The Brownsville daily herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1897-1910, 1908-09-19


you've never been used to. Put up
them guns quickl'
And the guns went up, with the
quick concerted movement of drill.
There was something in that total dis
regard of danger-in that tone and
manner and in those eyes that in
spired awe and obedience.
Now, where's Major Penrose?' he
said.
1.-THE negroes became respectful,
even deferential. One of them said:
Yes, sub, Cap'n-Yes, sub. Ma
jor Penrose is right over in his house
second building, sub
Zone of you niggers come and
show him to me-
Zone of the men now hastily
escorted the ranger captain and his
sergeant to Major Penrose's head
quarters"
Here, the story goes on to relate,
Capt. Mcdonald found Major Block
som, and also District Attorney Klei
Der, who, one might presume, must
have run a similar gauntlet of negro
soldiers and army rifles to go into
the post to investigate the outrage,
and yet of whose bravery, had he
done so, Captain Mcdonald says
nothing.
The truth of the foregoing episode
is simply that, on his arrival in
Brownsville the night before, Cap
tain McDouald had been added to
the citizens committee that was in
1roc4i oofipo tho oufraOo en- that no
might have access to the garrison,
Major Penrose having given orders
to the sentry to permit the Browns
vile officers and members of the cit
liens committee to enter the post
and there was no opposition what
ever to his entrance. In fact, when
he went to the post the next morn
ing, he was accompanied by Mr..
Kleiber himself, who was unarmed
entirely, and no such scene as de-
scribed occurred at the garrison en-
trance at all, and Mr.. Kleiber himself
took the captain to Maj. Penrose and
introduced him. The story as told by
Mr.. Paine is doubtless overdrawn
by that writer. who was merely using
Mcdonald as material" for a maya
zine story, but he owes Mcdonald an
apology, because not only in the
above instance, but almost through
out the entire article, he has put the
latter in the very unbecoming light
light of indulging in Dragging, which
a brave man never does, and surely
Captain Mcdonald is a brave man.
Other scenes as related by Mr..
Paine, are equally as overdrawn and
theatrical. But the really stacy part
is that relating the scene when Judge
WEIGH revoked the warrants for the
arrest of the negro soldiers in order
to withdraw opposition to the order
from the war department TO convey
the prisoners to Fort Sam Hous-
ton, where they were to be safely
kept until after the grand jury
should investigate the matter, which
Capt. Mcdonald opposed. Here is
the way Mr. Paine tells it, the scene
being at the Miller Hotel and just
after Capt. Mcdonald had finished
supper:
Presently he (McDonald) saw a
body of men approaching. There APP
peared to be forty or fifty of them,
most of them dressed in khaki, and in
the dusk he took them to be sol
diers. Then, as they draw nearer,
he discovered that they were led by
Judge WEIGH and District Attorney
GQleiber, and the Mexican sheriff,
who for the first time was taking
an active part in the Brownsville
drama-having been previously
locked up in his own Jail. . They
drew their posse--Mexican rift raft
up in front of the hotel. Judge
Welch asked: Where is Captain Nc
Donald?' The captain came forward.
What's the trouble now, Judge?' he
said. Looks like you are going to
war, with all these armed men, I've
come for those warrants said Judge
WEIGH"
Whereupon Mcdonald asked the
judge to come into the hotel so that
he might see the order, and the story
goes on:
so they went in, followed by the
Mexican sheriff and his khaki mus
ter, and all the other crowd that
could get in. They all pushed
and elbowed in until the hotel lobby
was full and the balcony above was
crowded-and there were ladies in
the balcony fine audience indeed
for this the closing scene. The
ranger captain and his sergeant
stood together, their automatic guns
in position for quick and easy serv-
ice. They made a picturesque pair,
with their typical Texas hats and
arms and dress and their determined
faces. Judge Welch faced them,
fumbled a little and produced his or
der. 49,. Captain Bill finished read
ing and regarded the judge steadily.
This is your own order, Judge, he
said, What is the meaning of it?'
Judge WEIGH started in to repeat
some of the argument of the after
noon. You won't take the advice of
your best friends, he said, and you
are bound to start something here
that will cause the blood to flow in
these streets Captain Bill looked at
him and let his gun rest a little more
easily on his arm. If that is what
you brought this gang of cut-throats
here for, we'll start it now" he said.
There was a spontaneous round
of applause, from both the lobby and
the balcony. The ladies strained
forward IN get a heftpr view of tho