The Washington herald., 1908-04-21

in they state that they believe the raid
to have been made by members of the
Twenty-ffth Infantry.
1T must be borne Ia mind also that at
the time these officers made these state
ments they had full knowledge OF the
question OF gun racks, full knowledge OF
the question Of ammunition, full knowl-
edge Of all these things which are now
relied upon as a defense. and, I think.
they we're fully satisfied that the men
were guilty
Another thing which should be remem-
bered at this time is that when the PresI-
dent dismissed these men. no one, either
friend or foe, assumed that any one was
guilty of the raid other than the soldiers.
Every official and every other party who
had inquired into the matter came to
the same conclusion. and there was ne
dispute whatever at the time that these
men were guilty of the charges-as seri-
Gus as any ever made against a soldier"
Believes Negroes Participated.
After a detailed discussion of the evil
dence, Senator Borah said, in conclusion:
with some tediousness. and at the
risk of taxing the patience of the Senate,
have gone over the evidence In this mat
ter-the evidence which discIoses, TO my
mind, the guilt ef certain members Of the
TWenty-ffth Infantry in the Brownsville
raid beyond "a reasonable doubt. If guilty
at all. they are guilty of murder-murdes
planned and deHberated on and executed
with deadly precision The one point in
which the rioters failed was with respect
to the number Of their victims. They eyi-
IDENTIFY expected to kill more than they
did. No more serious charge than this
was ever made against a soldier Of the
United States. For less offenses many a
soldier has been condemned and shot at
sunrise.
TO my mind it was treason; if not
technically so, yet morally treason in the
most aggravated form. In these times.
when an air of disloyalty pervades GER
tain parts of the social life of the nation;
when an element which lives upon law
lessness, strife. and murder raises its
treacherous hand here and there, playing
with human life as with toy: when the
doctrine Of riot Is preached as a tenet of
party organizatlon-under such conditions,
say, 10 find this spirit of lawlessness.
this appetite for crime. in our army, the
body which is 10 maintain the flag wher-
ever II floats is startling beyond all
words 10 express.
Uphoids Presidents Course.
Finding iawlessness there, so close
to the vital forces of this government.
what was the duty of those intrusted
with the power and responsibility Of
dealing with it? Strike it downl Assert
the majesty and strength and relentless
fudguanr ri tina uruornrnapf
to inspire. both respect and dread in all
who so lightly weigh the worth of human
life. or so trihe with the honor and good
name OF that great army. whose patriot
ism has been the pride OF US all. Any
other form of action-to hesitate, 10 COM
promise, To paliiate, 20 excuse would be
an Injustice and an outrage TO the army,
and constitute trihing consideration Of
the interests Of So.0o0000 Of people who
look up 10 the government for protection
TO life.
u can conceive Of no greater mistake
toward the negro than to connive at
his encToachment upon the law. feed that
appetite for lawlessness which, strange
to say, turks in the system Of all races
and demands as the highest function of
a self-respectiHg nation the most vigilant
consideration and the most prompt and
unqualified and constant restraint The
friend of the negro land he is the friend
Of the whole human race as welD is the
man who deals with unTelenting hand,
both as to the matter Of protection Of
his rights and the punishment for his
Nrong-deing
1T would above all things-and this is
TO me of supreme importance-inspire in
certain classes Of the less intelligent Of
the colored race contempt for law and
government. Riot and murder are largely
things which are born Of the mistakes
of government and thrive in a country
which compromises with and sentiment
s,Ifvee at-er -ri.,,a