Free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1888-1908, 1906-12-29
WHAT CONGRESS is DOING
Principal Items of Interest Of the
Past Week.
President Responds to Senate Resolution
Regarding Negro TrOOps-Cabi-
net Officers Second.

Washington, D. C. - In reply 70
a resolution OF the senate dated De-
Cember 6, the president Wednesday
transmitted to that body the report
of Secretary Taft regarding the dis
charge of three companies of negro
troops of the Twenty-fifth infantry for
completely in the Brownsville, Tex,
affair of last August The commune
cation accompanying the report was
in part as follows:
In response to senate resolution
of December 6 addressed to me, and
to the two senate resolutions adj
dressed to him, the secretary of war
has, by my direction, submitted to
to the senate, together with several
documents, including letter Of Gen.
NetCletCn and memoranda as to pre-
cendents for the summary discharge
or mastering out of regiments or
companies, some or all of the men,
bers of which had been guilty of mis-
conduct
The president then states that he
is certain he was well within his con-
.stitutiOnal rights in taking the &C
ton that he did; that the conduct OF
the troops was a disgrace to the Unit
ed States uniform and he deep
ly regrets that the remedy he was able
to apply was utterly inadequate as
a punishment for the crime commit
ted which he describes as mutiny and
murder, the meet punishment OF
which is death.
1T is CT the utmost Importance to
all people that we shall deal with
each man as a man. and not deal
with him merely as a member of a
given race; that we shall judge each
make by his conduct and not his color.
This is important for the white man,
and it is far more important for the
colored man. More evil and sinister
counsel never was given to any peO-
pie than that given to colored men
by those advisers, whether black or
white, who, by apology and condo
nation, encourage conduct such as
that Of the three companies in ques-
ton. If the cOlored men elect to
stand by criminals of their own race
because they are Of their own race,
they assuredly lay up for themselves
the most dreadful day of reckoning.
Every farsighted friend of the col
cred race in its efforts to strive on
ward and upward, should teach first,
as the most important lesson, alike
to the white man and the black, the
duty Of treating the individual man
strictly on his worth as he shows it.
Exceeded Their Authority.
Washington. - Admitting that they
had no authority of law for the with
drawal from allotment of nearly A.
100000 acres Of land belonging to the
five civilized tribes in Indian terri
tory for the purpose Of creating a
forest reserve, two members OF the
presidents enthusiastically Hitch
cock, Department of Interior, and
Secretary Wilson, Department CT Ag-
riculturc, endeavored Wednesday to
justify their course by stating they
had the best interest of the Indian at
heart
The explanation was made before
q select senate committee which is
investigating affairs in relation to the
property rights OF the five tribes
but the committee declined to accept
it and Senators Clarke of Wyoming,
Teller Long and Brandegee declared
that the interior departments has sus-
pended a statute of the u. S. without
authority and that it was the duty OF
Secretary Hitchcock to Immediately
cancel his ri y Withdrawing the land
from aIlo.si- The same senators
said % Secretary Wilson and Chief
Forester Clifford Pinchot that it was
their duty to withdraw their request
to the secretary of the interior for q
suspension of allotments
Why PropoSc DrnGO Doctrine.
Washington. - Secretary OF State
Root in accepting the tentative pro-
gramme for the approaching confer
ence at The Hague, has reserved the
right of the United States government
TO propose for discussion disarma
Inent and the Drago doctrine. This
latter subject was injected into the
programme of the Rio conference by
the United States and gave rise to
more controversies tnan any other
articls discussed there.