In his letter he was highly critical of a senior officer. Although he did not name him in the letter to his mother, the officer was later identified as one "Sergeant Robinson", who had been promoted to "Captain Robinson". Consequent upon matters connected with the Bush Veldt Carbineers and "the Handcock-Morant military scandal" Robinson was relieved of his command, and reduced to "Corporal Robinson", thus effectively exonerating Reid, and verifying that his privately expressed views were reliable.See "Picquet", Military Matters: Notes and Comments, The West Australian, Saturday, 19 April 1902, p. 11 The West Australian newspaper obtained the letter from his mother, and noting that "this letter gives an account of his experiences during a very anxious time" (viz., the time that he was missing), published it on 11 October 1900,From the Rev. S.S. Reid, The West Australian, Thursday, 11 October 1900, p. 9 without seeking Reid's permission to do so.
