The Washington times., 1908-12-14


the rear This rear door of the front
portion furnished an easy and safe exi-
and entrance for the cOnspiratOrs with
cut passing the sentinel in front. The
latGne was at the rear Of the build
ing, separate therefrom. and the men
customarily went out the rear door and
through the sally port 70 reach It. An
absence OF ten or fifteen minutes would
Light From Lamp.
There was a bright light from a lamr
in the guardrOOm, according to the tes-
timony OF Private Joseph Rogers, who
claims 20 have been reading a novel
when the firing began. His original
statement was that ne was asleep on
his bunk when the firing began. and
that he was awaken by Sergeant Reid
His various statements are confused
and cOntradlctory-he Is evidently lying
but as 10 there being a light m the
guardhouse, there has been no denial
Rogers had been court-HnartiaIed five
times. The existence Of the light is
also proved by the statement Of Private
Johnson.
Attention is directed to the singular
TACT that no statement under oath was
taken rom SerEt- J. II. Reid, though
Vitally important witness on pace
seventy-flve, Senate document, No. z6g
appears brief summary OF his state
ment mot under oath to Mai. A. p.
ElOCkSOm, 70 the effect that he did NOT
have the call to arms sounded until
the shots came 50 fast that he thought
The post was attacked He stated also
mat ne formed the guard before having
the call sounded
From this point Reid disapDaars as a
witness. He was serving his fourth en-
isineLL He was discharged without
honor November l6 1896 with the rest
OF the battalion HIS testimony was
not taken at any OF the subsequent
courts-martial and investigations. ne
simply disappeared from view Efforts
20 locate him have been unsuccessful
lie IS constantly on the move. and acts
Ike fugitive from justice We have
foilowed him into seven States. anI
spent more time and money in The
search than on any other man. For
some months shortly after his DISCHARGE
ne was travelling with a negro minstrel
troupe through the South in company
with John Holioman.
Reid Knew It.
Boyd Conyers declared that Reid was
informed that they were going 10 shoot
up the town that night. Reid is report !
ed TO have said:
Boys, if you are not satisfied. you
Will have 10 go and get satisfied
Ano later, when Reid posted the
guard:
Boys. don't you go down there and
let the crackers get the best Of Won. % /
Reid seems to have understood that
the raid was TO be started bv these r,,a.,
Malle on sentry duty. and not while on I
telleI, Tor COLLerS declares that after
ne tConyers) returned and threw him Z
49, Cul OF breath. on his bunk Reid
-:.te -,t.ILe IN aho dragged him out declaring. I
stand Tor II or be court-nartiaIed
tohyerS further declares that when
Joiln hoIoman brought around the sD-
-. - earlIlises before inspection the
next morning, 70 avoid detection. Reid I
attended 10 their distribution. 0
AZ Is obvious that II Reid intended Z
70 project The raiders he would posi-
fl-eLn fll-l away from the front OF the guard /
mouse, where they could recover breath \
and clean their guns without beinp-
ahuef observation. The printed teStf.
mony bears this out:
senate Document No. zoe, PAGE I55.
5oyd Conyers testifes that he was most
ed in the rear Of the guardbolIse Ito
tHe guard was formed. Does not re-
member who or how many were in linz
wen zen the guard was formed.
senate investigation, page 7Os Con
, lsls says ne and Lawrence Daniels
were posted IT the rear OF rr1a e77sr5
house, and tat he Law down N, TLe
Sround TO avoid the bullets. though ne
-t'-A q N-el-All 10 nave nEGru ~D.rfuc~
ma @l-a, way nd been off post about half
ah houT- Daniels testified that he was
t,oSleo at the guardhOUSe. but does not
say whether front or rear.
senate Document 400 maze 10 T-f,-.., |
X L COlie-, Of COMPANY @ faSffGa5 4
! nal ne had just come of post, and was
IN Jhe closet when the firing bagan
. i I-5O-l-o5( His statement is con,
how long ne was at the closer. or 80 /.
WdS IN Ine SuardhOuSe. He was ont
OF sight for an indefinite period and
s Nas likewise posted at the rear Of the
4, Z ot5 ~ oiio ouse. de tesuhes that Sergeant
IsSiu, IN calllnS the roll, called uD TO /
no. instead of calling by fours. No one i
else supports this assertion, and it IS
--LShly improbable that he was in line
NIt +" nea ~ Ihe nrst call was made. He could
not ten VINO was in the guardhouse.
Sent After Alarm.
Senate Document 402, page I5S, Private
Carolina de Saussure was sent after
the alarm and guard call with Cor
poral Wheeler and Privates Mitchell
and Battle toward quarters, and he
was later stationed over near the Of \
hcers' quarters where ne had annie
to clean his gun. Is. 1. u
5s6)-De SauSsure is very uncertain
about whom he saw in the guardhouse.
The time that he was sent toward quar-
.ers was later than he claimed. He ad-
mits that he had his gun and ammunition
in bed with him. but says nothing about
Dciag in the same bum with Bovd r
Conyers- He says there was no rack I
for suns in the Suardhouse
COuyers declares now dat ne and De
SauSSure were in the same bunk and \,
both had their guns in he'd and their
ammunition belts on, though this inn
portant fact was not brought ont in
his testimony He said that his cun
got 'jammed" IN Fourteenth street bv
he Cowen house as he came out OF the ,
COwen alley and that De Saussure fixed
{ for him. This cOrrobOrates the teS-
Imony OF Herbert Elkins. clerk in the /
1eahy Hotel. (See Senate Doc. Az. Z
Part II, p II, last paragraph: PenroSe I
20 Irt-martial, p 443: 5. l., vol. 3, n BIB $
COLyero was a recruit and not very ia !
n2liar with lis weapon, while De Saus-
;Jre was serving bis third enlistment {
The published testimony Of the non {
commissioned officers on post bears evil
lence that they were embarrassed by J
conflicting puI t-0SSs-tO satisfy the in I
luiries being made and yet not betray
he guilty men. The guardhOuse was 7
Veil lighted and its inmates aa-fIr- 20