Forced Recruitment Quotes
The New England and Middle Atlantic States had recruited and allowed Negroes to serve in their divisions with excellent results. These two Southern states were suffering badly as a result of the British Military dominance and atrocities. Almost all whites who were patriots were already under arms. Hence the recommendation. Despite their precarious position, the Southern States would not follow the recommendation. Many were convinced that the Blacks would never make good soldiers, and the those Southerners who disagreed were terrified that once armed, the Blacks would never submit to slavery and would support slave insurrections of the Black slaves who were not in the military.
Frank Wisner headed the recruiting effort which began with his personal friends and college chums. No one had any idea of what skills and standards were needed. Actually the WWII OSS (Office of Strategic Services) had a good track record and profiles of good agents, but Director Donovan lost out in the political infighting and was not selected to head the new CIA. Those who ran that agency did not want to do anything that looked like the old OSS so they began by reinventing the wheel.
Planting tobacco was a much more lucrative endeavour, so many of the few gunsmiths abandned that trade for tobacco farming.
