The Birmingham age-herald., 1919-03-10
|CROWDER-A ANSE[[
 CONTROVERSY GIVEN
 I'D PUBLIC SUNDAY
Secretary Baker Says He Believes Military Justice Was Not Due Criticism
 of Congress
By Associated Press

Washington, March 9.-The dif- \ fereuces between Major Gen. Il Enoch H. Crowder. judge advocate II general, and Brig. Gen. Samuel Y. VI AnseII, former acting judge advo-
 cate general, were explained and
 the ordering of a thorough inves-
 tiratfon by the inspector general
 of the army into the whole subject
 of the administration of military
 justice during the war was dis
 closed in a letter from General
 Crowder to Secretary Baker, made
 public today at the war depart
 ment.
 Accompanying General Crowder letter was one from MT. Baker asking the judge advocate general for a com |plete statement as to the operation o. military justice. The secretary wrote |that his own acquaintance with tho facts convinced him that the conditions Implied by recent complaints 'do not Iexist and had not existed,' but that lii was essential that the families Of |all those young men who had place lin our magnificent army should De treasured"
 In reply General Crowder made gen.
  Nor gress and elsewhere concerning court Aartial cases and charged that General 41sell. without his knowledge and con &ant. had submitted a brief to Secretary Maker early in the war urging a revolu- Htion in the military justice system
 AS T OGENERAL ANSELL General Crowder also said that at the same time that this brief was submitted IGeneral Ansell without consulting the VSecretary of War obtained an order from +the chief of staff appointing Ansell act ling judge advocate general. This was after General Ansell had requested Gen sral Crowder's aid in getting such ar order and had beenl told by the latter te take the matter up with MT. Baker; order was revoked by Secretary Baker before it was published after Genera {-rowder had called 1t to Mr. Bakers at :ention. ~. The fudge advocate general said thu | .s.lIpposed controversy between hlmseh land General Ansell as to military justice lad been magnified since the req. is sues and the only ones," were in olIIer knces of opinion as to whether the po"el q review and overturn executed yer |tirts of general courts-martial existed an' vhether that power should be exercised Nv the judge advocate general or tn' President.
 N rseneraI Crowder held that there wal I.n authority for review under presen Itatutes, and was sustained by Secretar! Maker Congress then was asked 10 ere HIS that power, but failed to act. Gen HEl AnselI insisted that such power ex
 Id under the present statute and tha
 Ahould be exercised by the judge ao
 kte general and not the President.
 Nnirg to criticisms that the sentence
 .S,urts-martial during the war nay T zan atrocio,tsly severe, General Crowde yyrote that this was not & criticism Ihe system of military justice and no
 1criticism of his administration of tha Iystem.
 @ ASLEEP AT POST
 4.It is critfcism,' he said, "of the o1 {;cers who imposed, for instance, sen {ences of death for sentinels convicte Nj sleeping on post, for soldiers wiltuii nd contumaciously refusing to opey tn
 irect orders of their commanding ol 2cers. and for desertion in time or wal
 nd it ia a criticism of the Congfes irbich authorized death penalty, Tn pial 5tatuatory terms to be assessed on cor
 ictions for these offenses. do nc ,ean to say that, if criticism in tnl
 onncetion is due, an immune. al
 ot. agree with the statute, and sha
 efend it. but am not responsible TOT
 "ConsiderinE the charges from LII
 tandpoint of the officers who assesse
 ha sentences, let us see who they ar
 hey are men taken in a general dras
 et through the nation. They com
 Tom avery walk of life. There al Io0 900 of them. They comprise taltn