Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-06-15
SECRET ORDER
Of DEATH NOT
NEW IN ARMY
Evans Says Suicide of TraitOrous
T Austrian BY Command of FeI-
lows Has U. S. Precedents.

Army men Of Atlanta are discus ,
sing among themselves the tragic
death Of young. Colonel Redl, of the
army of Austria, the story of whose
suicide is related in vivid press dis
patches. Proved a traitor. Redl was
presented with a revolver by his best
friends. and was left alone in his
room. He shot himself through the
Brigadier General r. K Evans, head
of the Department Of the Gulf, feels
that the. course az beth the young
Austrian ana his friends probably was
the best. 81,
1T showed spirit. 1t was soldier
~" he said. And yet such situa-
lions and such remedies are not con-
fined TO the army. "A man in anyJ
profession. disgraced. NAV feel it bet
ter for himself - for his friends
that be were IDEAS. Tit is not unusual
"And as for the action Of his friends
in offering the solution, well, 1t was
not unnatural Once upon a time"
Suggested Same Method.
And General Evans told of an in
eident in his subaltern DAYS, when he,
sincerely enough. suggested to a COM
rade In disgrace that death probably
was the best way out. The comrade,
a young officer, had lost through gam
bling some public money which had
/ been entrusted to him. had fled, was
recaptured.
He didn't do it, though" said the
general He went to prison instead
| The. born and reared gentleman.
Maybe he didn't have the spirit of
| this Austrian soldier. Anyhow, when
he got out, he was the most miserable
person alive, and is now. perhaps.
such a case as that of the Aus
triap is not recorded in the annals
| of the American army. But ! have
no doubt that affairs like that have
occurred in private life"
However, the U. S. navy had a
somewhat similar episode less than
two years ago.
| On January Is, 1911, dispatches
| from San Francisco told of a scandal
| in navy that came TO Hight with the
| enforced retirement of Rear Admiral
Edward h. Barry, then commanding
| the Pacific fleet. A demand had been
made upon him to resign by subOrdi
nate officers on board his flagship the
Virginia
Sent Admiral Revolver.
Barry refused to resign and the Of
| ficeFs withdrew and decided to send
him a loaded revolver as a suggss-
ton that he end his career in the navy
by suicide, This was not done, the
officers waiting to give Admiral Bar
! ssny nh rrru.a hgF 50 M with
40 years record of service in the navy
to his credit. an opportunity to re-
sign. Ensign Sherwood A. Taffender,
officer of the deck had reported to his
superior officers that he witnessed
scandalous conduct on the part of the
admiral Barry in his cabin.
The officers swOre to keep the mat
ter secret IL Barry would resign.
| Instead OF doing this the rear adj
miral wired Washington asking that
he be retired at once.
In the meantime the Officers of the
Virginia drafted charges against Ad-
miral Barry containing the statement
of what Ensign bartender had seen in
the admiral's cabin. The document
was addressed to the secretary of the
navy handed to Captain Orchad of
the Virginia who passed II up to Rear
Admiral Barry with the request that
II be forwarded Barry did not for
ward 1t. Then the officers wrote an
other set Of charges and mailed them
10 the secretary OF the navy Barry's
retirement followed a sweeping denial
of the charges.
Sensation In Europe.
The case Of Colonel RedI has caused
a sensation In Europe
i He was one OF the chiefs of the Sc
eret Service Department He was
charged With selling Important secrets
to the Russian Government. His
apartment was searched. and a num-
Der OF discriminating documents were
found. some of which showed that he
had given to the Russian Government
draft plans for simultaneous action
on the part Of the Austrian and Ger
man armies against Russia in case OF
war.
The war Office, on receiving con-
hrmation Of the report. sent two Of
his fellow officers to Redl. During
the night they informed him OF the
charges against him. AS ne was un-
able 10 clear himself. they warned him
that they would return at daybreak
and arrest him.
On leaving the room, one Of them
took a loaded pistol from his pocket
and book OF instructions. He open
ed the BOOK, ana placed Il In front
Of Redl with a meaning glance, The
officers then mounted guard outside
the room until the noise Of a Shot
told them that the accused had chosen
the only way. They ascertained that
Redl was dead, and reported to the
war Office.
/ ct was their duty to arrest him
having found the evidence against
him" said General Evans. comment
ing on the story But the fact that
they guarded his quarters freed them
OF any charge of giving him 0ppOr-
tunity 10 escape. The whole affair is
not unusual. however. and may occur
I'm private life"