Orange County observer. [volume] (Hillsborough, N.C.) 1880-1918, 1907-01-10
CONGRESS AIWORk
Both Houses Of Congress Resun,,
Work After Holiday Recess.

Both Houses Of Congress Resume
Work After Holiday Recess. s.
Soon after the Senate met Senator
Foraker s resolution providing for
"a inquiry by the Senate into the
discharge Of the negro troops of the
Twenty-ffth Infantry on account OF
the Brownsville, Texas, episode, was
laid before the Senate and Senator
.Cufberson made an address on the
subject. He said that be would have
kept quiet but for the fact that great
injustice had been done the people Of
Brownsville.
Mr.. Culberson said that the con-
duct Of the negro soldiers had been
very irritating to the Brownsville
people and especially so to the wom-
en-. He related that On August 4,
last, the day before the shooting
up'' Of the town, a criminal assault
had been committed by one Of the
soldiers on the wife of a reputable
citizen and said that no arrests had
been. made for the crime. MI. Gull
berson defended Captain Mcdonald,
Of the Texas Rengers, to whom Mr..
Foraker had referred because of
:. -. " ~. e. ErF Z+
Major Blocksom's reference to him
as 3 man who was $50 brave that
he would not hesitate to charge hell
wsth a bucket Of water" Mr.. CM-
berson also said that he knew Major
Blocksom to be q gentleman.
Defends the President.
In defending President Roosevelt
for his dismissal Of the troops, MI.
Culberson said the fact that the
troops were negroes had nothing
to do with their discharge. Confu-
sion as to the legal question involved
was, he said, responsible for the state
ment that the President had no au-
thority to make the discharge. The
Presidents constitutional authority
and the authority given him BY the
articles Of war clearly covered the
case and made his action legal, he
declared, He eontended that dis
charges for criminal ofenses are eov-
cred In IL articles Of war as are also
discharges made to effect punishment.
Mr.. Culbezvop said that. there was
. distinction between q "dischargc
without honor" In the former case
the President could exercise his dis
erection as he had done in:theS instance
only he made as the result of a court
martinl. He instanced several cases
to sustain his position.
Negro Soldiers Motive.
To establish the motive actuating
the negro soldiers in creating the al
legged disturbance, Mr.. Culberson
read resolutions recently adopted by
negro citizens Of Boston, which adj
mitted that the soldiers "shot up"
the town and said they "were de-
te1mined to do for themselves what
the uniform Of their country would
not do-protect them from insults
and punish at the same time the
authors of their misery"
Disclaiming any partisanship for
the President, Mr.. Culberson created
a wave Of merriment by saying:
81 have ntohing to do with the
President in the matter. I car moth
ing about him. Ny personal rela-
tions with him are about as cordial
- those Of the Senator from Ohio"
(Mr. Foraker.) {,
In all fairness, Mr.. Culbsrson said,
the country ought. to know that the
report made to the President was re.
liable.
In the House.
Within Is minutes from the time
the gavel Of Speaker Cannon fell
calling together the House of Repres-
entatives, after the holiday recess.
the lower branch Of Congress ad-
journed, the absence Of 3 quorum
bringing about the early adjournment
The House was a trife late in
meeting due to the absence from the
Spaaker's table Of the badge Ok an
thority, the gavel, and in conse-
quence the small membership of the
House present were kept standing q
minute or two longer than usual nn-
til the Speaker obtained the cham
mer." But when the gavel was re-
ceivsd q responding whack, brought
the House face to face with what
bids fair to be a busy session.
W. F. Englebright, Of the first
California district, and Charles G.
Washburn, Of the third Massachu.
sets district, were sworn in as mem