The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-12-20
ROOSEVELT TELLS
 WHYTHE NEGROES
 WERE DISCHARGED
(contlnued from Page one. )

tx-Corporal Hesse recites what oc- cured in a United States regular regi- Hesse subsequently,, when the regi- n1ent was surrendered to the Confeder- ates by General Twiggs, saved the reRi- mental coiors by wrapping them about his body, under his clothing, and brought them north in safety, receiv- Ing a medal of honor for his action.) It appears that certain members of the reRiment lynched a barkeeper who had killed one of the soldiers. Being un-- able to discover the culprits, Colonel Robert E. Lee, then in command of the Department of Texas, ordered the com pauy to be disbanded and the members transferred to other companies and dis charged at the end of their enlistment. without honor. Owing to the outbreak of the civil war, and the consequent loss of records and confusion, it Is not pos sible, to say what finally became of this case!
 When General Lee was in command of the Army of Northern Virginia, as will appear from the inclosed clipping from The Charlotte Observer, he issued an order in October. 1884, disbandinE certain battalion for cowardly conduct, stating at the time his regret that there were some officers and men belonging to the organization who, although not deserving 1t, were obliged to share in the common disgrace because the good of the service demanded 1t.
  ganizations, which are of course infre- quent, there are continual cases of the discharge of individual enlisted men without honor and without trial by Icourt-martial. The official record shows that during the fiscal year end- ing June 30, last. such discharges were issued by the War Department without trial by court martial in the eases Of 352 enlisted men of the Regular Army, thirty-five of them being on account fbax 4,,ar AF= vice through own misconduct" More over, in addition to the discharges without honor ordered by the War Do partment, there were considerable number of discharges without honor issued by subordinate military authori- ties under paragraph 148 of the Army Regulations, where the service has not been honest and faithful-that IS, where the service does not warrant re- enlistment"
 The Race Question.
 So much for the military side of the case. But I wish to say something ad- ditional, from the. standpoint or tne race question. In my message at ths opening ofI the Congress discussed the matter of lynching. In 1t l gave utterance to the abhorrence which All decent citizens should feel for the deeds of the men Qn, almost all casaS white men) who take part in lynch" ings, and at the same time condemn-
 
 should condemn, the action of those coiored men who actively or passlVely shield the colored criminal from the law In the case of these companies we had to deal with men who In tns first place were guilty of what was practically the worst possible form or iynching-for a lynching is in its es- sence lawless and murderous vengeance taken by an armed mob for real or fan. cied wrongs-and who in the second AI nm lUnnh- ing by standing with a vicious solida- rity to protect the criminals
 It is of the utmost importance to all our people that we shall deal with each man on his merits as a man, and not deal with him merely as a member or a given race; that we shall judge each man 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 people than that given to colored men by those advisers, whether black or white, who. by apology and conformation, encourage conduct such as that of the three com panies in question. IT the coiofed men men elect to stand by criminals of their own race because they are of their own race they assuredly lay up Tor them selves the most dreadful day or reckon- ing. Every farsighted friend ot the col- ored race in its efforts to strive onward and upward, should teach first as the most important lesson, alike to the white man and the black, the duty or treating the individual man strictly on his worth as he shows 1t, Any com substitute for this rule the rule of standing by and shielding an evil aeer because he is a member ok tnelr race. means the inevitable degradation oI the colored race. It may and propany does mean damage to the white race. but 1t means ruin to the black race.
 Throughout my term or service III the Presidency l have acted on the principle thus advocated. In the North as in the South I have appointed color ed men of high character to office, ut terlv disregarding the protests Of those who would have kept them out of ot- flee because they were colored men. So far as was in my power, l have sougnI to secure for the colored people all their rights under the law. have done all could to secure them equai school training when young, equal op- portunity to earn their livelihood, aho achieve their happiness when oId' ] have striven to break up peonage; l have nnield the hands of those who. l. like Judge Jones and Judge 5peer' have Warred against this peonage, be- cause l would hold myself unfit To pc President if did not feel the game re- volt at wrong done a colored man as ! feel at wrong done a white man. | lave condemned in unstinted terms the crime of lynching perpetrated by white men, and I should take instant adVan- tage of any oportunity whereby I could bring to justice a mob of lyncchers. In precisely the same spirit have now acted with reference to these colored men who have been guilty or a black land dastardly crime. In one policy, as 1 in the other, do not claim as favor. but I challenge as a right the support of every citizen of this country, what ever his cclor, provided only he has in him the spirit of genuine and far- sighted patriotism.
 Theodore Roosevelt.
 The White House,
 December 19. 1908.