The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1907-03-28
Regarding ''Shooting Up" of
Brownsville by Negroes
ARE CORRECTED BY TAFT
Secretary Of War Taft Sends Revised
Report Regarding the Riot
Affair to Senate Committee
Of investigation.

secretary 1alL Iloay t.saS1i1'IeH
tc the senate committee on n,ilitacy
affairs in session at Washington re-
port OF General Crozicr, chief OF ord
nance, with reference to the numbers
OF guns assigned to the negro soldiers
of company B. C and D Of the 25th
infantry on the night Of Aug. Is last,
when Brownsville. Texas, VAS shot
up."
1t appeared from The letter Of Gen
eral Crozier that on the face OF the
lists of guns, as forwarded by the
commanders Of the companies, there
were certain errors. arising probably
from mistakes IN transcribing from
the property books of the companies
: The effect Of this is to raise a doubt
whether two Of the guns, held by ex-
pert examination at the Springfield
arsenal of shells picked ur in streets
OF Brownsville to have been used in
the ARRAY, were in ar1u chests OF
cc!apany E, under lock and key, and
not issued to soldiers, as was indi-
Gated by the former report sent to
The committee by the ordnance de-
,,artment of the army. In his letter,
transmitting General Crezier's supple
1nentary report, Secretary TAFT says:
1t will be observed that this does
not affect in the slightest the conclI-
sions of Lieutenant Hawkins, the cx-
pert who examined the shells and
made further tests at the Springfield
arsenal, as to the numbers c. the guns
from which the cartridge shells on
the streets of Brownsville were dis
charged. The lists of the gun num-
bers as assigned to the men We're not
sent to Lieutenant Hawkins and were
never in his possession. This matter
only affects the question as to the Gus
1ody of those guns and the narses
of the enlisted men Of the company
70 whom they were assigned, if to any
Of them"
In order to remove the possibility OF
error Secretary Taft has ordered the
property hooks OF all three companies
sent to the war department and he
has notified the senate committee that
the books will arrive in Cay Or two
lIe says it will probably be possible
from them TO correct the errors ap-
parent on the lists as pointed out OF
the supplementary report OF General
Crozier.
Another report from the ordnance
bureau of the army was seEt to the
committee by Secretary Taft, which
shows that the ammunition for the
new Springfield rifle cannot be used
In any other guns except the Mauser
and Schmidt, either the osliber or
the fact that the Springfield ammuni-
ton uses a fanged case, excluding
all other arms.
When the cormittee convened Fri
day morning Senator Foraker called
to the stand Lieutenant Hawkins and
began an examination of the witness
concerning the reports of tests made
at the Springfield arsenal of the car
fridge shells found in the streets OF
Brownsville.
During the sitting of the committee
81 request was received FROM the secre-
tary Of war for the return OF the
three bullets taken from walls OF
houses in Brownsville and submitted
to the committee as an exhibit OF
the report CT the assistant attorney
general, Purdy.
The war department desired to
have these bullets analyzed in order
to determine if possible whether army
guns were used in discharging them,
and if so the numbers Of such guns
In view of this request, the commit
tee decided to postpone the examina-
ton of the expert witnesses and 10
adjourn until Monday.