Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1922-01-06
RICHMoND TIMEsDIsPAToHi FRIDAY. JANUARY 8. 1922

49, iAMEO.lJl9HA
- $500 ---==------@:-
.ne SharEes brought by enlisted men
y. "is hafina shot and killed a rum
~, erwnrds bending over him and
Ie"ioSinE pnpers, IN found I'm tbv
s sNs killing OF Lieutenant
oS" Sunningham. Colonel opie
TO tho chairman's question. Gun.
bingham. no rnld. wa, trying tn OK
Nac' rtho from stack OF can
lnrea arms when tho accidental az
n.osion OF tho piece killed him in
Te'i" OF Cunningham's Dcnth.
! pent over him ana Eel, his
heart Colonel ople said. .This
may DC the incident worked by over
sousn. minds into the alleged KILL
ihEs With which am CHARGED"
Colonel opie was louth In mcn,ion
.ne accident. saying that lieutenant
| CuhhihKham had bccn reported by
| hiH AS Killed in action ont or
respect TO his family. This incident.
lie sara. occurred October IL. in tho
afternoon. but was witnessed by a
vi men who were going TO
and from the front
senator Brandcgec questioned .,cb
ohicer who testified as to the prob-
ABILITY of Illegal hanginss taking
place in France without the knowl-
edge OF enlisted men and asked
would the men have remained silent
about such conditions
The unanimous verdict woS TIM,
American soldiers are not sheen.
They were perfectly capable of TAX
ing care OF themselves and such in
cidents could not have passed un-
noticed"
Other alleged brutali,ies will he
taken UP hy the committee next Tines
day. hu; the scope of the entire in
rcs'tratton is admittedly dependent
on the outcome of<the Opie charges
I" date none OF the testimony has
had the effect OF shocking either
committee or spectators.
summarized. the testimony of
former service men Of the one Hun
drcd and Sixteenth Infantry who
came to Major Optics defense todnv
was as follows:
Never saw Optic shoot Any One.
Charles Franklin Cox. of Lynch
burg n travelling salesman laision
scrgcan; of the battalion hcaduuar-
tiers. was with Major Opic most all
tho time on October s and ., when
thu shcotinss arc alleged to have
occurred. never saw Major Opic shoot
anybody and never heard OF such
thing until this Senate inquiry start
c!Hlinarian. but popular with HIS men.
Howard Filter. freight accountant.
stanton. Va. with a sanitary de-
taChmcnt. one Hundred and SIX
tecnth Infantry. in the hattie north
Of Ncrdnn san Major op:e attempt
to reform straggle . 10 were re-
treating Major op. ~ eli into tho
hillside ahead of the en-. Did not
shoot 81 any of them. Shot possibly
hody and nobody was wounded At
that time to require the aid OF the
medical detachment. Major Opie
fired at random only after he had
yelled halt a number OF times nj the
str.ccicrs. Fired about twelve feet
ahead 81 the forward strnErlcr. Had
never neard-and he would have (
heard OF i; had it happcned--that I
Major upic shot an orderly. n runner !
or "a machinc-gun sergeant.
mr.. Frederick Nos burch. lieutenant !
medica! corps. oi Garfield. " J..
never heard until this investigation ]
81 Major opie shooting NJ any sol /
der.
Orderly Not Killed In wnr.
Beverly {. Wilkes. Of Richmond |
adjutant Third Battalion. was with |
Major Opie October 5 and ., practi- |
cn!iy all Of the time on the first day |
named His orderly was not named /
Woclwine, but Silvano Blanc, and 4
Blanc was not niiicd in the war But .
recently heard OF charges acainst.
opie and would have known OF such |
things had they happened.
Alfred u. Bark sdale. attorney. ,
Lynchburr. captain Company ". in
batii. north OF Ncrdun. testified that
he had never heard that Major Opic (
had shot his orderly or anybody else. Z
There were TWO Woolwines In that en-
ragement, he said. Walter and Ernest,
both OF them We're Killed in action.
and neither was slain by Major Opie.
Ernest Wuolwinc died in the arms OF ,
Captain Earksdaie. From his knowl- (
edge OF tho army. said Captain Barks- /
dale. no soldier could have been exc
cc!ed IL Franc. without court-mar- &
tial- This was in reference to the +
broader charges Of illegal executions {
as made by Senator Watson
Charles u. Pollard. lawyer. Of WASH
inGtcn. now a member OF the valua-
zion board Of the Navy Department,
succeeded Captain Barksdale as tcm- /
porar% com mandcr Of the Third Bat /
talon after Rarksdale had followed |
Major Opie when Opi- was wounded
Was with the battalion until October Z
ISIS, unit! IL was demobilizcd nearly I