Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1906-12-05
QUA LETTER buI
Nerro soIdIers al vnIentine.

VALENTINE Neb., Dec 10 the
Editor Of The Bee; Could the persons, even
the colorcd ministers and others who are
holding mass meetings, denouncing Presi-
dent Roosevelts action In dismissing from
the service the entire enlisted strength OF
the three companies OF the Twenty fifth
United States infantry, which were sta
toned at Fort Brown on the night that
Brownsville, Tex, was shot up have
had the opportunity Of knowing those
troops better the chances are they would
not be 80 severe In their criticisms Of the
presidents action.
Two battalionh eight companies) Of that
regiment came TO Fort Niobrara for sta
ton, directly from the Philippines in 1872
They remained at that post continually
until its abandonment in July last, when
in leaving, they we're assigned to stations
In Texas. Valentine, four and one-half
miles distant is the railway station where
all the posts business was transacted. and
having a population Of about 1.sO0 sus-
tanned very much the same relation to Fort
Niobrnra as Brownsville TO Fort Brown.
Tex Consequently they we're in and out
OF town constantly. singly or in numbers
trading, loafng or attending errands, and
il IL said by our citizens, tightly, that they
were well-behaved and no citizen. not look
ing H. haQ the ledst excuse LOT keLlnB
into trouble with any one Of them.
However. among themselves and with
their camp followers principally dis
charged soldiers from the colored regi-
ments), a part at least were terrors, and
In their brawls seemed to place no more
value upon a human life than though the
taking OF the same were a mere incident
/ in their purpose Of destruction. In the
dance halls and resorts (which followed
/ them into the country and went out Of
business and left Immediately on the de-
/ parture Of the troops). they would night
like demons, and the records OF our district
court have been loaded down with criminal
cases due to these fights, with a goOdly
number OF participants In the state peni-
! tentlary. to say nothing OF the number
punished by military court martials. Bear
Ing particularly on the phase which brought
about the wholesale dismissal a somewhat
similar case might be recited:
| discharged soldier from one Of the
eolored regiments. named strstton kept
! rooming and dance house on a tract Of land
about a mile and a half from Fort Mo
brara. On the night Of October q. 1904
about midnight while the usual dance was
I IN progress, a team hauling a spring wagon
with four occupants drove up in front Of
1
| Lulu Johnson came out OF the house to
, the wagon. Immediately shots rang out,
apparently fired at the wagon, but from a
point that each must take effect there or
pass into and in some instances through
the dance hail. which was very well filled
/ with dancers. when the firing ceased IL
! was found that Turnbuu. the driver, was
shot through the arm; Raymond Smith, an
occupant. through the body; Lulu johnson
| through the breast near the heart, one
horse killed and the other wounded. In
/ side the building stove had been hit and
! shattered. the bar shot up somewhat, but
/ miraculously no person hurt, although
Z there were any number Of close calls. Co.
/ incidentally, two men IN khaki were seen
with guns across their shoulders starting
toward Fort Niovrara. Next morning six
teen empty Krag-Jorgensen shells were
found on the ground at the point where the
! firing seemed to come from, and the loca-
ton the two men were seen leaving. The
wounded were taken TO the Fort Niobrara
! hospital where the Johnson woman died
next day. TurnbuIl recoYepsd promptly and
Smith finally. 4rt
The shooting having been committed on
the reservation. came under the jurisdic-
ton Of the civil authorities. Consequently
the sheriff and coroner were notified. a
coroner's jury empanelled and post norton
held at the post hospital. which resulted
in determining that from the character Of
the wound It was done by a Krag-Jorgen-
sen.
The murder appearing 50 wanton and
cold blooded, extraordinary efforts were
put forth to try and locate the guilty ones
Persons who were thought by their associ-
ations to be on terms Of intimacy with the
soldiers were looked to to secure the in
formation, and Colonel Hoyt. commanding
the regiment assigned Lieutenants Mapes
and WieEenstein for special duty, to run
down the guilty ones Il possible. The
officers, in fact, were particularly anxious
to apprehend and deliver the culprits to
the civil authorities. However, although
that shooting was done on a clear, bright
night, by two persons seen in the act or
Immediately thereafter. not the slightest
trace has to this day been discovered in
the direction Of either apprehending the
guilty parties nor OF learning the motive.
II was said that although numbers OF the
enlisted men might have full knowledge
Of the men and motive no one would dare
TO divulge the same for fear Of his own life.
Although the murdered one was Of their
own color and without character, the act
was no less a crime than the like one which
followed it in Brownsville. and only en-
phaslzes the necessity OF some form OF
salutary punishment. While the soldiers
might justify silence in the latter case On
account Of fear lest a fair trial could moi
I be had in Texas, no such excuse could pre-
vail here, since the murdered was moi q
citizen OF this community, but a woman
of their own race, in whom no one would
have any special interest. and the tria
could have been purely on its merits with
out prejudice against the prisoners. Ye
those VINO possessed the necessary infor
, nation were as silent In the former a.
the latter instance.
No question but that a very large ma
3ority Of those soldiers discountsnance suci
acts. judged by what was seen OF them dur
ing the four years here, but there are tougl
characters in each company, ready at al
times TO do acts Of violence, whom IN
better men do not appear 20 endeavor Z
get rid Of and who are responsible for IN
condition in which the men OF those tire
eonlpanies find themselves now. II Is an