The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1907-02-12
First of Such Testimony During
Brownsville Investigation
TELLS MEN 10 BE SOLDIERS
To Get Up Off Their knees-Famliar
With 5uIlets-could Tell BY Sound
Some Were Mausers, VIM
chesters and Colts.

Washington, February 1.-THE shoot
ing up" OF the town of Brownsville, Tex,
was II the from of an attack on the
garrison at TT. Brown, according to the
testimony given today by Mlngo San
ders, former first sergeant of Company
B of the Twenty-hfth infantry. before
the Senate committee ON military affairs.
Sanders story created something of u
stir In the committee, as he said that
while running from his quarters to Com
pany b. barracks, after being awakened
| by the firing on the night of August g.
the shooting was going on and it came
from the town and was towards the
hospital on the military reservation. lie
said bullets We're whistiing over his head
1 This is the first direct testimony given
by any of tile discharged negro soldiers
that the fire eame from the town.
Sanders said he had served in the army
/ twents-sx years. SIX months and three
days, including the campaign in Cuba and
three years in the Philippines. lie said
/ he had never been courtmartiaed nor
reprimanded. At Brownsville he had a
house to the left of the company quar-
ters and directly in front of the hos
/ pttal. After being awakened by the shoot
! ing he said he started on a run to B
i quarters and just after leaving his house
the firing was renewed. 1t came from
the town, he said and bullets were flying
thick and fast over his head. AS he
reached quarters OF Company G. he said
/ he saw that the men assembled there
were excited and shouting to each other
Company in Confusion.
81 heard someone yell. Fan i'm he
said, ''then someone shouted to get the
guns and another person answered that
they could not get the guns as the racks
were locked and the man with the Keys
could not be found. Then Lieutenant
Greer G knew his voice., said break
those racks open" There has been
| great deal of testimony concerning the
| broken racks of Company G, but no per
| son had testified positively before as To
the manner in which they were broken
/ If the testimony as Sanders Indicated.
| that the racks were in good condition
/ before the shooting and were broken hg
| the command of one of the commanding
officers.
| Continuing his testimony, Sanders told
of finding his company in confusion and
of his efforts to straighten II out. lie
said he found some of the men down on
| their knees and that others were yelling
out to put out the lanterns so that 1t
would not furnish a target for persons TO
| shoot at II told the men TO stand up
| and be soldiers and that it was better
| to be shot in the ranks than out, said
| Sanders "Vhen the men did not stand
up I told them some other things l don't
want to repeat here
Mixed Firing.
| On cross-examnation Sanders said he
| could not tell the location OF the first
firing. He said he had been under fire
| number of times and said he was famil=
| lar with the reports of the various makes
of arms. On that might it was mixed
firing" he said. He thought 1t came
| from siX-shooters, Winchesters and
| Mausers.
| The cross-eXamination had not been
| concluded at the noon recess.
At the afternoon session Sergeant
| Minge Sanders resumed his testimony.
| lie said that he had nothing to do with
| the shooting: did not know any one who
| had did not SUSPECT any one and had
made dilRsnt inquiries among the the
| men to find out from them what, If any
| thing, they knew, and has been unable 10
get any Information. He declared that
| he had not withheld any Information and
! that there was no conspiracy of silence.
Sanders was cross-examined by Senator
| Warner
| lie repeated that many of the shots
| fired on the night of August - came
| from the town and said that he had re-
| ported this fact to Major Pearose, al
| though IL did not appear III ms evidence
taken by Captain Lyons. Indeed, he said,
| he had not stated this to any one else
until this time. lie had not been asked
about II and did not volunteer infOrma-
| ton. II am looking after Sanders first
| said he. Sanders stated that his gun was
not in the rack at the time of the shoot
| ing, but in the sergeants' room. and that
he returned to this room for 1t. lie was
not required to keep his gun in the rack
I on account of peculiar duties lie thought
there were about nine guns out of the
companys racks on the night of the
shooting. but they We're all accounted
/ for Sanders evidence was not conclud-
ed when the committee adjourned until
tomorrow.