Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1865-09-28
severe Sentence and $ertou.
lnQuiTN.


Captain z r Scranton, Of the Ons Hundred
and Taents -e ghth coloTed troops. stationed at
Beaufort, 5. G., has been tried, convicted, and
sentenced By court martial to be dismissed the
service for cohabitipg With ID camp. and after
ward marrying, colored woman Of bad repata-
tion.=-The sentence has been approved bv Gen
Gilmore, commanding the Department. in
general order.
We copy this item OF intelligence. which sc
6nd making the newspaper circuit, with REV
to ask for Information. We suppose that this
Captain +. / Scranton is a white man. from The
fact that, although the black man, ia authorita
tive contemplation. is 10 all respects the equal of
the white, very few of the former color. we be-
leve, have been intrnstcd with military com
missions. IT, as i has been insisted the ANAL
gamstion OF the two races On this continent is a
thing TO be desired; and if, ns We have been in
formed, it is 50 recognized by the leaders in our
social progress, we fail to understand why a
gentleman who enllsts as pioneer in the work
should therefor be subjected to a punishment.
severe in itself and OF kind cslcul ated TO place
him in an uufasofabe light before the world
Thst this act is TO be taken as evidence that the
miscegenstioa branch of our ciyzisg process
has been abandoned. we can hardly believe; and
yet, al the frat glance, IL can be accounted for
upon no other presumption
The statement seems tn leave il in doubt
. neither the ofiense for which Captain Scranton
wss cAshered was cohabitng with coored
woman doing il in the camp, tor marrying her
aiterward, or because before marriage she bad
bad reputation. IL would give us great pleasure
To be informed upon this point by the hand OF
some of our loyal cotsmpo ar es: also, where arc
10 be found those articles OF war which subject
Captains OF negro troops 10 court martial for
either of these recrestons. and TO the loss OF
their commissions on conviction Unless we are
to turn our backs upon our high anticipauons OF
the Improvement OF our race by the infusion into
il OF a superior moral and intellectual element,
we certainly cannot prohibit the use OF means ap-
propriate to that purpose; and if Capt Scranton
Jaw it. by marriage, 10 make "an honest woman"
OF ono who was not so before, SO far from being
reduced, be should have been promoted for his
patriotic benevolence And, indeed, now that
The active work OF the war is over, We hardly
know Of any service 20 which the white officers
OF our colored troops could be more useiully
devoted than thai of giving their personal as
sistance to expedite this great national enter
prise.
If Captain Scranton married n coiored woman
il is certainly evidence of his distinguished con-
siderstion of the race to which she belongs In
the place OF being dismissed from the service, it
seems to Us that no should be cited az authority
upon point yet in dispute. and which our phi
lanthrOpe brethren are naturally anxious to for
THY To discredit him is bad policy and we
have been looking, as yet without avail for
protests against the tfestment which be has
received, aud for severe censures of the act of
General Gilmore. IN approving of the decision
under which he vas disguised. That VIC have
not seen LnY slca, is the occasion of no little
surprise on our part; aud it would give us great
pleasure TO have the whole thing fairly explained
There is. however, another view OF this mat
fcr VI ms fnr lhe adj nd
for which we might be eensured ii we kept out of
sight. Captain Scranton may be q coIored man
in which case, bic dismissal from the army for
cohabtins with aud marrying colored woman
would be entirely consistent with miscegen.tink
theories and justitiable upon strictly phiautbropic
principles IL it is desirable to tan The A American
people hemlock color. il is desirable TO DO n "a
rapidly "a possible and any colored gentleman
OF the army. who, in his matrimonial arrange
ments, places himselfin opposition {, tia nationsl
progress, dssessss-to be, at least olicsaily. die
abled.-Cin, Enquirer.