Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1915-11-26
WAS
TESTIMONY GIVEN
IN AIRMEN TRIAL
PROCEEDINGS IN CONDUCT OF THE
AVIATION CORPS OF ARMY MAY
REACH NEXT CONGRESS-
CHARGED THAT CAPTAIN C0WAN
FAILED TO WARN FLYERS MA
CHIMES HAD BEEN CONDEMNED.
Especial To- The Herald }

San Francisco. Calf. Nov. 26.-That
army aviatorS had been required to fly
a type of machine condemned bv GOV
crnmcnt engineering experts with,int
their being warned that the machines
were unsafe. and that officers who We're
rat gM.,lifi... flrer-.. .'yere drawing 49, ri
per cent increase in pay allowed extra
hazard men were among the startling al
legations submitted relative to
the management by IicnteuantC Colonel
samuel Rcbcr. chief of the aviation sec
tion of the signal corps and Captain \.
=. Cowan. commanding officer of the
army aviation school at San Diego. Cal.
in the court martial which has been in
session here since early in October and
now adjourned
The court was called to try Lieutenant
Jolonc! Lewis Goodicr. ~ the Judge
Advocate Generals department. on a
charge Of maliciouSly melting inSubOr-
dination and fomcntine diScord among
the subordinate Off .erS of Captain T.
= Cowan. The government alleged that
GOodicr gave certain advice aS 90 tile
proper method of framing charges which
they intended To prefer against Captain
Cowan 10 Townsend II Dodd. now in
command of the aviation detachment at
Brownsville. TFxaS. and Lieutenant
Taliafcrro. who WAS killed in Nv aero
plane accident last month. and did not
report having given the advice 10 his
superior officer.
Possibly the most startling testimony
introduced during the trial was that
showing that Captain \. :. Cowan
failed 10 warn Captain Dodd when he
was ordered 10 Brownsville To the effect
that the type of machine in use on the
border had been condemned hv Engineer
llunSackcr. assistant construction en-
ginccr for the navy and III charge of the
course in aeronautical engineering al
the MASSACHUSETTS, Institute III Tccbnol
Ngy. In an official statement Engineer
ilunSackcr had pronounced the machine
Statically and dynamicallv wrong. Cap
tain Dodd stated on the witness stand
that he became acquainted with this re-
nort through conversation with Captain
Clark. n fellow Officer during conver
Sation inst prcviouS 10 his departure for
brownsville II was also shown that
one officer had been killed ard ~cvcr.,r
injured while using the machine con
dcmncd hv Mr.. IlunSacker
II was introduced in the testimony that
Captain Cnwan had been drawing the
nay If military FLYER although he
could not handle machine alone. and
that Captain William lay Patterson
was also drawing pilots pay but was
unable To handle IN air machine.
Letters exchanged between Col. Reber
and Captain Cowan aud which were i'm
| trOduccd in the trial advised Captain
Cowan to sit tight" and draw his paw
and mentioned that while n vet no queS
| tionS had been asked III they were II
would be embarrassing for kim tRcbcr.
10 explain why PatIcrSon'S name did not
| pnclr on the daily flight reports. x
letter referring 10 the charges made nv
Captain Dodd and Lieutenant Taliferro
stated that he Rehcri was going to
get ! couple of ScalpS."
These are only fragments Of tho ties
| timony which was introduced and which
vii probably cause one Of the greatest
>hakeupS in recent wears in military
| circles. II is entirely possible that the
matter NAV hc investigated by a com
mittee from the next congress.