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Sensations, Laughter, Hisses Feature Mitchell Trial Col. ‘Billy’ Scores Perfect Hits with Barrage of Replies Outlines Reasons for Charges Against General Staff as Crowd Applauds; La Guardia Draws Laughs and Gullion Jeers Universal Service A kaleidoscopic succession of sensations at the court-martial of Colonel William Mitchell left the court and the crowd that hammed the small hearing room stunned at the amazing revelations at the end of yesterday’s long session. The most profound impression was made by Colonel Mitchell himself. Resuming the stand as his own “star” witness, the “flying colonel” offered the following reasons as a defense for his grave charges against the War and Navy Departments: "Almost treasonable administration - The action of the War and Navy Departments in leaving our foreign possessions unprotected. There is no adequate defense in the Hawaiian Islands, Philippine Islands; Panama Canal or Alaska. Sees Canal Menace "Continental United States is without proper coats protection and further, the allowing of a foreign flight organization to get a foothold in Central America is a menace to the Panama Canal. "Criminal Negligence - Sending the Shenandoah on a trip at that time of the year. Sending the PN-9 on the Hawaiian flight. Absence of meteorologist data for safe flying. Obsolete equipment; lack of the parachutes; the holding of the 1921 bombing tests sixty nautical miles off the shore, and night flying in bad places. "Incompetence - Direction of flying activities by nonflying officers and their inability to properly direct, causing the lowering of morale and dissatisfaction." It was distinctly a banner day for the defense. Mitchell was in a grim, fighting mood and he scored with telling effect time and again. The crowd in the court repeatedly showed that it was pro-Mitchell. It was made up largely of Washington society women, who applauded Mitchell and hissed Major Allen Gullion, assistant judge advocate appointed by the general staff of the army, when he tried to show that Mitchell had "cribbed" the material for his book, "Winged Defense." from lectures at the Army War College. Sharp clashes between Frank Reid, of Illinois, Mitchell's counsel, and Gullion, marked with sneers and sarcasm, again enlivened the bitter fight of the defense and prosecution for every technical advantage.\ Other Features Other outstanding features of the day were: 1. A charge by Reid that the Navy Department in releasing a motion picture, "The Eyes of the Fleet," showing only the misses in battleship bombing tests, had for its real object to combat Mitchell's testimony and belittle the air service. 2. Production of statements issued by the War Department to army officers commenting unfavorably on the course of the Mitchell defense, which James T. Williams, editor of the Boston American, a Hearst newspaper, testified "show a sample of the grapevine propaganda of the general staff against the air service." 3. Substantiation of Michell's charge that army and navy officers who "tell the truth" before congressional committees are "bulldozed and exiled," by Representative Perkins, of New Jersey, "prosecutor" of the special House aviation investigating committee. The calling of Captain A. W. Johnson, U.S.N., assistant chief of the Bureau of Aeronautics, came as a complete surprise to the prosecution. Major Guillion fought every step of the way to prevent Reid from getting a mysterious memorandum on the "Eyes of the Fleet" film from being placed in the record. The assistant judge advocate succeeded finally, but not until Reid had brought out that the document bore a penciled notation stating: "Our object is to combat Colonel Mitchell's testimony and to be little the air service. The picture is to be used in the fall and before Congress meets." Johnson said he had no recollection of having seen the memorandum but "probably did." Later, he stated that he had no recollection of seeing the original of the memorandum or the penciled notation. Editor Testifies Williams, who formerly was a Washington correspondent, testified an officer stationed at the first corps area army headquarters at Boston had come to his office and given him the statements issued by the press relations section of the army intelligence division at Washington. He declined to name the officer except in secret to the court. He said: "He gave me these statements to show the character of press releases available at the corps area headquarters for the information officers. He wanted me to published them but instead I sent them to Colonel Mitchell." A release dated November 3, read in part by Reid, commenting on the Mitchell court-martial, states: "This trial has been in progress for four days, during which not one iota of evidence was presented; but fault, if any there is, cannot be charged to the prosecution. "This was the natural result of the attempts by the defense to maek of the court-martial a general inquiry into the ramifications of the air service of the army and navy coupled with an endless procession of objections from the defense counsel, all of which, if anything, had as their objects the evading of the issue, that of the innocence or guilt of the defendant on the ninety-sixth article of war. "And this morning, when the court convened, the defense, true to its tactics since the opening day fo the trial, filed a motion that the prosecution be dismissed, setting forth its claim that the Government, in its case rested yesterday, had not presented evidence to indicate the guilt of the defense. This motion was overruled." General Probe Alleged Another excerpt from a release, dated November 2, stated: "It may clearly be seen that the object of the defense is to conduct a general inquiry into the air service situation of the army and navy, rather than confine itself to the question of innocence or guilt of the defendant as concerns the ninety-sixth article of war." Still another release dated November 9, stated, in part: "Since the opening of the trial this morning Mr. Reid has been pounding out a 22,000-word statement to the court. This statement Mr. Reid is offering as proof of the truth of the utterance of Colonel Mitchell. It has been coming over the Associated Press wires all morning and at noon was still coming in. Mr. Reid, apparently, is of the belief that is what Colonel Michell said can be proven as true, he can obtain acquittal for his client." Major F.B. Wilbey, of the Army General Staff, made strenuous objections against the introduction of the evidence, declaring the documents did not show the War Department had any connection with them. Reid snapped back: "What are they connected with then, the ladies aid society?" The objection was overruled by the court. The prosecution bombarded Mitchell with questions regarding his charges that service flyers knew they would be killed sooner or later if they continued to fly in "flaming coffins" and that airmen are "bluffed, bulldozed and afraid to tell the truth." Mitchell declared himself as a "prime example" of the system in the War Department to exile officers to remote posts when they tell the truth about matters the General Staff wishes to keep under cover. His demotion from a brigadier general and assistant chief to the Army Air Service to a colonel in command of air forces of the Eight Corps Area, stationed at Kelly Field, San Antonio, Tex., was a direct result of his fight for a united air service, he said. Gullion asked: "Are you afraid to tell the truth?" "I am not, but there have been attempts to bulldoze me." Fight on Perkins A desperate, but unsuccessful attempt was made by Major Sherman Moreland, judge advocate of the court, to have the testimony of Representative Perkins ruled out when he began to relate instances of navy officers who had refused to appear before the House aircraft investigation and give their real opinions of the Air Service. Perkins said: "On one occasion three lieutenants in the navy came to me for a preliminary examination and told me their views. The spokesman said: "Don't call me because I won't tell what I think about the Air Service." The others said the same thing. "When I asked them why they took that attitude, one of them said: "It's a long way to Guam." The room was filled with men in the military service and their wives and the statement drew a hearty laugh as it is well known in Washington that Guam is the favorite "punishment post" of the Navy Department for officers who displease their superiors. Wilby asked: "Were those statements made after the War and Navy Departments had issued regulations giving officers liberty to testify before congressional committees?" "Yes" One Foremost Flyer "Were these officers young and inexperienced?" "One of them is one of the foremost pilots in the navy." Just before Mitchell left the stand General Howze quizzed him regarding his charges of officers being bulldozed. The Colonel related instances, without giving the names, of officers who told him they feared they would be ordered away from Washington if they testified before congressional committees. Representative La Guardia of New York, a flyer on the Italian front in the world war, testified that his experiences showed "anti-aircraft fire was of no value." A near sensation that ended in peals of laughter threatened for a moment, just as the Representative was about to leave the stand. Major Gullion, reading from a New York newspaper, asked if La Guardia was correctly quoted when he said: "Billy Mitchell is not being tried by a jury of his peers, but by nine beribboned dog-robbers." LaGuardia, with mock seriousness protested: "I did not say beribboned." "The court would like to know what you meant by your characterization." "Because army officers are under the influence of the general staff." General Graves, who was obviously nettled by the allusion of "dog-robbers." an old army term meaning lackey, asked: "How high does an officer have tot get to come within your characterization? Do second lieutenants?" La Guardia replied: "They have no discretion. But I want to say that at the time I made the statement I did not know General Douglas MacArthur was on the court.
