The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1906-12-20
ROOSEVELT PAT
ON BROWNSVILLE
Message 10 Congress Explains
Shooting By Troops
RACE ISSUE NOT INVOLVED
He Takes Occasion to Tell to What
Lengths He Has Gone In Behalf
of the Negro Since He
Became Preside


Became Preside :
! =
Washington, DecemS = 19-(special)-
President Roosevelt. 8 gay sent to Con-
gress his answer taS',, resolution calling
upon him for infolsSS sotion relative to the
Brownsville. Te,o Shoot-up resulting in
the dismissal 90 &c negro troops of the
Twenty-ffth ntry stationed at that
post The PRESIDENTS response is consd-
cred as a satisfactory explanation of his
course, and it Is expected that the mat
ter will end here.
Senator Foraker of Ohio will likely
sreak on the matter after the holidays and
| Senator Penrose of Pennsylvania may
also have something to say i'm criticism
OF the Presidents course. 1t is the opin-
ion, however, that no action Will be taken
| by either the Senate or House which will
reflect upon the Presidents position in
| the case. The Presidents message brings
! out no additional details of the shoot
| up, and Is simply summary of the tes-
umony heretofore published very fully.
! The President takes occasion in his mes
| sage to tell to what length he has gone
| III behalf of the negro race, refers to his
appointments of negroes in the south de-
spite southern opposition, and cites his
| action In UNFOLDING the position of Judge
Jones of Alabama on the peonage cases.
The Presidents message was as fol-
| lows:
To the Senate:
In response to Senate resolution of De-
cember addrest TO me- and to the two
| Senate resolutions addrest to him the
| Secretary of War has, by my direction,
submitted to me a report which ! here
with send to the Senate, together with
several documents, including a letter of
Genera, Nettleton and memoranda as L.
| presidents for the summary discharge or
mastering out of regiments or companies.
some or all of the members of which had
bee. guilty of misconduct.
[ ordered the discharge of nearly all
the members of companies p, c. and d
| of the Twenty-fifth infantry by name, IN
the exercise of my constitutional power
and in pursuance of what after full con-
sderaton, [ found to be my constitutional
duty as commander in chief Of the United
Stases army | am glad to avail myself
o. the opportunity afforded by these reso-
lutions to lay before Congress the fol-
lowing facts as to the murderous conduct
OF certain members of the companies in
question and as to the conspiracy by
which many of the other members Of
these companies saved the criminals from
justice, to the disgrace of the United
States uniform.
| call Your attention to the accompany
ing reports of Maj. August p Blocksom
of Lieut.. Col Leonard A. Lowering and
of Brig. Gen. Ernest A. Darlington, the
inspector general of the United States
army, of the investigation into the con-
duct of the troops in question. An effort
has been made to discredit the fairness of
the investigation into the conduct of these
coored troops by pointing out that Cen
eral Darlington IS a southerner. Precisely
the same action would have been taken
had the troops been white-indeed, the
discharge would probably have been made
in more summary fashion. General Gar
lington is a native of South Carolina
Lieutenant Colonel Lowering is a native
of New Hampshire, Major Blocksom is a
native of Ohio. As it happens the dis
closure of the guilt of the troops was
made in the report of the officer who
comes from Ohio, and the efforts of the
officer who comes from South Carolina
were confined to the endeavor to shield
the innocent men of the companies In
question, If any such there WERE by Sc
| curing information which would enable
US adequately to punish the guilty. But
l wish it distinctly understood that the
fact of the birthplace of either officer
is one which | absolutely refuse to con-
slider. The standard of professional honor
is the same for all officers and all en-
listed men of the United States army
and | resent with the keenest Indignation
any effort to draw any line among them
based upon birthplace creed, or any other
consideration of the kind I should put
the same entire faith in these reports If
it had happened that they were all made
by men coming from some one state.
whether In the south or the north, the
east or the west. as I now do. when, as
it happens, they were made by officers
born in different states.
Major Blocksoms report is most care
full is based upon the testimony of
scores of ewitnesses-testimony which
conficted only in nonessentials and which
established the essential facts beyond
chance of successful contradiction. Not
only has no successful effoft been made
to travedse his findings in any essen
tial particular, but, as a matter of fact,
every trustworthy report from outsiders
amply corroborates them, by far the best
OF the outside reports being that of Gen.
A. b. Nettleton. made in letter to the
Secretary of War which / herewith APP
pend; General Nettleton being an ex-
Union soldier. consistent friend of the
cClored man throughout his life, life
long republican, citizen of Illinois, and
assistant secretary of the treasury under
President Harrison.
Il appears that in Brownsville, the city
Immediately beside which Fort Brown is
situated there had been considerable feel
ing between the citizens and the colored
troops OF the garrison companies. Diff
cultes had occurred, there being con-
fict of evidence to whether the citizens
or the colored troops were 20 blame MY
impression is that, a matter of fact,
in these difficulties there was blame at
tached to both sides; but this is a wholly
ur important matter for our present pur-
pose, as nothing that occurred offered in
any shape or way excuse or justifica-
ton for the atrocious conduct of the
troops when. in lawless and murderous
spirit and under cover of the night, they
made their attack upon the citizens.
The attack was made near midnight on
August 10. The following facts as to this
attack are made clear by Major Block
SONS Investigation and have not been,
and. in my judgment, can not be, success
fully controverted From to IL or 20 Of
the colored soldiers took part in the at
tack They leaped over the walls from
the barracks and hurried through the
town. They shot at whomever they saw
rowing and they shot into houses where
they saw lights. In soHe of these houses
there were women and children, as the