Arizona republican., 1919-08-01
CAPT ELY ADDS STATEMENT TO
 CONTROVERSY
 LIN PRISON ARM
Supports Colonels Views as
 to Moral Calibre of Sol
 diers Confined in Chelles Area-Grinstead to Coast

Colonel E. P Grinstead, whose statement that thousands of Ameri- can soldiers were running away from the front lines" at the time he was in command of prison camps in the vicinity of Chelles, France, has aroused a storm of comment both locally and in the east, refused yesterday to make any further statement at the present time. Colonel Grinstead left the city last night for a few days visit with his wife in San Diego.
 new entrant in the controversy
 fomented by the exclusive inter-
 view with Colonel Grinstead print
 ed in yesterday mornings Republi-
 can is Captain Clyde E. Ely, former
 summary court officer of the 145th
 machine gun battalion, 40th divis-
 ion, who supports Colonel Grin
 stead's view that the men who
 passed through prison camps in
 the Chelles area were in many
 cases low of moral caliber and who
 speaks at length on various phases
 of the question. He does not min
 imize, however, that prison camp
 rule was severe.
 Captain Ely is at present at his home in Deming, New Mexico, and his in terview was secured by wire early yesterday evening. It is his belief that Colonel Grinstead and Lieutenant Frank H. Smith were selected by SUI perior authority for roles at prison camps because they were known to be officers who enforced rigorous di sci- pline at all times.
 An Interview by Wire
 Captain Ely's statement to The Re- publican follows:
 ''CcIonel Edgar Grinstead, com rnander of the 15Sth infantry and Lieut.. Frank H. Hard boiled" Smith, in direct charge of prison farm No. 2, were in my opinion selected under the sanction of Major General Frederick Smith Strong, commanding the 10th division. for the vigorous character tsfics they were supposed to possess.
 This, according to the word braited apout, was In line with a general. policy m the A. E. F. of repression. The of fficers now under fire are guilty onI1 of carrying out direct or impliess osl ders. The A. E. F. as a whole 't% never interested in the mannef which the prison camps were conauet- ed. Most officers. and .privatesf fwert there Gin France) for a serioE pur. pose and kept away from then. Blu In an army of 100000 there wer, many mental defectives and many witt criminal records or tendencieH These naturally gravitated to the prsons anc their control was one. of the greatest problems for the higher cornmanders Repression seemed to be tbe answer that appealed to many of hem 9th, commanders). Major Genera1RStrons was a kindly man, but muchS Sinflu enced. I was line officer, aHd henc' outside the councils or the foterie a headquarters, which ruled znen an, officers with arbitrary svat
 But it was made knoWn to me a summary court officer of thef145th ma chine gun battalion and alsQ as a mem Der of courts martial that executiv and statutory limits were off 8pd tha sentences of greater severity must D imposed to get them by the fyiew ing authority. RecommendationS made for clemency (hefore the sep tences were reviewed) went into th waste basket.
 Prison Camp Rule Severe
 Likewise. we learned of the severit of the prison camp regime. and th word went forth that it was hell ( a place to land. In this way the high CT ups evidently intended to put fea into the hearts of the men as a meas ure of restraint. I believe that Lfeal tenant Smith and Colonel Grinstea did only what they had direct order or implied orders to do. and that tn higher command was responsible fc the policy under which these direct implied orders were carried out.
 Tn this I state only what I think could prove, for the thoughts of bein called on the carpet as we terme being seat for by division headqual ters, is still strong within me and was always more afraid of what woul happen to me there than at the iron
 T personally handled some of tf men that had been maItreated and wa once reprimanded for delaying a marc 10 rest them up and feed them. was told by headquarters you cam. be good to these men They wei hungry, III conditioned and it took si trucks raxing several trips to pick U the stragglers who were too weak walk
 They were in an i'll mood, and Lier tenant Smith was, in my opinion, qui correct when he said they were daT gerous. However, many of them al respond to kindness, and I believe tI; under experienced commanders the could have been controll without much brutality.