Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-12-14

The President sent the following special
message, with Enclosures, to the Senate
today:
To the Senate:
/ inclese herewith letter from the
Secretary of War transmitting report
of the investigation made by Mr.. Herbert
j. Browne, employed by the department
in conjunction with Capt. W. g. Bald
win to investigate as far as possible what
happened at Brownsville on the 18th and
18th of August, 1906. The report and
documents contain some information OF
great value and some statements that
are obviously worthless, but ! submit
them in their entirety.
This report enables US to fix with toler-
aole dehniteness at least some of the
criminals who took the lead in the mur-
derous shooting of private citizens at
Brownsville. 1t establishes clearly the
fact that the colored soldiers did the
shooting; but upon this point further
record was unnecessary, as the fact that
the colored soldiers did the shooting has
already been established beyond all pos
sibility Of doubt. The investigation has
not gone far enough to enable us to de-
termine all the facts, and We will pro-
ceed with it.; but it has gone far enough
to determine with sufficient accuracy GER
tain facts of enough Importance to make
it advisable that 1 place the report be-
fore you. 1t appears that almost all the
members of Company must have been
actively concerned IN the shooting either
TO the extent of being participants or to
the extent of virtually encouraging those
who were participants.
AS to COmnapieS q and n fba-., .ap t.a
no question that practically every man In
them must have had knowledge that the
shooting was done by some of the SOL
dters OF 3 Troop. and possibly by one or
two others in one of the other troops.
This concealment was itself a grave Of
Tense, which was greatly aggravated by
their testifying before the Senate COM
mittee that they were ignorant OF What
they must have known.
Nevertheless. 1t Is to be said in martial
eXtenuauon that they were probably
towed py threats, made by the more des-
perate OF the men who had actually been
eneageo IN the shooting. as to what would
happen TO any man who failed to protect
The wrongdoers. Moreover there are cir
cumstanceS tending TO show that these
misguided men were encoura ged bv ont
az iVi Sist III llelf course n
ceaiment and denial. feel. therefore
that the guilt OF the men who. after the
event. thus shielded the perpetrators of
the wrong by refusing to tell the truth
about them, though serious, was in par,
due TO the unw,se and improper attitude
of others, and that some measure of al
lowance should be made for the miscon.
duct
In other words. / believe we can AFFORD
To reinstate any of these men who now
truthfully tell what has happened give all
the aid they can to fix the responsible ty
upon those who are really guilty. and
show that they themselves had no guilty
knowledge beforehand and were in nc
way implicated in the affair. save by hav.
ing knowledge of 1t afterward and failing
and refusing to divulse 1t. Under the cir
cumstances. and in view of the length o,
Time they have been out of the service
and their loss of the beneh, that would
have accrued TO them by continuous long.
time service, we can AFFORD to treat the
CONTINUED on Twelfth page.)