The Kansas City sun. (Kansas City, Mo.) 1908-1924, 1919-05-24
cOLoRED OFFICERS AND THE
REGULAR ARMY.
Chief Of staff ReVokes Finding Of
Army Board Which Declared Neg
rces Disqualified for Officers and
Leaders Of Men-Record in all

rceS OiSquaIitled TOR OFFICERS
Leaders of Men-Record in all
Wars Show Race is not De-
ficient in Moral Fiber.
Special to The Kansas City Sun.
Washington, D. c. May Letters
have been forwarded to the War De.
partment by Bishop Charles Spencer
Smith as chairman of the Commission
on After-War Problems, of the A. NJ.
(, Church, w. T. Andrews, editor of
The Daily Herald, Baltimore, Mr., and
others of like prominence in public af.
fairs, calling attention to an endorse
ment which had been placed on the
application filed by a colored officer
who had been overseas, relative to his
fitness for admission into the Regular
Army. The endorsement, or recon.
mendatiOn. signed by a Board of Off
GERS, appointed to investigate the quail.
fications Of candidates for assignments
in the reorganized United States Army,
after summing up all citations and OBJ.
servatiOns, was as follows:
THE Board recommends that he be
not examined. Reason: unqualified by
reason Of the qualities inherent in the
Negro race: an opinion of the Board.
based on the testimony of five white
officers serving with the 36Sth Infan-
try. Negroes are deficient in moral
fiber. rendering them unfit as officers
and leaders of men"
War Record of Negroes Refutes Alb
surd Finding Of Army Board.
The writer's of the communications
to the Wal Department. in addition to
condemning the injustice to the officer
involved made it quite plain that the
colored people of the country resent
most strenuOusly the reflection upon
the race as a whole in the bald deClar-
alton that Negroes are deficient in
moral fiber, ETC." and regard it as an
unsustained indictment of the entire
race as a group Of incompetents and
failures. They declared the charge to
be absolutely d~escredited by the writ.
ten record of the brilliant achieve
ments of colored officers under fire in
the firceest offensives of the a and
by the published testimony of General
Pershing, of Colonel Hayward. and Of
a score of French officers of highest
military standing, all of whom had the
advantage OF knowing exactly how the
colored commanders bore themselves
at crucial periods on the field of battle.
The Objectionable memorandum is
refuted, the writer's assert, by the un-
broken chain of v~alorous deeds and
heroism Of Negroes in all the wars OF
the Republic from Bunker Hill to Car.
rial and in France from Verdun to
the siege of Metz.
No Exclusion of any officer on Ac.
count of Color.
DR.. Emmitt J. Scott. Special Assist,
ant to the Secretary Of War, taking
up the matter directly with the War
Department, made this reply, upon the
authority of the officials having charge
Of the question at issue, in a letter ad-
dressed to Editor Andrews, of the Bal.
timore Herald:
With reference to the marked copy
OF The Daily Herald, containing an edi.
torial, quoting an endorsement placed
upon the discharge OF a colored lieu.
tenant who applied for retention in the
service, l beg to say that this whole
matter has been before the War De.
partment, and I am blessed to inform
you that the Chef of Staff has person.
ally directed the Commanding General
at Camp Meade to revoke the findino;
ne has also elected that in the matter
Of colored officers being commissioned
in the army, there is to be no excIu-
sion on account Of color.
Il am sure you will be pleased that
this action has been taken by the War
Department, and l personally shae
with you and the entie ace the salts.
faction Of feeling that the finding
quoted by you, and which was placed
upon the record of the colored officer.
Will no appear on his permanent rec.
ord as filed in the War Department"
The answer of DR.. Scott to the edi,
tor OF the Baltimore Herald will serve
as a reply to the many inquirers who
have shown an anxiety to know the
status OF colored officers who desire
to be retained for service in the Reg