The Washington herald., 1911-03-24
COwardice in Time of War

PLY are rare occurrence in military an
nails, there have been some remarkable
cases of this character and some terri
Die punishments exacted. Charges OF
cowardice and refusing to fight have not
always been made against noncommission-
ed officers. Even a British commander-in-
chief has been tried for cowardce, found
guilty, and dismissed from the King
service. After the death of the great
Duke of Marlborough the Kings forces
in Germany were placed under the charge
OF Lord George Sackville. the third son
OF the Duke of Dorset Lord George was
in supreme command of the British
troops at the battle of Minden. Lord
George. however. disobeyed the orders of
Prince Ferdinand. who was directing the
allied forces, and as the British soldiers
failed TO come up at the right moment,
the battle was lost
Lord George Sackville was severely
censured by Prince Ferdinand. and he
returned to England in disgrace. Within
three days king George III dismissed
him from all his employments. He was
tried by court-martial and adjudged ''un-
mt to serve his majesty in any capacity
whatever" This judgment was con-
tirmed by the King, who ordered that
1T be given out in public orders all over
Great Britain and America, and every
quarter of the globe where British
troops happened to be. that neither high
birth nor great employments could shell
ter offenders of such a nature. and that
seeing such offenders were subjected to
censure, much worse than death to
man who had sense OF honor. they
might avoid the fatal consequences aris-
ing from disObedencc of ORDERS
To complete his disgrace. Lord George
Sackville was struck off the list Of prvy
councillors. Yet he survived this ter
rible humiliation to be, many years
later, elevated to the pecrage and to
be the cause OF the loss of America to
Great Britain. His ennoblemcnt was re-
scented by the peers. and Lord Car
marthen urged that the House OF Lords
being court Of honor. it behooved them
TO preserve that honor uncontamnated.
and to mark their disapprohation Of the
introduction OF A person into that as
Sembly who was stigmatized in the or
derly books Of every regiment in the
service"
Lord George Sackvillc was not the
only British mmandcr-in-chief who
had been court -martialed for refusing
TO fight. One of England's lost possess
sions is the Island Of MinorCa. in the
Mediterranean, a place OF strategic
Importance. It is about zoo years ago
since Britain captured the island and
held it half a century. Then suddenly
a French army OF 1900 mon do
sCcnded upon the island A feeble at
tempt was made by the British to re-
heve the place, and a miserable fleet OF
ten small vessels was sent under Ad
miral Byng. He was defeated, but he
had the sympathy OF his countrymen,
for his naval resources were wrctched.
and the men who should have suffered
were the politicians who sent him upon
such a forlorn hope.
But a victim had u no found, and he
was brought home. deprived Of his com
mand. publicly disEraced before the eyes
Of his own men. condemned. and shot
dead on tho quarterback of the Monarch.
at Srithcad, one March morning in 1757.
They offered to blind his eyes. hut he
refused So they told him that the firing
party could shoot better II the admiral
were blindfOlded. Very WELL he said
III it makes them nervous. hlindfold me
by all means" He died as he had lived,
a gallant and courteous gentleman.
Justice was short and sharp for officers
who shirked their duty in those days.
In the registers Of the old church of ST.
Nicholas at Doptford appears this line.
under date 1870: Capt Poarse and Lieut.
Logan shot for losing the Sapphire.
cowardly." Nowadays they do not exart
these grim atonements from high officers
who fail in their efforts to come UP to
the scratch" But in British modern his
tory three famous generals were sent
homo in disgrace for incOmpetency-all of
whom survived their downfall but a short
time. Gen. Sir Redvers Butler was COM
mander-in-chief Of the British army in
South Africa when he all hut failed to
get across the TuGeIa TO the relief Of
Ladysmth. and he was superseded by
Field Marshal Lord Roberts and sent
home Gems. Sir William Gatacre and
Sir Henry Cofvile suffered like fate and
their humiliation surely was all the pun
have wished for them. What their fate
would have been in the bad old times
ono shudders to think.
1t is officially announced that Admiral
Togo. the hero OF the Russo-Japanese
war. will represent Japan. with Prince
Fushimi at the coronation. This will
be the admirars first visit TO England
since he won worldwide renown. but |
Of course. he is thoroughly familiar with |
the country. for ne is an old ''Worces- !
ter boy" King George called this fact !
10 mind when. as Prince of Wales, he |
distributed the prizes on board the Wor- |
cester. Every Worcester boy" his mai |
esty said. must feel proud that a man |
whose name has become celebrated as a |
naval commander served on the Worces- |
Ter for eighteen months I mean, OF
course, Admiral Togo"
Togo afterward went through a course |
Of naval teaching at the Royal Naval |
College at Greenwich. and while there
80 tradition goes-he was converted to !
Roman Catholicism and baptized at the
church. Greenhithe. Oddly |
enough. his examiners in those days failed |
% credit him with any special gifts; in
Iced. he was the victim Of all manner
II .chaff from the British on the Wor
>ester. who called him "One-two-three-
90" He grew in popularity. however,
until at length he became a general IA
Torite with officers and boys. He stood
LII the chaff with a certain amount of
,ravado. unless it touched on his re-
;embIance to the Chinese. To one fell
ow-sailor who dubbed him a Chinaman.
lie said, with emphasis: You wait: when
am the admiral. hang you on the yard