The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-01-15

sponsible than the soldiers for thi, I trouble.
 T think no one more responsibl,
 than the men who did the shooting
 said Mir. Clay. ss But you can't find who they are
 persisted MT. Ti1lman. 50 you punish 167 men for crime with which no l more than twenty at most have beer I charged. :"
 MT. Tillman insisted he could not gel away from the fundamental principl'
 that ever man charged with crime
 should have a fair trial.
 T say" he continued. ''that the Pres ident has been derelict: he transcended his authority and was untrue to the | duties of his office in not holding the | troops in the army until he had ex-
 hausted every means to ascertain tht l guilty ones."
 Mir. Clay had said that court mar
 tial would have resulted in nothing. He insisted that the evidences of the former escapades of this regiment jus
 tified their discharge.
 | That they were not discharged as the result of any previous offenses, MT | Tillman interrupted to say, was eyi- dence that the President and the Sec | retary of War were ignorant of the
 character of the negro soldiers" well" exclaimed Mir. Clay, the Senator ought to congratulate him that I he has acted right at last"
 | Again announcing his adherence to I the principles of liberty MT. Tillman said he did not allow such prejudice or | feeling to lead him from demanding
 substantial justice.
 T did not know that the Senator had prejudice,Y replied Mir. Clay.
 | nsr n. T. ~~<~a t.-v~~ retorted MT TilIman, sfand if you say you have not, we'll. I won't say what" MT. Clay placed himself emphaticai- 1 ly on record as endorsing the Presi- dents action and said he believed ht voiced the sentiment of majority o | the people of Georgia. MT. Bacon hat the clerk read newspaper clipping announcing that 1t cited a preceden for the Presidents action. 1t told oi the dismissal of a company of ths South Carolina National Guard by Sen ator Tillman, then Governor. because , they refused to obey orders during ( disturbance over the enforcement oi the liquor laws.
 MT. Tillman explained the occur. renee. declaring the company in ques- ton band box soldiers who wanted
 their uniforms and brass buttons to help them with the girls. :" Mr. Bacon said he thought both ths Senator and the President had done right.
 Senator spooner remarked that hs presumed the South Carolina company was a white company, otherwise, he said. "The Senator would have had them lynched.''
 Continuing Mir. spooner said h. would have very great contempt lo' himself if he could not discuss th' lew xvffhnuf rafarfnCe ti the color of the soldiers. It was, n' said, only legal questions that could be involved. Mir. Spooner denounced the criticism which had been made O the 18th Regiment both In the letter O. Senator Culberson protesting a6ains sending the negro troops to Browns vile and by Senator Tfllman. TTlIman's Good Negroes Mir. TiIlman then said he had ariser to state that he had not criticized thu whole regiment He added there arr many good negroes. As this seemed tt surprise MT. Spooner MT. Tillman said hs had good negroes working for him foi thirty years and he believed there were millions of good ones.
 T do not hate the race" he added q simply feel that am superior ts I.it--tfat is all"
 That is a question decline to dis, cuss." retorted MT. Spooner. Tn some ways the senator is superior" This elicited from Mir. Tillman the explanation, When l say 1T I near that the white race is superior to the 1 coIored race. Now will the senator understand mef' MT. Spooner disclaimed any intention I to discuss the race question which h' | said was entirely outside the present | question. He took the ground that i | was the function of the Senate to in | vestigate the act of the President 1T | his executive capacity. Peculiar func | tions had been imposed upon the House | of Representatives. It alone could mi | tiate, prepare and present Impeachment | proceedings.
 The Senate in the exercise of its mos | solemn function was constituted th' | court in such cases. He called atten | tion to the serious condition, if thu I Senate as a court should find itsel i "prejudged." having investigated thu | cause in advance. Assuming that th' l President had exercised a power h. | possessed in discharging these soldiers | MT. Spooner denied that Congress ha( | any constitutional power to set asid' | such an order. The power of the Pres | ident and commander in chief of thu l army and navy in time of peace wal i not defined by the constitution. Mir spooner quoted judicial authorities tt | show that 1t was "the power to com | mand and control" MT. Bacon remarked incidentally tha | in all his experience in the Senate h' 1 had never heard a doctrine advanced | which he regarded as more dangerous
 ! than the suggestion that the Presiden has any power in the use of the army
 that cannot be controlled by the law | making power. MT. Spooner at thii | point yielded the floor to adjournment | not having finished his argument.