already accomplished to some extent
by public statements. The verdict.
when rendered by the court and prop
erly signed, will be forwarded to the
Adjutant-General,
The court sat at 10 o'clock in the
morning, in the officers room in the
armory of the Richmond Light Infan-
try Blues The members of the tri-
bunal We're Colonel Robert f. Leedy,
Of Luray, commander Of the Second Iu-
fantry; Lieutenant- Colonel S. r. Mill
ar. of Front Royal, Second Regiment,
and Lieutenant-Colonel Robert q.
Craighill, of Lynchhurg, First Inran-
try. Lieutenant j. Randolph Tucker,
of the Richmond Blues. was the re-
corder
In reply to questions by the recorder
Colonel Consolvo stated that he had no
counsel, and did not desire to chal-
lenge any member OF the court The
court was then sworn. and the orders
In connection therewith were read. in
cluding the editorials from the Staun-
ton paper.
Editorial Criticism.
The first of these, dated July II, in-
timated that the paymaster- general
had the money with which to pay the
entangled In red tape, and that an In
Vestlgation should be had, The other
published on August 4, said that only
tho Norfolk companies had SO far been
paid. In the news columns or the same
edition it was stated that Captain Opls
was paying off his company with
checks received from Colonel Consolyo
This furnished the basis for the
hearing, and Lieutenant Tucker s,g-
gested that Colonel Consolvo might
produce his witnesses. The first was
-. =. Ware, Of Norfolk, who uc,ed as
his clerk in paying off the militia He
Continued on ssyenth Page.5
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