The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-04-22
ROOSEVELT
 IS DEFENDED For Discharging Negro
 Soldiers. ANALYSIS OF TESTIMONY
Senator Warner of Missouri Speak
 on Brownsville Affair.
Declares That the Actien of the Pres- tdent Was Net Due to Pretuaice Agsinst Any Race or
 Celor.

I l or the testimony taken in the several
 Investigations of the BrownsvlIle af- l tair. which led to the discharge of A
 number of negro soldiers of the 25th
 Infentry and especially that by tie
 committee on military affairs. was
 presented to the Senate today by Sen- ator warner. of Missouri
 | Tn the war of 1se1-Iss6 serv- | cd in the same command with negro troops. said Mir. Warner. The sur vlvinE veterans of those troops wear 1 with me, as comrades, the button of the Grand Army of the Republic, and
 certain 1t Is, I have no pretudices against negro soldiers. Lawlassnness
 Is not distinguishing characteristic | of1any race or color"
 The Missouri Senator quoted freely l throughout his discourse from teati- mony taken In the several investiRa- 1 tions of the charge that the negro sol | dters shot up the town.
 Tt is to be regretted" he said. "thsk studious and systematic effort has been made to arouse the race feeling l Of the negroes of the country AgainsF the president because of his action l with reference to these compaHiea.
 Those who work to arouse race is- sue. have taken upon themselves A heavy responsibility for their act must necessarily serve to increase he
 race project which now exists to an unfortunate extent. It is incredible | to me that any intelligent man. white | or black, should have the hardihood to l charge that the president, in issuing | the order discharging those soldiers. was influenced against them by reg
 son of their color"
 A Full Investigation.
 It was not. he pointed out, until af-
 ter the citizens committee had made l its report and Major Penrose had been
 convinced that the soldiers did the
 shooting. that the president ordered | Major Blocksom to inveatiEate and 1 further advise him as to the facts l Mir. Warner quoted extensively from
 dent. he said. was not yet satisfiaa and 1 ordered General Darlington to make | An investlg&ts0n go that if poasihiA.
 the guilty parties might be detected
 Discussing the theory of a possible plot on the part of the citizens of | Brownsville against tine negro sol- l diers. Mir. Warner said:
 | After thorough examination of l the evidence. am convinced that the l attitude of the Brownsville people to- ward the colored troops was unjust
 and that the feeling of deep resent ment against the citizens which the
 soldiers had. was but natural. yet
 such resentment. however just. could | furnish no excuse for the attack which | was made by soldiers. but the record 1 of the troops at other army posts in
 the South and West. whether the | troops were white or colored shows
 such an outbreak and shooting up of | q town to be a method of revenge that | naturally suggests Itself to men who have arms at hand and have been 1 trained In the use of them
 That the negroes strongly resented | the treatment received. there Is abun- l dant evidence.
 "In connection with the change of
 opinion on the part of the officers. there l Is one fact. which, in my judgment. had | an inhuence--if not a controlling i'm
 auence--on them. The fact IS. the or dsrtng of the court martial to try Ma
 jor Penrose and Captain Macklin on | the charge of neglect of duty. in ref
 erence to the Brownsville afray.
 That the court martial of the com manding officers and Captain Macklin
 produced change of feeling oh the | part of these officers, and that the espirit de corps of the regiment has af- l fected the other officers so that all | those officers look eagerly to any cif- | eumstance to exculpate the men of | their command. there is little doubt. This spirit Is to be taken into consid;
 sration in weighing their evidence" "The contkntion," he added that the
 saioon keepers of Brownsville shot up | the town finds no support in their ew-
 tdence--in fact, the claim that the sa- | loon keepers in order to get rid of the | negro troops, fired Into the homes Of
 their friends with a reckless regard oy | their Hives. while they were careful Of
 the lives of the soldiers, is too great
 tax on ones credulity."
 | The claim that the citizens of Brownsville entered into conspiracy l to terrorize. main and kill their unsus- pectInK friends and to accomplish these
 acts in such a manner that the
 terrorizinR. maiming and killing would | he charged to the soldiers" he added.
 that in carrying this conspiracy Into | execution a hand-full of men at the
 hour of midnight. clad in the uniform | of soldiers, armed with high power 9uns. met immediately in the rear Of l inc barracks of the soldiers and open | ed Are. so aiming their guns as not to | scar the barracks or endanger the hfe | or limb of the soldiers; that they then
 proceeded into the town. shooting Into | inc dwelling houses and business
 niaces of those who. like themselves | aeaIred n riddance or the negro sol- | diara and then. that their crime 1 might be fastened upon the negroes be- l vond the peradventure of a doubt, tbis | Sen6 of raiders marched to the saloon | SS ore of the men who had been lonf
 in demanding the removal of the negro 1 troops. and thero shot down the bar l keeper, Frank Natus. and on their wav.
 wounded the lieutenant of the city pn-
 lice. Gan officer without an enemy in l tbe city). and whose only offense on
 The fatal night was that. on seeing the Hangers shooting into the houses. he l .aaIizIna that the lives of men. women | and children were imperiiled. rode
 sn,Id showers of bullets, through the
 street. shouting. put out your ights'
 mt out your lights.
 He concluded by declaring that the
 three bullets in the Yurria House
 nointed conelusively to the point from
 s,,hicb they were fired. being the sec
 ond porch of the barracks occupied by Company B.