Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-02-26
NOT LIKE ARMY GUNS
How Brownsville Shooting
Sounded to Corporal Miller.
IN A SALOON AT THE TIME
Got Back to Barracks by the Time
of Roll Call.
WAS ONE OF THOSE ARRESTED
Former Corporal Wellington Thought
Firing Was Done With
Mixed Arms.
IN A SALOON AT THE TIME
WAS ONE OF THOSE ARRESTED

one OF the nexro ex-soldiers at Fort
Brown. who was out on pass the day
of the shooting up Of the town of Browns
vile. Tex. last August, was on the stand
today in the inquiry before the Senate COM
mittee on military affairs. He was VIM.
FL. Miller, former corporal OF Company c,
25th Infantry. He told of being in a Mexi-
can saloon when the shooting began and
of staying there until the firing was over,
and then joining his company.
Miller said that ne had been on guard on
August II, and the next day was given a
pass. He said he left the garrison at about
12:4o pm. and went to Matamoras. Mex,
and stayed there until about . or 10 O'Clock
that night, and then went to the home of
his cousin, Mack Hamilton, in Brownsville.
Hamilton was a former soldier and had
married in Brownsville and settled down
there after leaving the army. After visiting
at Hamilton's house Miller said he went to
a Mexican saloon, near 18th and Adams
streets in Brownsville, arriving there at
about IL O'Clock. He said he began to play
Monte" with a number of Mexicans, and
while playing the firing began. He thought
the first firing came from the vicinity of
the barracks. but he was not sure, as the
proprietor closed and barred the door OF
the saloon. Miller said all of the Mexicans
were scared and that he remained In the
building until the shooting ceased. The fir
ing, he thought. came closer and closer to
the saloon, the last of ii being in the vi
entity of the market place. not more than
fifty yards from the saloon, which was
three or four squares from the barracks.
In a Saloon at the Time.
when the firing was begun" said Mil
Ter, 1.-The proprietor of the saloon said he
thought soldiers were shooting up the town.
said to him that the noise did not sound
to me as If 1t came from army guns. 1
fb,,phf obnotipp from of
about forty-fve caliber. 1 showed the
Mexican saloon keeper my pass and told
him might call on him to say I was In the
saloon while the firing was going on II any
trouble came of it. The saloon keeper said
he would remember and would say l was
there
Miller said that after the firing ceased
he slipped out into the street and walked
as fast as he could to the barracks. He
said he saw many people in the streets. but
he was in too much Of a hurry to notice
whether any of them had guns. and he
wanted to get back into the barracks as
quietly as he could When he arrived at
the barracks he said his company was fall
ing in and he fell In with his comrades.
His testimony in regard to the incl
dents that followed was similar TO that
of other witnesses. Miller was one of
the twelve men arrested and charged
with the shooting but he was later dis
missed without trial. The direct exami-
nation had not been closed when a re-
cess was taken at noon.
Thought Mixed Arms Were Used.
Wade H. Wellington. formerly a cor
poral Of Company B, 25th Infantry. was
the first witness today in the inquiry
before the committee. On the night of
the shooting up of the town he slept
in the barracks on the side toward the
town. He testified that he heard the
firing in the town and gave the opinion
that. mixed arms were used.
After testifying concerning other Incl
dents of that night the witness said. in an
swer to questions by Senator Foraker.
that he regarded his discharge without
honor as a punishment, upon three for
mer discharges he had received records of
character excellent" He said he had not
had trial. but Gen. Darlington. inspector
general Of the army. had told all the negro
soldiers who were at Fort Brown that un-
less he learned by a certain time who did
the shooting they would be discharged from
the army by the President of the United
States and forever be barred from re-enlist-
ment Warrington insisted he had told all
he knew of the shooting and had done his
best to discover the guilty parties.