New-York tribune., 1921-11-06
w. atson Turns
On Pershing for
Denying Charge
Threatens to Hale General
Before Senate Because
He Called c. Ceorgian's
Tales of Crueltics False
Reads Still More Letters
Declares Instances Of Hang.
ings He Has Given Are
More Than Army Reports

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5.-presentins
further support for his charges that
American soldiers were hanged over
teas without court martial, Senator
watson. Democrat. Of Georgia, tonight
In. the Senate turned his fire on Secre-
tary Weeks and General Pershing be-
cause of their denial Of the Senator's
assertions.
Alluding to statement made to-day
by the War Secretary that mo decent
man. would make charges with respect
TO army nurses such as made several
days ago in the Senate, Senator Wat
son, while disclaiming any intent to at
tack the nurses as a whole, said he
would leave it to any impartial tribu-
nal to judge whether he or Mr.. Weeks
was the more decent" The Senator
said his charge as originally made was
that officers in too many cases made
courtesans of the nurses
And l can prove it," he exclaimed.
Threatens to Call Pershing
Reading General pershing's state
ment, as made yesterday in Nashville.
Tenn, that the Watson charges of lille
gal hangings and inhuman treatment Of
privates by officers was "most out
rageous and untrue accusation," the
Georgia Senator declared:
when the general denounces a SEN
ator as liar he had better remember
that it is within the power of the Sem
ate to bring him here, and a time may
come when we will do that. If he talks
that way about more Senators it may
be done. We have as yet no Kaiser
that says Me and Cod
I'm not going to lower myself" SEN
ator Watson continued, "to the level of
either Secretary Weeks or General
Pershing by indulging in abuse. sim
ply content myself with saying that 1t
was a great impropriety for either of
these gentlemen in the public service
the slightest investigations"
Senator Watson then read a letter
from an unidentified Richmond, Va,
woman, who said she had served twelve
months as an army nurse. The letter
said that "officers made courtesans of
the nurses whenever possible and
nurses who resisted were sub
jected to personal indignities." Mr..
Watson also said he had been told
personally by former nurse that she
had been compelled to repel the as
sault of an officer.
Submits Another Photograph
More kilograms and letters in sup
port Of his illegal hanging charges
also were presented by the Senator. He
submitted another photograph of what
he said was an army gallows in France,
which photograph, he said, had been
ington, W. Va, private
apparently there was as many glib
bets as hospitals" said the Senator,
who for the first time gave the name
Clifford L. Aver jr.-of the man he
said had told him of hearing from a
gallows guard that twenty-one soldiers
had been hanged with court-martials.
He presented telegram from Aver
stating that an affidavit was being for
mittee that will meet Monday to de-
termine procedure in the investigation
of the Senator's charges. The Senator
promised to protect his witness if any
attempts, he said, were made to "broW-
beat or intimidate them"
Another telegram presented by the
Senator was from George Carborough,
Aaron, Ga, who said he served in the
605th Engineer Corps. and declared
that Mr.. Watson's charges Of illegal
hangings wre true. Senator Watson
the committee and "face the nabobs of
the General Staff
The Senator read another telegram,
the sender of which was not disclosed,
which asked that the Senate investiga-
tion include "the case of Albert Purcell,
of Cincinnati" about which the inform
ant said he had been able to learn
nothing from the War Department. The
message said PurcelPs death occurred
at a camp at San Antonio. Texas.
William Gibbons, OF Cleveland. had
urifton M Watson said that ha h =
two photographs, one taken before and
the other after, the hanging of soldier
against whom the writer said the
charges lacked definiteness.