Evening star., 1925-06-17
NAVY NURSE FREED
s Of LIQUOR CHARGE
IN NCOURT-MART|AL
Ruth M. Anderson Acquitted
as She Explains Rum Was
Unopened Present.

Miss Ruth NJ. Anderson, Navy chief
nurse. today was aquitted by a naval
court-martial board. sitting at the
Washington Navy Yard, of charges
alleging that she brought seven quarts
of liquor into the United States from
Cuba
The liquor, consisting of whisky, gin
and Cuban wine, was found in Miss
Anderon's baggage when it was in
spected by customs officers at Norfolk,
and was before the court.martial as
an exhibit.
Friend Gave Present.
Miss Anderson testified that while
she was on duty at the Navy base at
Guantanamo Bay. Cuba, last Febru-
ery she had applied for a months
leave.
When she told of her application,
she said. friend told her that he
would send her a present, which "she
could enjoy later" For the purpose
of wrapping this, she testified, the
friend borrowed from her a paper
carton.
The present, she said. arrived at
her quarters while she was busy and
she did not examine it. intending to
do so later. Before she had an op-
portunity, however, a message arrived
from the United States telling her
that her mother had been stricken
suddenly i'll and was in a very serious
condition in a Pittsburgh hospital.
Packed Hastily.
On receipt of this news, she said
she hastily packed her personal eff
fects into suit cases and all her other
ho1op which Sha did NOT neoH in,
travelling, into a cedar chest. Among
these latter was the present" packed
in such a way that she had no means
of telling what the package contained.
The news of her mothers illness,
she testified, SO upset her that it
overcame the natural curiosity which
she would have felt over the gift.
With her packing complete she was
rushed at once to the u. S. Kittery,
which was then leaving the base for
Norfolk. She took her suitcases, but
left the chest to be handled by the
base supply officer.
The Kittery, a slow-going naval
transport, put in at Port Au Prince,
Haiti, where Miss Anderson found
the commercial liner Christobal ready
to sail for Hoboken. She at once
transferred to this ship, arrived at
Hoboken and rushed to her mothers s
bedside. The chest, containing some
clothing, pictures and sporting goods.
in addition to the present" COM
pletely slipped her mind. When she
remembered 1t. she forwarded the key
to the supply officer of the Kittery
at Norfolk with the request that the
chest be forwarded.
Charges Were Preferred.
The next she suspected of it's con-
tents, she said. was when the charges
were preferred against her.
J. P. Boone, deputy clerk and in
spector of customs at Norfolk, was
the sole witness of the prosecution
He testified to opening the chest after
obtaining the key from the supply
officer and after it had remained,
under lock. on the dock from April
IA to April 25.
He was unable to state positively
with when under cross examination
by Lieut.. Leo P. Horan, NJ. c., coun-
sci for the defense.
He produced the bottles, which he
at first had suspected were china
ware, which is dutiable.
The most imposing of these was a
half gallon glass jug, covered with
straw, presumably containing wine,
although the contents of none Of the
bottles has been analyzed. In addi-
tion there was a pint bottle supposed
to contain gin, quart whisky bottle
and a large green bottle, the contents
of which could not be deduced easily.
The only other witness was Miss j.
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