The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1919-02-15
GREEN PRIVATE
GIVEN 40 YEARS
as6fs5F 8
For Refusal to Hand Over
Cigarettes on Order of
Lieutenant
SHOWS UNFAIRNESS Il
OF ARMY COURTS
Numerous Cases Brought to Attention OF
Senate Military Committee to Prove
That Present System os Travesty
on Justice.

That Present system cs d 1A@F0S'S /
on Justice.
WASHINGTON, FEB. 15.--Told to stop
smoking in the company kitchen, a pr
waite in the national army refused ana
added that the sergeant could go to hell,
The private had been in the army only
few DAYS and had no real comprehension
of military discipline. So green was he
that when second lieutenant appeared
and demanded that he surrender his pack
age Of cigarettes he refused.
For this a court-martial sentenced him
to serve forty years in a military prison.
Another private of the national army
deserted a camp on hearing of the fatal
illness Of his rather. He departed for his
father ) home, taking French leave, and
remained away until his fathers death.
Without awaiting even the funeral the
boy came back to camp and surrendered
voluntarily He was tired, convicted and
sentenced to thirty years in military
prison.
These were but two OF several score Of
examples related the other day by. act
ing Judge Acknowledgement s L. Ansell
) before the senate military committee to
prove his contention that the eourt-maia
tial system obtaining III our army IS a
travesty upon justice,
The committee had under considers ton
Senator Chamberain's bill TO reform the
; system Of court-martial by giving the
privilege of review of all sentences to the
: office Of the Judge advocate general. Tn
; ier the existing system as construed by
Judge Advocate General Crowder, in
which view that official has the support
Of Secretary of War Baker, the power to
review is denied the judge advocate gen
=, eral
In his examination Gen. Ansell cites
Instances Of the grossest injustice and
harshness of sentences imposed for infrae-
tions Of military law The offences tech
nicaly grave but actually unimportant
had resulted in sentences from twenty u
forty years, dishonorable discharge and
the brand Of criminal being fixed upon
men whose impulse to the wrong com
mitted had been that OF the angry youth
uecn from the country and the srnal
town, subjected for the first time in hi
lie to anything like army discipline.
Senator Frelinghuysen IN. j. manage,
to bring in the extraordinary eniency dis
played by Secretary Baker toward tn
conscientious directors, who had beer
Dardoned ont Of prison, had received hon
II )rabIe discharges, back pay and wearn
Il apparel, while the boys who were wilIin
d 70 fight, ready to 60 out and die for til
d country and whose ofenses constitute
only recalcitrancy, had been sentences
e to protracted terms Of imprisonment
is What is your opinion, general, wit
IS regard to the attitude of the secretary q
lie var on the question of these conscientious
Electors whom he cquips with a ban
J. roll, wearing apparel and then pins a boz
IS 1uet in their buttonholes and gives a
S. honorable discharge" asked Senator Ere
n inghuysen.
a, Il would rather be excused from al
y. swering that, senator" replied the gene
Oh Al, 1T would be exceedingly embarras
s. ing for me to answer it."
- Don't worry interposed Chairma
y Chamberlain, we can ask Secretary b;
ker himself about that.
Maybe he too has some conscientior
objections" INTERCEPTED Senator Kno
PA.
Gen AnseIl urged the necessity Of r
wishing the law to admit OF the Judge az
vocate-general becoming the reviewing O
fccr, in point Of fact the court OF az
, reals in courts martial He told I'll
committee that until this was accou
1 nlished the unfair and unusual eruelty.C
\ come Of the trial officers could not /
/ circumvented. Then he cited instances {
H litter sentences for comparatively nsit
II nificant offences
H IN the prcliminarics Of the examination
! The Republican senators who have bee
II launch supporters OF Cen Crowdc
! cared apparently that Crowder was bei
H ,ubjected to criticism by his assistant, i,
\ i soon became clear that Gen. Crowder
\ POSITION had been technical opa througl
i e"t by bis nsistenee ON the letter of ii
4 existing law which eliminated the powc1
II If the judge acknowledgement ard did ~
i accord him the power of review. RI
fault lay with the law and not with i
H administrator, it was made clear.