The Birmingham age-herald., 1913-02-22
Confusion in the Equipment
Dates Back to Time of the
Spanish-American War
MILITIA is IN HIGH
STATE OF EFFICIENCY
Adiutant General Has No Idea How
Examiner Townes Could Have
Arrived at the Figures
Given Out
BY L. s. BETTY

Montgomery, February 2.-(Special)-
Declaring that the statement of Examiner
of Public Accounts Charles L. Townes
to the effect that there is property
shortage in the Alabama National Guard
to the amount of approximately 100000
is an hallucination, and ridiculing the
idea that there is any prospect of the
states national guard being mustered
out of service. Adiutant General Joseph
Il. Scully today gave The Age-Herald cor
respondent here a short statement rela-
tive to the army property which has been
in the possession of the state for the
past 10 years.
The trouble with the property accounts
of the federal government dates back TO
the Spanish-American war, according to
General Scully. At that time, all prop
erty on hand was turned over to the
government, and no receipts were taken,
or. if they were taken. the receipts We're
lost. As a consequence, the state had
been carrying this property on itssannual
returns until few days ago, when the
war department granted permission for
the state to cancel or drop the property
Amounted to About $150,000
The property turned over to the fed
eral government at the time the Spanish
American war broke out, for which no
receipts were taken, amounted to s62,-
$780, and this amount. together with
other sums, all of which aggregated
about s50OoO, has been placed to the
states credit.
Failure to get relieved of the property
charged to the state in 1897, prevented
the state from receiving credit for other
property which it received from year to
year. Each year the government turns
over to the Alabama National Guard
about $500 worth of property, and this
property has been carried on the return
OF accountability every year since 1891
when the original trouble arose AS a
result, the state has been charged with
about s300000 worth of property during
the past 15 years, though General Seuliy
now believes that the war department
Will relieve the state of practically all
of this amount, following a proper ac-
countability which the department of the
adjutant general is preparing.
General Scully said Friday that he did
not. see how Mr.. Townes had arrived at
his estimate of a $500 600 shortage, par
ticularly in view of the fact that he had
made an inventory of the property of
not more than one half of the military
organizations of the state
General Scully's Statement
In commenting upon Mr. Townes' inter-
view. General Scully said:
MY attention has been called to an in
terview of Charles l.. ToWnes, examiner
OF public accounts, in Thursdays Age
Herald. If Mr.. Townes has been quoted
correctly, he has not confined himself
to facts. He was ordered by the gov
ernor to make an inventory of all fed
eral property in possession of the state of
Alabama. As this property is in the
hands of some As organizations in all
parts of the state. and Mr.. Townes has
made inventories of only about half of
the organizations / do not know how he
can have judicial knowledge of any
shortage He has never seen state
ment of the states accountability to the
federal government. To arrive at the
amount of shortage he will have to make
a recapitulation of the inventories Of
each organization and headquarters and
compare same with our statement to the
federal government. This will require at
least 60 days more time on his part;
therefore, his statement that there is a
$4,000 shortage is a hallucination.
"The trouble with the property accounts
OF the federal government dates back to
the Spanish-American war. All property
on hand at that time was turned over
to the United States. If receipts were
taken they were lost and the state OF
Alabama was carrying the property on its
return when this administration took
charge, preventing our taking advantage
of the authority to drop annual allow
ance each year, and forcing the state
to carry on it's return all property is
sued since 1897. This Is now being cor
rected, and this administration has been
relieved of about $15o.000 covering prop
erty worn out and lost for a period OF
10 years, all prior to 1911.
LAS to his statement as to the mus
terng out of the entire National Guard
it is most too ridiculous to discuss, as
the condition of the guard as whole il
generally known to be in a higher state
of efficiency as to discipline and care OF
property than it has ever been. Ills
wish must be father to the thought in
this respect. or the lure of newspaper