Crane, William Montgomery: [Green, Farnifold]:

$600 · Offered by William Reese Company

[AUTOGRAPH LETTER, SIGNED, FROM COMMODORE WILLIAM M. CRANE TO SECRETARY OF THE NAVY SAMUEL SOUTHARD, TRANSMITTING COURT MARTIAL CHARGES AGAINST A NORTH CAROLINA MIDSHIPMAN NAMED FARNIFOLD ... A brief letter from Commodore William Montgomery Crane to Secretary of the Navy Samuel Southard, regarding charges brought against a midshipman by the name of Farnifold Green. The letter reads as follows:"Sir, I forward herewith Charges & specifications of charges exhibited by Lieut. John White against midshipman Farnifold Green. I have furnished him with the charges & informed him that application would be made for his trial by Court Martial. He is now under suspension. I know nothing of this Officer personally. Lt. White represents his conduct as excessively outrageous & personally abusive. I forward a copy of his letter to me previous to the exhibition of charges [not present].""Excessively outrageous" was an appropriate description for Green's actions in the navy. Despite being a noncommissioned officer, the Southerner was a perpetual drunk (both on and off duty) who did little to hold back his invective for his superiors. In the Court Martial, Lieutenant White recounted multiple incidents during which Green "repeated a great deal of abusive language; I could scarcely understand what he did say," and that he declared "My name is Green, Farnifold Green, of North Carolina, and care for no Northern officer." He also "threw himself into an attitude for boxing," exclaiming to White, "I'll

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