A Court-Martial Ends in Smoke and a Handshake
A state militia tribunal in Olympia was suddenly closed by the governor, its findings kept secret. Then the colonel apologized, the officers shook hands, and the state got a $1,000 bill.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Colonel Haines was practically acquitted by the court-martial on Saturday, though the governor would not permit the decision to be made public. During the entire afternoon the session was held in secret, and at the close Brigadier General Curry entered a carriage and was driven to the home of the governor, where he submitted the decision. At 7 p.m. the court convened, and just as the brigadier general called the members together he was summoned by the governor again. A recess was taken, but just before reconvening Col. Gilbert and Gen. Curry held a hurried consultation and Col. Gilbert immediately moved that the court again be cleared. This was done, and at 9:45 the court reconvened.
General Curry announced that, in accordance with the wishes of the governor, the court would be indefinitely dismissed, subject to the reconvening call of the governor. Counsel for Col. Haines asked that he be acquainted with the findings of the court, but the court refused. His objections were entered upon the record and the court adjourned.
The members of the court then adjourned with Col. Haines to the office of the adjutant-general, where Col. Haines apologized for the insult to his superior. The peace pipe was smoked, past differences forgotten and future harmony sworn. The visiting military officers were incensed at not being permitted to learn the findings of the court, but accepted the result as a practical acquittal. The cost to the state will be about $1,000.
“The peace pipe was smoked, past differences forgotten and future harmony sworn.”
The episode is a reminder that public institutions have often settled serious charges behind closed doors and called it harmony. In an era when official transparency is still contested, the governor's refusal to let even the defendant hear the findings feels uncomfortably familiar.
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