Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937, December 15, 1908, Image 3

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Morning Oregonian., December 15, 1908, Page 3, Image 3

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Newspaper Page Textt. nr. jiuk.-MW OKKliOJMA, TCKS13AY, DECEMBER 15. 1903. CONKERS TELLS FACTS ABOUT RIOT would go In and clean up the rrojnd. He al.o uld that ihey mentioned this to S?r gnt Reld. who wai commander of th guardhouse barracks, and that Keid aalri: "All t have to uy la. talje care of your self and the bo when vou go dowji there. " S. H. Parker, hone home In at ("aarleston. 8. C.. aa reaent and heard the lame con versation. Xmas Sales in Every Dept MERCHANDISE ORDERS at any counter, good to give because the recipient can select his own gift anytime I r 9 - ' . '"'A One of Leaders in Brownsville Shooting Names Those Who Fired. TWENTY MEN INVOLVED Warned of Threats of Brownsville People Xeero Troops Deliber ately Miot I'p Town With Stolen Ammunition. WASHINGTON. D- 14. Boyd Con yer's tnry of the Brownsville riot Is ITiven her In narrative form: The rumors of trouble over the as signment of colored troops to Brown ville were circulated before the troops Wt Fort Niobrara and preparations were made am one the men to "fret even with the crackers." as the whites were called. Some cartridges were held out at ranjre practice, but more en route to Browns ville. The friction with citiiens of Browns ville began at once. In Boyd Conyers language, "whisky made all the trouble. If we had not been drinking, we would not have had the nerve to shoot up the town." It was agreed at a gathering of a few men in the saloon of Allison, the colored ex-noldler. on the afternoon of August 13. lX. that the raid should take place that night at 12 o'clock. It seems to have been delayed a few minutes to let Tamayo. the Mexican scavenger, get away from the B barracks. Holloman Was .Ringleader. John Holloman. the money lender of Company B. was custodian and distrib uter of the cartridges, but his plans could not have been carried out had not Sergeant George Jackson, of Company B, In charge of the keys to the gun racks in B barracks, and Sergeant Reld. In command of the guards, co-operated both before and after the raid. The four men who led the raid were John Holloman, John Brown, Boyd Con yers and Caroline de Sauesure, all of Company B (and probably B. L. Collier, of Company C). Holloman was In bar rack. Brown in the bake shop. Conyers and De Saussure In the guardhouse. These two latter were in the same detail and had been relieved at about 11 o'clock. Ie Baussure on the post at the guard house and Conyers on No. 2 around the barracks and facing the town. Holloman" got the party together. Conyens and De Eauseure slept on the same hunk in the guardhouse. Claiming that they, wanted to get under the mosquito net they had the trick of taking their guns into the bunk. Instead of placing them in the open gun rack on the excuse that they did not rust so badjy under cover, but really so the absence of the guns from the open guardhouse rack would not attract at tention and their own absence -would be ascribed to a vielt to the closet, which was back of the guardhouse. These two men slipped out the rear door of the guardhouse, passed through the sally port and Joined Holloman and Brown. All Turned Out at Signal. The party crossed the wall of the fort down near the end of A barracks, went up the roadway to the entrance to the Cowan alley, where the signal shots were fired. These shots were Immediately tailed onto by the alarm shots of Joseph B. Howard, guard on No. I. and formed the series referred to by Mrs. Katie B. !ahy. of Browngille. Her testimony Is further borne out by the statement that not over second elapsed before a num ber of men of Company B swarmed out on the upper gallery and opened a fusil lade on the town. " It is an absolute cer tainty that It would have been impossible fir Sergeant Jackson to open the gun racks, for the men to have assembled, secured their guns, loaded them, gone out to the gallery and started firing, ell after the first shot was fired: all aroused as they t est i tied unanimously, from sound slumber. In less than two minutes, in the confusion of a dark barrack room. Twenty Kir first Volley! Beyond the possibility of a doubt the racks had been opened and the inside conspirators were ready to pour out on the signal shots. The testimony is ample that there were scarcelv 20 seconds between the last of the signal shots and the first general volley from B barracks. The number is not positively known, but perhaps 20 men were mixed up. It will be remembered that one of the witnesses testified to hearing some one of the group of soldiers exclaim, "There they fl?; "'"f"" these men '"P"1 over the w-all and ran up the alley Boyd Conyers Is the man whose gun jammed at the exit of the alley by the rains' '"tlfle'1 ,0 by HertS ,aken from hlm by where the light from the street lamp at Jhem!0rn'r f Elizab"h -hone on All Over in rive Minutes. tn,"ii!".1 - mlnu,c elapsed from ! WZl h nrst 'hat "red until the time these men were back in the t?"?? that Rld told loin i? J "L' ln 8ht P the " taugnea and said: si. out mere and let crackers get the best of you." n conyers and iJe ,,,, reached the guardhouse, they n IS rgeVnt HT4iBd 0t'n, bunk-! fergeant Reid came In and a wore at them, but Conyers was ,o exclTed nd out of breath that he could hrd"v H.and. so Held stationed him at the rear of the guardhouse in the dark cseu- V m ,d "0t b' '"""nUed so ciosei. Holloman came around with R.t? c'r,r.,tJ "ut daybreak and Held p.ed them out. The guns were 11 cleaned before daylight. How !.aHon Got Confession. William Uwion poses and says: .;.Un.oU1nn;i;r"'Bo!W.V -roe. -.r,ln h. k "'.-""S?"'" and mat point. I a not nlr ' ' - t v-.ii information, excent arrf V n.""':" occurred at the fm t i shooting. I arrived at Monroe. Oa . on Juna "l elonnetl m r r h,. K.,m ' ci . . . 1 r.murr trews, cot- . k. A.1"'1 H"'1 onvra who Is known ' Buddie t nners on the tnornlni of Jun . but had very little conversation with Mm h it was Introduced to him as an old soldier' On th mornlnj of June S. between and ft o clock. I met Conyers aoout, half wav be-t-en th station-house and Main street. We talked some i'i or minutes. I b-oeched the Brownsville ism and men toned the fart that the soldiers had thorn their good sense hy keeping their mouths shut while at Washington. I asked hint what the motive sraa tor the shooting. RMolred to rleu I n Ground. He' told me that the "crackers" at Brownsville had made tnreafa that ther moold have ro neero soldiers at Browns.-ille and the soldiers had made It up In their minds that. If tbajf both them, they FORAKER FRIEND OF NEGRO ( Continued From First Paite. vllle affair, transmitted today, follows in part : "To the Senate: I Inclose herewith a letter lrom the Secretary of War, trans mitting a report of the Investigation made by Herbert J. Browne, employed by the department in conjunction with Captain W. G. Baldwin, to investigate as far as possible what happened at Brownsville on the 13th and 14th .of August, 19m. The report and documents contain some information of great value, and some statements that are obviously worthless. but I submit them in their entirety. This report enables us to fix with tolerable detinlteness at least some of the criminals who took the lead In the murderous shooting of private citizens at Brownsville. It establishes clearly th fact that the colored soldiers did th shooting, but upon this point furth record was unnecessary, as the fact tha the colored soldiers did the shooting has already been established beyond all pos sibility of doubt. The investigation has not gone far enough to enable us to de termlne all the facts, and we will pro ceed with it. but It has gone far enough to determine with Sufficient accuracy certain facts of enough Importance to make '.t advisable that I place this re port before you. All Guilty or Accessories. "It appears that almost all the mem oers of Company B must have been ac tively concerned in the shooting, eitlie to the extent of helng participants or to the extent of virtually encouraging those who were participants. As to Companies C and P. there can be no question that practically every man in them must hav had knowledge that the shooting wa done by some of the soldiers of B Troop, and possibly by one or two others tn one of the other troops. This concealmen was of -itself a grave offense, which wa3 greatly aggravated by their testifying before the Senate committee that, they were Ignorant of what they must have known. Nevertheless, it is to be said in partial extenuation that they were prob ably cowed by threats made hy tlie more desperate of the men who bad at-tually been engaged In the shooting as to what would happen to any man who failed to protect the wrongdoers Moreover, there are circumstances tending to show tha these misguided men were encouraged by outsiders to persist in their -course of concealment and denial. "I feel, therefore, that the guilt of the men who after the event thus shielded the perpetrators of the wrong by refusing to tell the truth about them, taough serious, was in part due to the unwise and improper attitude of others, and that some measure of allowance should be made for the misconduct. In other words, I believe that we can afford to reinstate any of these men who now truthfully tell what has happened, give all the aid they can to fix the responsl blllty upon those who were really guilty and show that they themselves had no guilty knowledge beforehand and were in no way implicated in the affair, save by having knowledge of it afterward and falling and refusing to divulge it. Reinstate Innocent Men. Xrnder the circumstances, and in view of the length of time they have been out of the service, and their loss of the benefit that would have accrued to them by continuous long-time serv ice, we can afford to treat the men who meet the requirements given above as having been sufficiently punished by the consequences they brought upon themselves when they rendered neces sary the exercise or the disciplinary power. I recommend that a law be passed allowing the Secretary of War, within a fixed period of time, say a year, to reinstate any of these soldiers whom he, after careful examination, finds to have been innocent, an, whom he finds to have dono all In his power to help bring to justice the guilty. "Meanwhite the investigation will be continued. The results have made it obvious that only by the carrying on of the investigation as the War Depart ment has actually carried it on is there the slightest chance of bringing the offenders to justice or of separat ing not only the Innocent, for there were doubtless hastily any Innocent, hut the less guilty, from those whose guilt was henlous." CONYERS CONFESSED RIOTING Tlsen Attempted Suicide In Terror. Foraker Discredits Confession. WASHINGTON. Dec' 14. Secretary Wright simply submits the report of Her bert J. Browne, on the Brownsville affair, to the President without comment. Mr. Browne makes a general report of the case, and then follows with detailed statements of those who aided in the Investigation of the raid. Mr. Browne's general report la "dated Washington, December 5, and is as follows: "Sir I have the honor to submit the following report relative to the Investigation of the Brownsville raid: "Kx-Private Boyd Conyers. of Com pany B. Twenty-fifth Infantry, now at Monroe. Ga., told William Lawson, a detective in the employ of Captain E vary Worn Suit on This sale includes EVERY one of our tailor-made suits, imported novelty suits calling and carriage gowns, velvet and velour suits, cloth and silk 3-piece suits, princ.ess gowns in finest of taffeta silk, messaline silk, lingerie, lace and cloth ENTIRE STOCK IN SEVEN LOTS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING RESERVED Lot Lot Lot Lot Lot Lot Lot No. No. No. No. No. No. No. 1EVERY $20.00 and 2EVERY $30.00 and 3EVERY .$40.00 and 4EVERY $50.00 and 5EVERY $65.00 to 6EVERY $87.50 $25.00 Woman's $35.00 Woman's $45.00 Woman's $60.00 Woman's $85.00 Woman's Suit and Costume Suit and Costume Suit and Suit and Every Suit Positively FIVE-VOLUME SETS STANDARD AUTHORS $1.50 SET R. I Stevenson riir Walter Scott Rudyurd Kipling Victor Hugo Honore Balzac Charles FMckens Nathaniel Hawthorne . Hall Calne ' leather Stocking Tales Cooper's Sea Tales Suit and to $125.00 Woman's Suit and 7EVERY $150.00 to $250.00 Woman's Suit and NEW This Season. Black and All the Best Colors Sacrifice of 5000 Framed Pictures Costume Costume Costume Costume Costume $15.85 $21.90 $29.75 35.00 44.75 82.50 $85.00 Ednal,yn!l Jules Verne Aiarlltt Ij. T. Meade Rosa N. Carey ALCAZAR CLASSICS, 200 VOLUMES, 50c VALUE AT 29c More than 200 titles from the best writers. Books worth 50c each, printed in Urge, clear type and daintily bound. Some of the titles : Alice In Wonderland Treasure Island The Man Without'! Country And many other book3. Poets, genuine padded CQr U7w Abhe Constf;ntine Bitter Pweet Blnck Renutv Little Minister Reveries of a Bachelor Aesop's Fables In His Steps A Minister's Woolnar k Autocrat of the Break fast Table The famous Henty and Alger Books IZr for boys, about 100 titles, on sale at 75c Holly Boxed Paper at 38c Box Standard Large box paper atjd fabric finish, latest paper and envelopes cniitaininp; ."50 sheets of .")0 envelopes, good linen shape leather, gilt edges, superbly printed 25c Holly Boxed Paper 12 Vac Box Neat boxes with a quire of paper and envelopes to match, juvenile size, Pictures, Pictures, Pictures, regular 20c and 23c values, J2fC $2.25 Figured Flannelette Kimonos for $1.69 The most artistic subjects, appropriately framed in up-to-date frames. Sale begins this morning at 8 o'clock. Pictures, Vals. Up to 1.25 at 49c Vals. Up to $1.75 at 69c Vals. Up to $3.00 at 95c Vals. Up to $5.00 at $1.95 Pictures, Vals. Up to $7.50 at $2.95 1000 Sample Pictures at Half Price lift $1.69 Women's fancy figured flannelette long and short Kimonos, loose or belted styles, puff and flowing sleeves, fancy band and scalloped-edge trimming. Values at $2.25, today $4 Long Kimonos, $2.89 Women's extra quality fleecedown and flannelette long Kimonos and Lounging Robes, belted and fitted styles; various style flJO QQ features, values to $4 $1.25 Short Kimonos 79c U'muti 'c fnAd' lriwftrprfl fin nrtplpt t p f!$i s',ort KimonosJ belted style, scal loped edge, regular vQf value " LOS $1.50 Kimonos, 98c .Women's fancy figured flannelette long and short Kimonos, made" in loose and fitted styles, high or low neck, finished with scalloped edges or fancy bandings; values QOn to .11.50, for Blanket Robes for $4.39 Fancy figured blanket Bath or Lounging Robes, wide self border trimming, heavy cord and tassel girdle; regular $.3.50 value prr.Oc7 Sale Toilet Articles, Smokers9 Sets Toilet Sets, Shaving Sets, Shavers' Stands, Sm okers' A r t i c 1 e s , etc., at prices that emphatically make it worth while to buy now Toilet Sfts. auadruDle silver-plated brush, comb ar.d 157 7c mirror, m-atly boxed, values to J1B.0.) for J . i tJ lollet. Manicure. Military and Cloth Kritsh Sets, silver piatec noabtiiui designs, valued 10 $iu..u for Military Seis, Toilet and Manicure Sets, silver plated, L"i Oft new patterns, values to $7.50. Rreat special at...... 4pJ.7t Puff jars, quadruple plated top; also cut-irluss iars and fH 1 OB silver-plated jars. Values lo $;i..'iO JX.i7VJ NIcKe; Shaving stanos, adjustable French beveled mir ror. two removable cups. Values to $V0'.U0 for.; Shaving: Stands of ebony finish, adjustable French btv eled mirror, brush, muK. Values to $7.o0 Silver-plated Mug: and Brush In neat hinpe-top case, J.J.i value ft.r Genuine Badper Shaving Brushes, various pat terns, worth $.j.00. on sale for only . . Smokers' Jars for tobacco or cigars, cut glass, with silver and gilt tops, $1.50 value Tobacco Jars, nickel deposit, with nickel top; also Kilt and heavy silver, $2.f0 value Smokers' Sets of quadruple-plated silver or brass values up to $Jry0, sale $5.98 $5.98 $3.88 $1.35 $2.00 $ .98 $1.48 $1.98 mm .. r, j . 3 mtt&?flL William B. Baldwin, of Roanoke, Va., hat he and three (or four) other men f the Twenty-fifth Infantry were the eaders in the Brownsville raid. This nformation was obtained at different ates during the month. of June, 1908. "I submit the affidavit as presented. There are certain discrepancies of a minor character, due to the fact that Iawson Is illiterate and had to depend his memory for details. But It hould be borne in mind that Lawson was iinm-qualnted with me aeiaus ot he Bro-nsvtll raid and was given nformation which could have come nly from one familiar with the secret history of the affair. Lawson s first report Included the names of Conyers, ohn Holloman, John Brown and "an ther man." Subsequently he supplied he name of James Powell, but I think the original name given was that of Herbert L. Colllor. Company C, one the relief guard. This Information was corroborated in me presence or wicnesses, but before Lawson could finish his work Conyers became sus picious and would give no fu evi dence Incriminating hlmselt. From then on he furnished to A. H. Bald win, Captain W. G. Baldwin and to myself Information piecemeal, and re luctantly. The name of Carolina Des mussure. his bunkmate. was th6 last one obtained. Advised Not lo Confess. "Conyers tried to commit suicide after he found he had made his state ments to a detective, declaring that the other negroes would kill him when It got out. He finally wrote to Senator Foraker and received a reply, a copy of which is annexed. That reply he construed to mean that he should stick to his original story, told before the Senate committee at all hazards, and there he stands. I have every reason to believe that his confession Is genu ine and ' gives for tne rirst time the true secret history of the Brownsville raid. "The list of participants given ln this report Conyers furnlsned me personat- ly. I believe it Is substantially cor rect, bu with the Influences shown to be backing Conyers to adhere to his falSK testimony given before the Senate committee still being exerted, he cannot be relied upon to support his bwn confession until it Is thor oughly sustained from other sources. "Evidenced of similar encouragement to stick to the lies told at Brownsville and before the Senate commfttee were found ln many places, and subsequent to the date of the . Foraker letter they became stronger and more obstructive than ever. Has Become Race Issue. "The investigation has been conduct ed with strict recognition of the ad visability of preserving secrecy and with discretion. No promises of Im munity were made. The knowledge on the part of the ex-soldiers that the Government could not punish them af ter separation from the service, coupled with the belief that by preserving silence they would aid' In the passage of the relief legislation now pending in Congress, has added to the diffi culty of securing information. "Th. issue has evidently become rac ial. These colored detectives would be confronted frequently ln the smaller towns, where these men are llvins. with a demand from colored men fur information as to their business. j "We have located over 130 ot these I ex-soldiers, arid have been In 30 states in quest of information. The appen- dices give statements as to the results i obtained. They indicate a general j knowledge on the part of ex-soldiers that the raid came from inside the fort, and that the soldiers of Com pany B were the guilty parties. "We earnestly urge that we be per- i mittcd tc continue the Investigation. Several detectives are still in the field, and within the coming week a num ber of affidavits will be forthcoming." THOMPSON'S EYE GLASSES GIVE THE BEST RESULTS ""1 'V h o m p s o n's now ' method of rlevelop- iiif? siffht and testing "k. eyes is tins K'atest v & A discovery m a do in ( i o pt o in it t ry In the 20th century. n dorsed by over 2UJ0 J of KuroptVs foremost f J veicnli.sts. Window k's3 manufactories liave been Introduced Into china, and the prodm-i. whieh is a novelty there, is rapidly be fonilng popular.- LATOOIIPSOfl 8v. i 'Xt- hiffht years in Port land; two years in the 'leading1 eol leu'es and hospitals of Ku rope. SIGHT KXri'.HT, Second Klonr Cor- belt Hid:., h"lf 1 li find Mnrrinon. being: sworn, de ny the d.d STERLING SILVER: A MOST APPROPRIATE GIFT MAYONNAISE SETS A beautiful line of them for selection in a great variety of shapes. In green eases. A ladle with each. Up to $20.00 STUNNING NOVELTIES I ami Thermometers Picture Frames Sewing Sets Card Cases Mesh, Purses Ink Wells Pen Trays Napkin Rings Cigarette Cases Lasting a life time, always stylish, and retaining its beauty as well. Also useful and durable. What better gift can one give? Note the suggestions below. They'll assist you in your Holiday purchasing. The stamp of "Sterling" on every article. Quality is 925-1000 fine. That is standard. Four Famous Patterns in Flatware Sets or chests can be furnished as complete as -desired. Our engraving is a particular fea ture. PAUL REVERE SANDWICH TRAYS The popular serving tray. Tn the pierced effects or with chased borders. All sizes. A gift sure to pleage. Up to $35.00 IN HOLLOWARE SERVING ARTICLES FOR THEDRESSER Salad Bowls Fruit Baskets Bread Trays Vegetable Dishes Water Pitchers 5-piece Tea Sets 3-piece Coffee Sets Meat Platters Ice Cream Trays A plain effect, with beveled edge. MADAM JUMEL En the French gray, with stunning crest. COLONIAL ENGRAVED A line polished pattern handsomely engraved. DOLLY MADISON Severely plain and very substantial looking. Oyster Forks Butter Spreaders Coffee Spoons Terrapin Forks Salad Forks Soup Ladles Cake Knives Berry Spoons Lettuce Forks Jewel Boxes Mirrors Hair Brushes Clothes Brushes Putf Boxes Cologne Bottles Velvet Brushes Military Brushes Shoe Horns Send for Our ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE Contains valuable infor mation for Christmas. TIFFANY ELECTRIC CLOCKS $21.00 An Ideal Gift. CORNER THIRD AND WASHINGTON STREETS Jewelers Store Open Evening Silversmiths R00KW00D POTTERY SOLE AGENTS FOR OREGON MAIL ORDERS Given' prompt and careful attention.