Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-12-12
CASE OF COLOREO
SOLDIERS GIVEN
Defense of the Infantrymen Dis
missed From the Army.
RESULTS OF INVESTIGATION
Evidence Gathered by the Constitu-
tional League.
THE RI0TING AT BROWNSVILLE
Claimed That the Troops Did Not
Participate in It and Could Not
Have Done So.
THE RIoTING AT BROWNSVILLE

The Constitutional League of the United
States has presented to Congress me-
mortal in behalf of the negro troops who
were dismissed from the army on the Pres
| ident's order. The league sent a commits
sion to Brownsville, Texas, and Fort Reno
to investigate all the circumstances con-
nected with the affair. Through it's secre-
tary, Andrew B. Humphrey, and ex-Rep-
resentative Geo. III. White of counsel, the
league has presented the report of the in
vestigation in the form of a memorial,
WHICH the Senate has ordered printed as
a public document. The President was also
appealed to, and referred the report to the
War Department.
The Constitutional League undertakes to
establish, on the basis of affdavits pro-
cured by it's special investigating committee
and of testimony afforded by the govern
ment report itself:
~ That the soldiers Of Companies B. c
and D of the 25th Infantry, U. s. A., could
not have created or participated in the
riot at Brownsville, Texas, on August IL
and IA, 1906;
(2) That every member of the battalion
was present and accounted for within the
fort at and during the time of the riot eX-
cept four, who were over in Mexico on
passes and whose alibi were established
promptly to the satisfaction of the COM
manding and investigating officers:
90 That much of the evidence accepted
by the War Department as adequate to
punish these soldiers of participation in
the riot is incompetent, flimsy and biased,
and frequently consists of the mere opin-
ions of witnesses, and not their sworn tes-
timony; and
/ % That the accusation that the soldiers
of the battalion must have been aware of
the identity of the rioters is violent as
sumption, entirely at variance with the
facts, and hence unwarranted by evidence.
That there Is every reason to believe the
riot was Initiated by white citizens. partly
to crafty a long-harbored hatred against
the soldiers, and partly to punish their
independence in boycotting the towns Jim
Crow drinking saloons; and that such re-
sistance as the white mob encountered was
offered by unknown persons, who were not
soldiers from the garrison.
The theory of the occurrence adopted by
the War Department is that shortly alter
midnight August IS number of sol
diers, armed with army rifles distracted
from the battalion racks. made a sudden
incursion from Fort Brown into Browns
vile, shot haphaZard into several houses,
exchanged vOlleys with citizens, killing one
man and badly injuring another, fled back
| to the fort. scaled the walls, re-entered
quarters unperceived, replaced their rifles
| in the racks and fell into line in time to
answer the roll calls ordered by Maj Pen
rose.
Theory Declared Untenable.
This theory" says the report, Seems
untenable because the incidents consume
an impracticable amount of time. To be-
gin with, Mai Penrose. who. it appears
| had not yet retired. but was sitting in con-
versation with his wife. rushed out instant
| ly at the first shot. and undoubtedly fear
| ing an assault was being made by citi-
| zens upon the fort. at once directed Pri-
vate Charles Hariston of Company B, as
signed that night as sentinel around Off
GERS quarters. to order Musician Robinson
| to sound the call to arms. Robinson obeyed
| the order within a few seconds after Maj
! Penrose gave it. Constitution League afi-
| davits E. and FD
Five minutes notwithstanding to
| Maj. Penrose and s. P. Lyons-(govern-
ment report, pages II and Al, or at the
most eight minutes MISUNDERSTANDING tC
the affidavits of the sergeants and men
Constitution League affidavits G, II, ]. J.
X and 1.-the rolls. of the three COM
| panies were called twice and showed that
every man was present or satisfactorily &C
! counted for, except two in Company u, Pri-
waite Walter Johnson and Corporal Charles
| H Hawkins, and two In Company G, Sergt
| Thomas and Private Edward L. Lee; all
| four of whom were out on pass, all OF
whose rifles We're in the racks-as verified
| by their captains-and all of whom subse-
| quently and promptly testified as to their
| whereabouts on that night to the satisfac-
! ton of their officers. Substitutes at ,nese
|
| Exhibit A. and Sanders affidavit.)
| at is doubtful whether any man can be
1 made to believe-aS the soldiers We're GER
| tainly not equipped with the fabulous trav-
| cling carpet and the cloak of invisibinty-
| that within eight minutes at the maximum
| they raided Brownsville, shot up severa
| houses, aroused by their firing a crowd Of
| citizen opponents defeated these and drove
| them for two blocks in flight, disengaget
| themselves without injury from the un
equal fray, returned to the Fort, scaled the
| walls, regained their quarters, replaced
| their guns in the locked racks, fell in ranks
| and answered roll call-entirely undetectei
| by their white officers, all of whom save
| Capt. Macklin were in command of theil
| respective companies, and all of whom were
| inevitably on the qui vive of alert vigilance
| Impossible as 1t is to conceive that al
| these feats could be even performed, to say
nothing of not being detected, within eigh
| minutes, something yet more preposterou:
| is recommended to our credulity It Is 6
| fact that while the rolls were being called
the firing in the town continued with un
abated fury. (See government report, page
| 40.
lone is asked to believe, in other words
| that the soldiers were at one and the same
| time answering roll call in Fort Brown
and shooting up the town two blocks away
| Believed Fort Was Attacked.
Another strong evidence of the innocenc,
Of the soldiers was the belief at the tim,
| of the riot entertained by all the officer.
-as manifested by their disposition Of tht
| troops-that the disturbance was not a sor
| tie of Soldiers from the fort, but on the
contrary an attack on the fort by citizens
! A tyro, not to mention experienced com
/ manders like Maj Penrose and. Capt Ly
| ons, could not have made a blunder Sc
| amateurish AT the completion of the rol
1 call Maj. Penrose ordered Lieut.. Grier witt
Company to take position Of defenss
on the walls of the fort; Lieut. Lawson, il
/ command of Company B, to support c, ant
Capt. Lyons with Company d to form &
skirmish line guarding the most exposed
portions. Maj. Penrose finally ordered
Company to deploy and march through
/ the town and Company B to move up t
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