Naval Court of Inquiry into disposal of provisions aboard USS Cowslip
Record of Proceedings of a Naval Court of Inquiry held aboard the USS Potomac the 30th day of January, 1866, by virtue of the order hereunto annexed marked (A).
USS Potomac
Pensacola Bay, Fla
January the 30th, 1866
The Court met in pursuance of the order herewith appended marked (A).
Present
Commander A. Gibson
Acting Master John Ross
Acting Assistant Paymaster Joseph Foster
Acting Assistant Surgeon R. Lautenbach, Judge Advocate
The Judge Advocate then read the order convening the Court, after which the members of the Court were duly sworn by the Judge Advocate and the Judge Advocate was duly sworn by the presiding officer of the Court.
The proceedings of the report was then read signed by the following officers
Actg. Vol. Lieut. DeWitt C. Kells
Asst. Paymaster A. Lyon
Actg. Ensign F. Ellms, the commanding officer of the USS Cowslip.
On account of the absences of the witnesses the court adjourned until January 31st, 1866 to meet at 10 AM.
January 31st, 1866
The Court met in pursuant of the adjournment. All present.
Commander A. Gibson
Acting Master John Ross
Acting Assistant Paymaster Joseph Foster
Acting Assistant Surgeon R. Lautenbach, Judge Advocate
Actg. Ensign F. Ellms, Commanding Officer of the USS Cowslip was called and being duly sworn, testified as follows.
Question by Court: What is your name and rank in the service?
Answer: F. Ellms, Acting Ensign, commanding the USS Cowslip.
Question: State where the provisions and paymaster's stores were kept aboard the USS Cowslip?
Answer: There are two storerooms below main deck in lower hold, built expressly for that purpose.
Question: Were the storerooms locked?
Answer: I always supposed they were until the time the investigation as to the deficiency of paymaster's stores took place.
Question: Under whose charge were the paymaster's stores after the paymaster's servant deserted?
Answer: I told Acting Ensign A. Kalinski to take charge of the key of the storeroom.
Question: Did Acting Ensign A. Kalinski inform you that there were no locks for the storeroom?
Answer: I have no recollection of him making such a report to me.
Question How long was it after the vessel left here on her trip to Mobile, that the Paymaster's servant deserted?
Answer: I think it was three days.
Question: Did you ever have a requisition made out for locks for the storeroom?
Answer: Not for the storeroom especially, to my knowledge. I had a requisition made out for locks.
Question: Can you state why the locks were not obtained?
Answer: I cannot.
Question: Why did you not report to the Admiral Commanding, that the provisions were exposed to depredation for want of locks?
Answer: I did not know that there were no locks.
The testimony of the witness was here read over to him, he pronounced it correct.
Achilles Kalinski, Acting Ensign and Executive Officer of the Cowslip being called and duly sworn testified as follows.
Question: State your name and rank.
Answer: Achilles Kalinski, Acting Ensign and Executive Officer of the USS Cowslip.
Question: State where the Paymaster's stores were kept board the USS Cowslip.
Answer: They were kept in the port and starboard gangway of the blow deck.
Question: Were the stores under your charge after the paymaster's servant deserted?
Answer: I looked after the issue of the stores.
Question: Did you know what quantity of paymaster's stores that were on board at the time of the desertion of the paymaster's servant?
Answer: No I do not.
Question: Were the storerooms locked?
Answer: No.
Question: Could any one who placed have free access to the storeroom?
Answer: Yes.
Question: Did you report to the commanding officer that there were no locks for the storeroom?
Answer: I believe I did when the vessel first left here in the month of November.
Question: You made a requisition for the locks?
Answer: Yes though there were none at the store-house.
Question: Did you ever authorize the ward room servant to take provisions as he required them?
Answer: Not without my presence.
Question: Did you always weigh them out to him?
Answer: No.
Question: How did you judge the quantity he received?
Answer: As near I could by weight of the hand.
Question: Did you attend to the issuing out of the provisions to the men?
Answer: All but on two occasions when I saw them coming up with the provisions.
Question: Who did you authorize to serve them out?
Answer: The mess cook, James C. Donnell who has since deserted at New Orleans.
Question: Were all the articles served out to the ward room mess charged to the mess?
Answer: Yes.
Question: Did you ever try to get locks, but on that one occasion?
Answer: I did not try except on that occasion, but worked to get get some at New Orleans, but had not the money.
Question: Did the Commanding Officer, Acting Ensign F. Ellms order you to take charge of the paymaster's stores after the servant deserted?
Answer: I don't remember his doing so, but I thought it my duty to do so.
Question: Did you report to the Commanding Officer at the time you took charge of the storerooms that they were not locked?
Answer: I did not. I supposed he knew of it.
Question: Have the storerooms ever been locked since you have been on the vessel?
Answer: They have previous to November, shortly before we started they were broken by Moby Fleming.
Question: Did the paymaster's servant use scales in issuing the stores, within the month previous to his desertion?
Answer: I don't know.
Question: You say a pair of scales were found after made the investigation of deficiently of provisions?
Answer: Yes.
Question: Where were they found?
Answer: In the starboard storeroom, upon breaking out to make room for other provisions.
Question: Did you notice provisions were missing while you had charge?
Answer: No. I had no idea of it.
The testimony of the witness was here read over to him and he pronounced it correct.
John M. Stafford, Wardroom steward was called and being duly sworn, testified as follows.
Question by the Court: State your name and rank.
Answer: John M. Stafford, Wardroom Steward, USS Cowslip.
Question: Were you authorized by the executive officer A. Kalinski to take provisions from the storeroom?
Answer: Yes. I would go to the Executive Officer and tell him I wanted such and such stores and I wanted to go down and get them.
Question: When you got stores in that way, did you weigh them and give an account of the weight to the Executive Officer?
Answer: I did not weigh them, but gave as accurate account of them as I could.
Question: How did you judge the weight of the articles you got?
Answer: By the amount I got of the flannel when he was present.
Question: How did the paymaster's servant judge the weight?
Answer: The most part I got of the paymaster's servant, he guessed it.
Question: Did you ever go to the storeroom without the consent of the Executive Officer for paymaster's stores?
Answer: Not to my knowledge except on one occasion we were short of coffee, I went down and got some coffee as near I could judge from one to two pounds and I made a return of the same to the executive officer.
Question: When you made a return to the Executive Officer, did you give the amount as one or two pounds?
Answer: I forgot whether I stated it was one or two pounds.
Question: What quantity of sugar did you usually draw at a time?
Answer: Twelve pounds were the usual amount drawn.
Question: How much sugar did you draw on her trip to Mobile between the 23 December 1865 and the 6th January 1866?
Answer: Between twelve and twenty pounds.
The testimony of the witness was here read over and he pronounced it correct.
Patrick Sullivan, Boatswain's Mate was called and being duly sworn testified as follows.
Question by the Court: Did you ever see any person or persons going to the paymaster's storerooms, wher the stores were kept without the presence of the executive officer?
Answer: I only saw the wardroom steward.
Question: Have you ever seen him take stores from there?
Answer: Yes
Question: In what quantities do you suppose?
Answer: I saw him take a square box such as they use in mess chests, full of sugar, holding about twenty five pounds.
Question: Have you see him take any other stores?
Answer: Coffee and candles.
Question: How often did you see see the wardroom steward take stores from the paymaster's storeroom without the presence of an officer.
Answer: Twice.
Question: Had the men free access to the storeroom?
Answer: No
Question: Was there anything to prevent the men having free access to the storeroom?
Answer: Nothing to prevent them, if they wished to go down, but I never saw any of them going there.
Question: After the desertion of the paymaster's servant, who issued the provisions and in what manner were they issued?
Answer: The executive officer was present and the mess cook weighed them out.
Question: In what manner were they weighed?
Answer: They guessed at the weight.
Question: Who was it that guessed at the weight?
Answer: It laid between both the executive officer and the mess cook.
Question: Were they issued in the storeroom or on deck?
Answer: In the storeroom.
Question: When did you last see the storeroom locked; previous to the investigation of the deficiency of provisions?
Answer: I have never seen them locked.
The testimony of the witness was here read to him and he pronounced it correct.
Acting Ensign A. Kalinski was recalled.
Question by the Court: Did you ever make any effort to find the scales?
Answer: No. I inquired of J. C. Donnell the mess cook if there were any scales, he replied he had no scales.
Upon the foregoing evidence, the Court are of the opinion that there has been culpable neglect of duty on the part of Acting Ensign Achilles Kalinski in not taking proper care of the paymasters stores which were under his charge, permitting them to be embezzled and made way with - and are also of the opinion that Acting Ensign Kalinski has been guilty of great neglect of duty in not informing the commanding officer of the want of proper fastenings to secure the storerooms in which the paymasters stores were kept.
And the Court are also of the opinion that Acting Ensign F. Ellms is deserving of censure for not ascertaining that the storeroom in which the paymasters stores were kept was properly secured.
A. Gibson
Commander and Judge Advocate
Robert Lautenbach
Acting Assistant Surgeon and Judge Advocate
A
Gulf Squadron
Flag Ship Estrella
Pensacola Bay, Florida
January 29th, 1866
By virtue of authority in me vested, a court of inquiry is hereby ordered to convene on board of the USS Potomac on the thirtieth day of January, one thousand eight hundred and sixty six, to investigate the conduct of Acting Ensign Achilles Kalinksi, the Executive Officer of the USS Cowslip, in connection with a reported illegitimate disposition of provisions on board that vessel as set forth in the accompanying report, signed by Acting Volunteer Lieutenant DeWitt G. Kells, Assistant Paymaster George A. Lyon and Acting Master R. Canfield. The Court will also investigate the conduct of Acting Ensign F. Ellms, the Commanding Officer of the Cowslip and inquire why he did not report to me that his provisions were exposed to depredation for want of locks by which it is said he made requisition.
The Court will state the facts and give its opinion. The Court will be composed of the following named officers as members.
Commander A. Gibson
Acting Master John Ross
Acting Assistant Paymaster Joseph Foster
And Acting Assistant Surgeon R. Lautenbach is hereby appointed Judge Advocate
H. K. Thatcher
Acting Rear Admiral
Commanding Gulf Squadron
To
Commander A. Gibson
Senior Member of the Court of Inquiry
USS Potomac
Pensacola Bay