The Newberry Herald And News

NEGRO OFFICERS IN THE ARMY.
They Must Disclaim Any Right to Social Equality with White Officers Before they Can Get their Appointments.

[Special to News and Courier.]

Washington, June 14.—The social problem has forced to the front in the matter of officering the immune regiments to be made up of negro soldiers. Under the arrangement of the war department the 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th regiments of United States volunteers, or immunes, are to be made up of negroes. To-day the first negro officer was appointed. From the first there has been a controversy as to whether the negro troops should be given negro officers, and it has been decided in some cases, at least, to give them the lieutenants. The first of these negro lieutenants was examined to-day. He is a District of Columbia negro, and in the course of the examination the question was put to him point blank whether he would expect to mess with the white officers. He declared he would not, if given distinctly to understand that the army was not to be used as a place in which to exploit his ideas of social equality if he had any. It has been determined that the captains and all the regimental officers are to be white men. It is the idea of the war department that the acquisition of tropical territory will develop the negro soldiers to the same plane as those which do valuable police duty in the colonies of Great Britain, in which the officers, company and regimental, are white men. The negro politicians are making a play to get their own officers and some Southern Governors have urged that they should have their officers. Governor Tyler, of Virginia, is one of these. He has obtained from the President the assurance that negro troops will not be brigaded with white troops, and believes that if the negro troops are brigaded together there will be no trouble in letting them have their own officers. Army officers, however, generally oppose this plan.