The Breckenridge news., 1906-12-26
ROOSEVELT
Defends HIs Action In DIsnrIssIns the
Negro Troops.

Washington Dec. 20.-In response
to resolutions of inquiry adopted by
the senate, President Roosevelt sent
to the senate a special message con-
cerning the peremptory discharge Of
three companies of colored soldiers
in the Twenty-fifth United States in
fantry. He says:
ordered the discharge Of nearly all
the members of companies b, c and ID
of the Twenty fifth infantry by name, in
the exercise of my constitutional power
and I'm pursuance OF what, after full con-
sideration. | found to be my constitu-
tional duty as chief Of the
United States army. l am glad to avail
myself of the opportunity afforded by
these resolutions to lay before the con-
gress the following facts as to the muir
derous 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.
Attention is called to reports on the
Brownsville troubles made by Major
A. p. Blockson, Lieutenant Colonel l..
A. Lowering and Brigadier General e.
A. Darlington. which reports accom-
pany the message. and concerning
which the president says:
An effort has been made to discredit
the fairness ~, the investigation into the
conduct of Il y colored troops by point
ing out that General Darlington is
southerner. Precisely the same action
would have been taken had the troops
been white-indeed, the discharge would
probably have been made in more sum-
mary fashion.
Details of the riot are cited, with
this comment
The soldiers were the aEgressors from
start to finish. They met with no sub
stantial resistance, and one and all who
took part in that raid stand as deliber-
ate murderers. who did murder one man,
who tried to murder others, and who
tried to murder women and children. The
act was one Of horrible atrocity, and so
far as | am aware, unparalleled for in
fanny In the annals of the United States
army.
After reviewing the facts set forth
in the reports the president says:
II il vital for the army TO be imbued
with the spirit which will make every
man i'm II. and above all, the officers and
noncommissioned officers. feel II mat
ter Of highest obligation to discover and
punish. and not to shield, the criminal
In uniform. Yet some Of the noncom-
missoned officers and many of the men
Of the three companies in question have
banded together in conspiracy to pro-
tect the assassins and would-be assas-
sins who have dsregarded their uniform
10y the conduct above related. Many Of
these noncommissioned officers and men
must have known. and all Of them may
have known, circumstances which would
d. ~. -
gagged in the murderous assault.
BY my direction every effort was made
TO persuade those innocent of murder
among them to separate themselves from
the guilty by helping to bring the Grim
inals TO Justice. They were warned that
If they did not take advantage Of the Of
fer they would all be discharged from the
service and forbidden again to enter the
employ Of the government They refused
to profit by the warning. I accordingly
had them discharged. II any organiza'
tion of troops i'm the service. white ot
black. is guilty of similar conduct I'm the
future. | shall follow precisely the same
course l may add that the soldiers Of
longest service and highest position who
suffered because OF the order, so far
from being those who deserve most sym
pathy. deserve least. for they are the
very men upon whom we should be able
especially to rely to prevent mutiny and
murder.
More evil and sinister counsel never
was given to any people than that given
to cOiOred men by those advisers. wheth-
er black or white. who by apology and
condemnation, encourage conduct such as
that Of the three companies I'm question.
II 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
onward and upward should teach first
rs the most important lesson, alike 10
the white man and the black. the duty
of treating the individual man strictly
on his worth as he shows il.