Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1922-12-02
M|DDYPR0BE FINDS
ONLY 'MUSSED HAIR
Annapolis Inquiry Fails to Up
hold Denby's Charge Of
! High Jinks
ONE UNIFORM WAS DUSTY
Ru a S,nH Corrcspondcn.

Annapolis. Nd. Dec. 1.-Two mid.
dies had their hair musscd.
This Is the net result Of the inquiry
~ far into "sinful" actions Of mid
shipmen At tho ball following tho Army
Navy football game ut the Bellevue
Ctratford in Philadelphia last Satur-
day.
A board Of investigation. imposing
IN its gold lace and It's official dignity.
is sitting in Judgment upon this affair.
As far as the matter has gone, Sec
retary of the Navy DENLY. who ordered
the inquiry seems - hc he only one
who saw any intoycation n, m" ball.
The officers on the board nf inquiry
cannot exactly he said to look pleased
at the turn Of affairs They wear poke.
faces.
The board held its first session ycs-
today, but an important event mad"
adjournment until Monday absolutely
necessary. The Marines play The Army
football at Baltimore to-day HNl almost
the whole Naval Academy is going. So
the board will not convene again un-
til Monday.
DENLY Charges Not Backed
Secretary penhy, thoroughly shocked
Il seems. insists he saw intoNicatlon AT
the bail, but no one will back him up.
Naval officers who We're there vii, not
admit they saw anything wrong.
Civilians have written to the Naval
Academy taking exception to Secretary
Denby's remarks. and insisting the
Middips were cold sober. This the
Middies cheerfully admit
In fact one Of the witnesses II, yes
terdays hearing. Midshirman George
Castera. chairman of the Midshiprcn :
Hon Committee. was so precise in III.
answers to questions put to him by the
board, and 81 anxious to be th"roughly
accurate in his reply that hr admitted
ordering two Middies from tn" floor
'because their hair was mussed and
their uniforms not properly brushed -
He could not b" mad" to admit he ha!
seen any intoNication.
Smothering a grin the merlbcrs of
the board procc"d"d with til" question =
ing, tuctfully omittinc any further ref q.
erence to the musscd hair.
Rear Admiral Henry r. Wilson.
superintendent of III" Naval Academy
and Commander Thomas X. Kurtz.
commandant at the Academy. to.ether
with MidShirmnn CastPra. w"r" the
Admiral Wilson made il plain he ac-
cepted full responsibility fo, the ar
rangements for handling the middies
while they were away FROM the acad.
envy.
He testified he was not Irns"N
At the ball. ~ he left iwm"'
diately after the game. He said he hat
no official Information concerning ~
misconduct Of any midshipmen arh HI
referred to letters he had received from
persons who voluntarily stated they hac
been present nj the ball and had seel
no improprieties.
1t was explained by Admiral Wilson
that the regiment of nidsh!pman hac
leave after the game until time 70 re
4 port at their stations for the return
"trip. Every midsh!pman. he insisted
returned to the Naval Academy at III
proper time and in the proper condi
!. ton. No officer had been directed t
supervise the behavior Of the midshlp
men. he said. such action not boln
considered necessary. Every Office
present. he said. had tho right (
supervise the midhies' behavior.
Commander KurtZ was equally ON
phatic. He testified he was present a
the ball and saw no intoxicated mid
shipmen. nor did he See any other i'm
proper conduct.
He told the board at diTcrnr
periods all tho officers Of the cyc"u
five department. with one excep
ton, had been present at the Function
and no one reported any impropr!rtic>