The Globe-republican. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1889-1910, 1907-06-20
EVIDENCE DOES NOT INcRiMlN.
ATE SOLDIERS.
IN REGARD TO BROWNSVILLE
Senator Foraker Makes Statement
In Matter - Testimony Is Weak -
No Positive Facts Brought UP at
Inquiry.

Washington, June rs. Senator
Foraker, Of Ohio, tonight gave ont a
written statement summing up the
Testimony taken by the senate COM
mittee on military affairs in the
Brownsville inquiry, and declaring
that 1t fails to show that any soldier
took part IN the ARRAY, The state.
ment, which the senator says he
makes as plain duty to the truth
as well as to the accused soldiers"
and because he is more familiar
with the testimony than anybody
else, Is an answer to 10 published
statement that the testimony con.
clusiyely showed that the soldiers OF
the Twenty-fifth battalion did the
shooting
Mr.. Foraker says:
THE testimony given by the sol.
diers In their own behalf is not. In
my opinion, shaken by the testimony
given by the citizens Of Brownsville.
No important item of new evidence
has been brought forward against
the soldiers in this examination.
Ninety per cent Of what the citi-
zens have testified about had reia.
ton to matters over which there was
no controversy For Instance, every
body comedies that the town was
shot up that somebody did it; that
those people who did 1t passed
through the streets and alleys where
the shooting was done. and that they
had guns or revolvers or firearms
Of some sort, and that one man was
killed and another wounded The
only dispute is as to whether the
raiders were identified as soldiers OF
the garrisons
There are two kinds Of evidence
relied upon to show the soldiers did
it. One consists of shells and bull
leth that were secured from the
| streets and houses of Brownsville.
The results of microscopic inspec-
ton, interpreted in the light Of the
other testimony in the case. com.
pletely disposed of this part of the
case. The only other testimony is
that of people who claim to have
been eye-witnesses to the shooting
This consists of various people de-
claring that when they heard the fir
ing, they looked out of their windows
and houses and down dark alleys
where there were no lights, at dis
tances varying all the way from 3o
feet up to $50 feet and recognized
the men who were doing the firing as
negroes wearing the uniforms OF
| United States soldiers.
The officers Of the battalion have
testified generally and specifically as
to the darkness of the, night. Ac
cording to this testimony, in the Ian
guage of Major Penrose, the night
was so dark that he could not dis
| tinguish one of his officers, who
were all white men, from one Of the
enlisted men, who were all colored
at a distance of ten feet, nor could ne
at that distance tell anything about
| how man was dressed.
"All these officers have testified
that the claims of the citizens who
testified that they saw the raiders
and recognized them as soldiers at
the distances and under the circum-
stances stated by them are utterly
impossible. At one time, when testi-
mony was only partially investigated
they were Of the opinion and frankly
stated, that their men were guilty
but that fact only strengthens their
testimony as they now give 1t, that
the testimony of the citizens by
which they claim to identify their sol
diers is utterly unreliable, untrust-
worthy and by them unbelievable