bravery--leadership, are
all unquestioned and permanently established.

"The future lies before us. What will our country do? Surely it
will not retire all of these fine young colored officers, who
responded so nobly to the call of their country, to private life
and continue the discrimination which in the past deprived them of
admission to West Point and of commissions in the regular army. I
do not believe it. I believe that the sense of justice and fair
play is deeply rooted in the American people. I believe that our
four colored regiments in the regular army will in the future be
officered by colored men. That the doors of West Point will be
opened in accordance with justice and fair play to a proper number
and proportion of colored Cadets. But this is not all nor is it
enough.

"We believe that at present the nation owes the Colored people
certain legislation and that the nation being solvent and loud in
its protestations of kindness toward the Colored people for their
loyal and patriotic participation in the war both at home and on
the battlefield, should now pay its debt toward the colored people
and reward them to the extent that the best of the nearly one
thousand officers now serving in the National Army be transferred
to the Regular army, and assigned to duty in the four Colored
regiments, and that these be from colonel down to second
lieutenants. We also believe that in the future West Point and
Annapolis should 'lend a little colour' to their graduation
exercises in the presence of Colored graduates.

"No doubt legislation will be needed to this end. At present
commissions are granted first to the graduates of West Point, and
even a fair and more liberal policy in this regard in the future
will not meet present needs. What is needed now is legislation
providing for the transfer (or at least the opportunity to enter)
into the regular army of a sufficient number of our Colored
Officers now with commissions to officer in toto the four Colored
regiments we now have.

"Commissions are also granted at present to a limited number of
enlisted men who are recommended for these examinations, and who
succeed in passing. The candidates must be under 27 years of age
and unmarried. They must have had a certain amount of secondary