History of the Negro Race in America from 1619 to 1880. Vol. 2: Negroes as Slaves, as Soldiers, and as CitizensWilliams, George Washington
History
History of the Negro Race in America from 1619 to 1880. Vol. 2: Negroes as Slaves, as Soldiers, and as Citizens
Williams, George Washington
African Americans -- History; Liberia; Sierra Leone
"Since, however, the contrary of all this is true, it may be
presumed by a confiding public which does not read it that '_The
World_' has honestly acknowledged the injustice of its slanders.
It is unpleasant to disabuse a confiding public on any subject,
but we who are sometimes obliged to look at that paper as a
professional duty, regret to say that we have not discovered a
single evidence of its repentance. The facts are, however, that
Colonel Higginson's men landed quietly at Jacksonville, marched
through its streets in perfect order, committed no outrages or
excesses of any kind, and by the testimony of all witnesses
conducted themselves with a military decorum and perfect
discipline which is far from common among white regiments in
similar circumstances. They have gone before this time still
further into the interior, and will doubtless do good service in
a direction where their presence has been least expected by the
Rebels. In the only instance in which the white chivalry ventured
to make a stand against them, the whites were defeated and driven
off the field by the Blacks.
"The truth is that the fitness of negroes to be soldiers has long
since, in this country and elsewhere, been amply demonstrated,
and the success of Col. Higginson's Black Troops is no matter of
surprise to any person tolerably well informed about the history
of the race. If it were in any sense an experiment, the only
thing to be tested was the obstinacy of our Saxon prejudice which
denied the possibility of success, and did what it could to
prevent it. But even Saxon prejudice must shortly yield to the
logic of facts."
In the face of the fact that the United States Government had employed
Negroes as soldiers to fight the battles of the Union, there were men
of intelligence who held that it was all wrong in fact, in policy, and
in point of law. And this opinion attained such proportions that the
Secretary of War felt called upon to request the opinion of Judge
Advocate Holt. It is given here.
ENLISTMENT OF SLAVES.
In a letter to Edwin M. Stanton, Secretary of War, dated Aug. 20,
1863, Judge Advocate Holt said: "The right of the Government to
employ for the suppression of the rebellion persons of African
Descent held to service or labor under the local law, rests
firmly on two grounds:
"First, as property. Both our organic law and the usages of our
institutions under it recognize fully the authority of the
Government to seize and apply to public use private property, on
making compensation therefor. What the use may be to which it is
to be applied does not enter into the question of the right to
make the seizure, which is untrammelled in its exercise, save by
the single condition mentioned.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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