Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1906-12-01

act language used by the President
in Diminishing the coIored troops
from the service.
I'm making this recommendation
II recognize the fact that a number
tof men, who have no direct knowl-
edge as 10 the identity of the men OF
, the Twenty-fifth Infantry, who &C
tually fred the shots on the night
! Of the 18th OF August 1906 will
incur this extreme penalty"
This language will follow Presi-
dent Roosevelt TO his grave and It
viii also prove the milestone about
the neck of the War Department
, that will sooner or later sink the
present managers of it into oblivion
, We do not know Of any greater pen
atty that President Roosevelt and
the War Department could have
visited upon these confessedly limo
cent men of the Twenty-hfth Infan-
try.
They did the worst they could
and the presumption is that had
either of them the power they would
have ordered the whole battalion
shot TO death or they would have
condemned the members Of it to life
imprisonment
III Mr.. Roosevelt will consult
his Attorney General. ne will soon
find out that # is not the business
Of either citizen or soldier to
prove himself innocent of an alleg-
ed offense It is the business Of
his accusers TO prove him guilty
He viii find also that no man can
be compelled TO confess to the com
mission of an o6ense and that he
cannot be compelled to be a witness
against himself
YET. because he has the power.
this is exactly what President Roose
welt is attempting to do 1t will be
seen that no matter how heinous
may be the offense. 10 viii not i'm
any measure mitigate or justify the
sentence i'm the cases OF the men
whom ne declares to be innocent
This action Of President Roosevelt
and the War Department is on a
plane with the brutal atrocities Of
the Middle Ages. when whole cities
were punished for the alleged often
ses OF the guilty.
The orense of these distinguished
gentlemen does not stop there for
they peremptorially refused to grant
even a stay for a re-hearing and
they bid the executioner Co go anead
with his job and suavely announced
that although the victims were in
noccnt. arguments fin their cases
would bee heard after the sentence
had been carried out
We have often heard lawyers joke
about an attorney who submitted "a
motion for n new trial of his client
on the ground OF after discovered
evidence" ten days after his client
had been hanged. but we never had
such a practical demonstration of Ct
as is afforded by this remarkable
exhibition by the distinguished occu-
pant OF the White House.
There is another phase of this sit
uation which has been no doubt
lost sight OF by some. White troops
are reported to have been ordered
from San Antonio. Texas. armed with
ball cartridges 20 shoot down tao
disarmed members of Companies b,
C and d OF the Tweuty-hfth Infan-
try. provided the slightest excuse
for so doing should arise in the pre-
misses.
The telegraphic dispatches tell
the story though that the colored
troops were well behaved They
we're well-benaved on the night OF
the 18th of August for they were
found in their barracks and every
rifle was reported TO be in its
place The commander states that
the impression at the time prevailed
that the firing was by the inhabi
tants OF the town of Brownsville
and that an attack was about TO be
made on the fort.
While IL is fact that the lips OF
these soldiers concerned in this es
capade must be sealed for their owl
protection, no one who knows
b Texan is going TO believe that in Z
"gun-play." all of the firing was OF
one side or that only soldiers wer,
, to blame.
And yet in the face of all of thi
President Roosevelt the "archan
gel" of a square DEAL" being OF
earth what the Angel Gabriel is SUI
posed to be in heaven. SO far a
right, truth and justice are concerned
in reply TO an application for a sta.
coolly cables by way of one of nj
! subordinates:
*@s"he declines to suspend tn
discharge unless there are new fact
Of D ton 4