The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-12-19

pointed to their positions for the very
purEose of preserving this discipline and
curing the punishment of every enlist
ed man who does what IS wrong. The
NIL, with reference to the discipline, "A
part that the commissioned officers ara
of course unable to fill, although the
ultimate res possibility for The disci-
pline can never be shifted from tie
shoulders of the latter. Under any or
dtnary circumstances the first duty of
the noncOmmissioned officers, as of the
commissioned officers, Is to train the
private In the ranks SO that he may be
an efficient fighting man against a for
eign foe. But there is an even higher
duty, SO obvious that it is not under
ordinary circumstances necessary 50
much as to allude to 1.-THE duty CT
training the soldier so that he shall be
protection and not a menace to his
peaceful. fellow citizens, and above all
to the women and children of the ma
tton. Unless this duty is well PERFORM
ed, the army becomes mere dangerous
mob; and II conduct such a that If tho
murderers in question is not where
possible, punished. and. where his is
not possible, unless the chance Of its
repetition is guarded against in tho
most thCrcughgoing fashion, it would
be better that the entire army should he
disbanded Tt is vital for the army 10
be imbued with the spirit which win
make every man in it. and above all,
tee officers and noncorn Enissioaed off,
GERS, feel it a matter of highest obliza-
shield, the criminal in uniform.
Assassins Protected.
Yet some Of the noncommissioned
officers and many Of the men of the
three companies in question have
banded together in a conspiracy to
protect the assassins and wouldbe as
sassins who have disgraced their uni
form by the conduct above related.
Many of these noncommissioned Off
GERS and men must have known, and
all Of them may have known, circum-
stances which would have led to the
conviction Of those engaged in the
murderous assault They have stolidly
and as one man broken their oaths Of
enlistment and refused to help dis
cover the criminals
BY my direction every effort was
made to persuade those innocent Of
murder among them to separate them
selves from the guilty by helping bring
the criminals to justice. They were
warned that If they did not take ad-
vantage of the offer they would all be
discharged from the service and for
bidden again to enter the employ Of
the government. They refused to
profit by the warning. I accordingly
had them discharged. If any organiza-
ton of troops in the service. white or
black, is guilty of similar conduct In
the future I shall follow precisely the
same course. Under no circumstances
will I consent to keep in the service
bodies of men whom the circumstances
show to be Il menace to the country.
Incidentally 1 may add that the sol
diers of longest service and highest
position who suffered because of the
order, so far from being those who de-
serve most sympathy. deserve least, for
they are the very men upon whom We
should be able especially to rely to
prevent mutiny and murder.
People have spoken as If this dis
charge from the service was a punish
ment. I deny emphatically that such
is the case, because as punishment il
is utterly inadequate. The punishment
meet for mutineers and murderers
such as those guilty Of the Brownsville
assault is death; and a punishment
only less severe ought to be meted Out
to those who have aided and abetted
1nutiny and murder and treason by re-
fusing to help in their detection.
would that it were possible for me te
have punished the guilty men. re-
gret most keenly that have not beer
able to do so.
BE it remembered always that thess
men We're all in the service of the
United States under contracts of en-
list1nent. which by their terms and BY
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