Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1910-07-23
BROWNSVILLE TRIALS ENDED
Capt. Lyon. L. :. A.. Acquitted: Gen
Howe Disapproves.

What is thought will be the las
Official act I'm the Brownsville AT
fray took place yesterday uhel
Brig Gen. Walter Howe. Command
Ing General of the Department o
the East. acting In a reviewing ca
pacity. expressed his disapproval In
passing Officially upon the decision
reached by the court-martiaI aD
pointed by himself TO try the case of
Capt Samuel p. Lyon. who was ir
command Of Company ID. Twenty
NTH Infantry. ON the night of August
%, 1906 when three negro com
paDies including Company u engaged
IN riots In the town Of Brownsville
Tex, resulting ia homicide. and for
which the soldiers were dismissed
subsequently, from the army by Pres
ident Roosevelt.
After the Foraker investigati ton
Of 1908 and the Young court of i'm
quiry last winter Lieut.-Gen. Samuel
B. NJ Young. L. s. A.. retired. who
was former Chief of Stan of the
Army, recommended personally that
Capt. Lyon be tried on charges of
neglect of duty and falsehood. charg.
ing that he had sworn repeatedly 60
raise statements regarding the
amount of ammunition accounted for
az the time Of the shooting. The neg.
lect OF duty Gyi.. ~opng charged
was In his not knowing tina, many
men were of the reservation. The
couTtmartial lasted from June 90 90
July 8, this year. 40 Fort Nyer. Wash
ington.
Several DAYS ago Gen. Howe re-
CONTINENTAL Col George &. Andcr-
son. Ninth Cavalry. T.. S. A.. was
president and Capt Charles r.. How
land, Twouty-frst Infantry. was
Judge Advocate. Eleven officers COM
posed the court. Capt Lyon was
found not guilty and was acquitted
honorably by the court. I'm passing
upon this decision Gen. Howe said
officially yesterday.
In the forogoiuc case of Cant.
Samuel p Lyon Twenty-nfth I'm.
fantry. quite "a portion OF the record
is in regard 90 a matter of mo- im-
portanCc iu this case and not ma.
terial 90 the issue before the court
THE evidence clearly shows that
Capt Lyon first received tho ball
cartridges in question Boz April. 1906
and that in August OF that year hc
had not only 5000 rounds Gin three
original packagCs) as reported in his
ordinance returns for the period end
I'd June 80. 1905. but also approx
mately twenty rounds @ man iu the
hands OF the men OF his company.
From the evidence the only
reasonable and probable explanation
OF the apparent surplus was that too
many rounds ha3 been dropped ass
expended June 30. 1906. This sur
plus was covered by firing iu supple.
mentary practice during the month
OF October and not dropping any as
expended during the period ended
December 81, 1906, and by taking up
az that time 200 rounds as surplus.
The reviewing authority has no
doubt from the evidence that the eN-
act condition OF his ammunition was
known 20 Capt. Lyon, especially after
his inspection following the Browns
Vile AFFAIR. AS the question OF am.
munition entered so largely I'm an
the subsequent investigations there
is no reason why he was unable be-
fore the court OF inquiry 20 give
exactly full information thereof eX-
cept his desire 10 cover mp the errors
in his returns and certificates.
From the above 30 is evident that
the accused should not have been
hOnorably acquitted and the same is
disapproved."
The immediate effect Of the dis
position OF the case will be 20 re-
store Capt. Lyon 10 duty at his reg.
ular post at Fort Lawton Washing
ton State, because the review IS a
final act in the proceedings. There
viii be no new trial. Capt. Lyon S
rank viii remain the same.
One Of the officers on Governors
Island said yesterday In DISCUSSING
Gen. Howe's review that It had an
equivalent effect 10 a dissenting
opinion handed down by a Judge
when the rest of the court had de-
cided a case against his views.
The first officer TO be court-mar-
tailed in the Brownsville affair was
Major Charles W PenrOse, Twenty
fifth Infantry, who was in command
of the first battalion, stationed at
Fort Brown. He was able TO prove
that he had been asleep several
hours before the shooting began and
so escaped responsibility in the mat
ter because he had no knowledge
that the soldiers had left camp.
Capt. Edgar A. Macklin, Twenty-fifth
Infantry commanding one OF the
troops was the second. He was
charged with neglect OF duty in that
he failed TO examine the condition
OF the soldiers guns and ammunition
Immediately upon their return in the
middle Of the night. IL was charged
that he had waited until morning
giving ample time for the guns to
be carefully cleaned and reloaded
before he had examined them TO as
certain which soldiers had been dis
charging their arms. Macklin was
not convicted on this charge.
The trial OF Capt. Lyon rings down
the curtain officially on the whole
affair because these three officers
were the only three responsible OFF,
GERS with the battalion at the time.
New York Sun, July 16. 1910.