THE RECENT "RAGGING" CASE

Evening Post, Volume LXXI, Issue 142, 16 June 1906, Page 6

THE RECENT "RAGGING" CASE

EXTRAORDINARY AND DISGUSTING EVIDENCE. PECULIAR POSITION OF OFFICERS. '(FBOil OUH OWX r-OEEESrOXDEJfT.J LONDON, 17th April. Another of thosa scandalous ■ cases of so-called "ragging," which have disgraced the British army and navy too often during the past two years, is now under stringent invejtigatiou by a specially appointed tribunal. According to the original statement of the facts, the case was one of exceptional blackness, it being alleged that because a certain young and promising officer in tho Scots Guards had not the means of contributing to vaiious regimental amusements and extravtigances established by his comrades, they forcibly stripped him, duqkeJ him in a loathsome bath in which petrol and other offensive fluids m.xad, aud then plastered him over with jam (particularly nis head), finally covering him with feathers taken irom one of his pillows. Tlie main facts as to the officci3' proceedings are undisputed ; indeed are admitied by them to have been truly stated It has been with regard to the motives wh'u induced them to commit the outrage that extraordinary and disI guatinsj disclosures have been made. Alter the bcandalou* disclosures regarding the Grenadier Guards and the case on board H..U.S. Kent, when a I young officer was cojrpeiied to defend himself with a levolver against the cowardly gang of broiher olh'cers who were endeavouiing to ill-treat him, this new case of tho Ist Battalion Scots Guards excited immense public indignation, and the matter was brought np in Parliament so resolutely that the Government had no alternative but to promise an immediate stringent enquiry, it beintj more and more realised- with legard to these cases of 'Tagging" that even where they undertaken as a punishment for some offence on the part of the victim, they are absolutely of the nature of lynch law. It has been pretended that these brutalities are perpetrated to save the victim from coming und-er the lash of official military discipline, but manifestly this pretence is altogether too thin. It is simply a re- j version to uncivilised times, to "methods. ! of barbarism." This side of the case was brought into special prominence on tha present occasion. 'Li c court of enquiry was constituted at Aldersilot, its members being — Lieut. - General Sir Gerald Morton • (President), Lieut.-General E. S. Wynne, MajorGeneral Sir Francis Growne, BrigadierGeneral G. F. Browne, and Colonel A. F. Codrington, Coldstream Guards; the Deputy Judge-xYdvoeate, Colonel St. Clair, wvs also present. The victim, Lieut. Clark -Kennedy, conducted his own case ; the accused officers were represented by Lord Robert Cecil, X.C.' It was speedily shown that there was no foundation for the assertion that want of means* or stinginess on the part of Lieut. ClarkKennedy constituted the supposed offence for which he was maltreated. That idea WaS swept away at the outset as baseless. On the other hand, the proceedings of the "ragging" officers were not only clearly proved to have been correctly described, but were frankly admitted by them to have beeD as reported. So on these two scores the. ground was easily and rapidly cleared. It was the explanation of the reasons why the "ragging" took place that opened up so new and unpleasant a field. The plea of the other subalterns was that Lieut. Clark-Kennedy long had I been grossly negligent of personal clean- | .mess; that practically he never washed, or cleaned his teeth, the consequence being that his mouth got into a very foul and offensive condition, while he also contracted a most objectional and unmentionable parasitical bodily disease which although it may sometimes be accidentally caught by personal contagion, is usually associated with bodily uncieanliness, and is indeed in most cases the direct outcome of this personal neglectIt was proved by an overwhelming ueight of evidence, including that of the military doctor who attended the young nian, and by the nurse who waited upon him and others, that he was personally offensive to more than one of the bodily senses of those around him, and that nobody could go near him without being nauseated by his extreme malodorousness and other unpleasant characteristics which he had contracted. Although*- voluminous evidence was given, on these points, the plain issue was, as I have stated above, and may be said practically to have gone by default. The subalterns admitted ' that they, "ragged" Lieutenant Clark-Ken-nedy because he was such a dirty and offensive beast that they regarded him as a disgrace to the regiment, and because, moreover, their colonel had told them to "deal with" him. It may be remembered that this reversion to the senior subaltern to be "dealt .with" was a feature of the notorious Grenadier Guards case, and then turned out to mean that the victimised officer was- to be severely flogged by his comrades, the consequence being that the colonel who impliedly authorised such an outrage was himself severely "dealt with" by the superior authorities. In this case the senior subaltern was expressly warned by Colonel Cuthbert that there was to be no flogging or ducking. They, however, declared that they misunderstood the colonel's order, and believed that they were authorised to administer such chastisement/ short of flogging a» they deemed to fit the offence. * This does not make it quite clear why 'they, plastered the young man's head over with jam or bis body with motor-oil and feathers. But, anyhow, that was their voluntary statement. ColonelCuthbert also made a voluntary declare tion to the effect that he did nob think the officers were at all blamable, <3H | tho ground not that what they did was | right, but that they misunderstood his. | words. Wherefore he begged that any ' blame which might be deemed due | would be placed on his shoulders, as he took the whole responsibility. It was emphatically declared that the mo- ' tive was not to drivo Lieutenant ClarkI Kennedy out of the service, and that | the sole feeling which actnaied the of- | fenders was to impress upon him tho disgust with which they regarded bia li thy personal habits, not only through : the unpleasantness to themselves involv- ' ed, but »'so as reflecting deep disgrace upon the whole regiment. As the result of the enquiry Colonel Cuthbert has been deprived of his command and placed on half-pay ; and all the officers concerned have been severely censured and put back as to their promotion. Lieutenant Kennedy, the subject of the outrage, has resigned.

Messrs. Macdon*ld, Wilson and Co. will sell on Monday, at their rooms, at 2.3G o'clock, the balance unsold of tho collection of oil paintings and water colours by the well-known artist Mr. J. F. Scott. They are on view, and "italogues can bo had on application On Friday, 22ud inatant, tho firm will soil at tho residence of Mm. Staples, Island Bay, 200 head of purebred poultry, also buildings for poultry, pens, portable fowlhooses, cages, etc., as detailed. Tho Hardie Shaw Stndiot advorti6o for salo a lifelike portrait of tho lato Premier. The Wellington Oyoling Club require* suitable sTenoatm A ma iantet aaohcationi.