Northern Ohio journal. [volume] (Painesville, Ohio) 1872-1896, 1880-05-08
THE USE AND ABUSE OF WEST
POINT.

THE USE AND ABUSE OF WEST
POINT.
The practical result of educating ne
groes at West Point must be one of two
Jhings-either they are to receive an
education at the public expense, with
out becoming officers of the army, or
they are to take and hold commissions
in the army and to be advanced in rank
upon the same rules which govern the
promotion of white officers. If the OBJ
ject of appointing colored cadets be TO
try experiments upon the capacities of
the coiored race up to the time of pass
ing final examination at public insti-
tuition, the National Military Academy
is not the fit place for such experiments.
1t was not instituted for the purpose of
testing the capacities of different races.
1t is a military school. supported at the
public expense for the purpose of train
ing young men to become officers of the
army; and although the graduates are
not obliged to accept commissions in the
army, their liberty to decline them does
not affect the presumed purpose of the
Institution. In all legislation that has
thus far governed West Point the great
object for which the Academy has ex-
listed has always been kept in view. If
it is now to be converted into an expert
mental school for trying the compare
tive powers of different races the legis-
lature, to be consistent, should place in
it a fair proportion of all the different
races of mankind that happen to have
representatives within the limits of the
United States.
On nsthe other hand, if the people are
to continue to have their public money
appropriated to the education of off,
GERS of the army, for the purpose of
keeping that army at the highest point
of efficiency, then the practical question
arises whether we are to haye white
soldiers and white officers commanded
by negroes. Under any arrangement
of the army the great body of the rank
and file must continue to be white men ;
and unless colored soldiers are to be en-
listed and formed into regiments by
themselves the colored officers must be
placed in command over the white sol
diers. 1t will, too, be entirely imprac-
ticable to arrange double army list,
one for white officers and one for col
ored, to be ranked and promoted sepa-
rately. The negrophilist sentiment will
be sure to demand not only the same
principles of rank and promotion, but a
perfect equality of employment and
promotion between white and colored
lieutenants, captains, majors and col
onels. Are we then to have colored
officers of the army ranking and COM
manding white officers9 II we do not
mean to destroy the army we may as
well consider what this forcing of ne
groes into West Point is to lead to! So
long as there happens to be single ne
gro at the Academy who has been put
there for the purpose Of testing his ca
pacity to pass the examinations, or to
give him chance for getting an educa-
ton at the public expen Sc, or to try the
social disposition of the officers and ca
diets, the experiment may be matter of
no very great consequence, although it
does lead to troublesome internal ques-
tions of discipline. But suppose that a
half-dozen negroes should graduate and
then claim their commissions in the
army. Does any one imagine that
white officers, liable to be ranked
and commanded by negro officers would
remain in the army if they could get
out of itf Does any one imagine that
white boys of the best talents would
continue to press into the academy
The effect would certainly be a reduc-
tion of the class of white lads seeking
to enter the Academy, and this would
necessarily be followed by a reduction
of the standard of education. The evil
dence given by some of the professors
in Whittaker's case shows that they
have almost strained the rules of the
institution in his favor in order to give
him fair chance of graduating. Let
the number of negro cadets be increas-
ed to eight ten or a dozen, and the
rules will have to be relaxed in an in
creasing ratio until they will finally be
broken down. These are consequences
which will not be averted by Senator
Hoar's plan for seradieating feeling
from the minds Of the people, All the
legislation that can be put upon the
statute book will not ssefadieate from the
minds os the people'' the feeling that
there is an inherent impropriety in the
putting negroes into positions of
authority over white men; nor will the
eradication of this feeling, If it were
possible, add one iota to the capacity of
any negro in the land to keep himself
up to the standard of education which
has been always maintained at West
Point, and which cannot be reduced
without great injury to the army and
sto che public interests. If it is desira-
Bile, by sufficient number OF expert
ments to amount to any satisfactory
test, to ascertain the capacity of negroes
to compete with the white race in the
employmentssof life which demand the
higher education, West Point is not the
lhstltution which should be competed
to try those experiments. The .educa-
ton at West Point is special one for a
special purpose; and both the purpose
and the education require standard Of
capacity and qualification that cannot
be subjected to experiments in favor of
particular race without destroying the
object for which the Academy was es-
tablished. Negroes can be educated at
our colleges aud universities without
such an effect on the standard that is
maintained in them, because the educa-
tion is general and not special and is
therefore adapted to the general devel-
epment of the pupil, preparatory to his
choice of profession. 1t is far other
wise at, West Point. West Point is a
professional school and place of train
ion u,bfol, ,bor,o n II