Ungentlemanly Acts: The Army's Notorious Incest Trial

In "Ungentlemanly Acts", author Louise Brooks gives us a history lesson in military law and in the sexual attitudes of polite society in 19th century America. "The army's notorious incest trial", in which Captain Andrew Geddes was accused of committing "conduct unbecoming an officer and a gentleman", took place in 1879 and concerned events that took place at Fort Stockton, in the no-man's land of the West Texas frontier. Captain Geddes was court-martialed because he had accused a fellow officer, Lieutenant Louis Orleman, of conducting an incestuous relationship with his teenaged daughter, Lillie Orleman. The courtroom drama lasted three months, during which the despotic nature of military law and the obsessive propriety of Victorian society combined to produce what now looks like a bizarre spectacle, indeed, as well as a probable miscarriage of justice. And the scandal didn't end there. Eventually, even General of the Army William Sherman involved himself in the saga. Louise Brooks places Geddes' trial in its social and historical context by delving into the culture's attitudes towards incest, as evidenced at the time by the Lord Byron-Harriet Beecher Stowe scandal, virginity, and the military's view of justice and proper conduct. It is interesting to see how 19th century social mores, with all of their contradictions and peculiarities, were so graphically reflected in this one scandalous court-martial. Notorious court cases frequently make excellent eyes through which to see a culture's less public character. I have to disagree with the author's assertion in the book's epilogue that incest continues to be a taboo subject. I think it could be described as a genuine preoccupation in some circles these days. And I question the author's repeated claim that incest was thought to be so improbable and unnatural that the possibility of its existence was emphatically denied in Victorian society. There is ample evidence to indicate this was the case among the literate middle class -at least in public. But I find it unlikely that incest was so denied among the vast poor and rural populations who did, after all, share beds with their siblings well into their teens and, in many cases, lived on isolated homesteads or farms where they had limited contact with people outside of their own families. My understanding of rural and peasant culture leads me to believe that incest was tacitly acknowledged by most of America while it was being categorically repudiated by polite society. Regardless, Captain Andrew Geddes' court-martial is a revealing slice of American history, and "Ungentlemanly Acts" does a good job of explaining the context and implications of the case. Recommended to anyone interested in the social history of the United States or in the history of military law and codes of conduct.

Louise Barnett's Ungentlemanly Acts looks at the rather odd court martial of Andrew Geddes who goes on trial after accusing another officer of committing incest with his daughter. The author uses this case to examine nineteenth-century attitudes towards incest, including a look at the Byron - Harriet Beecher Stowe incident. There is also much discussion of life on the frontier, the court martial system in the army at the time, and an interesting discourse concerning the concept of viriginity. The book has many interesting detours such as these and they are necessary as the main story is not always as interesting or as siginificant to sustain a full book. All of the various pieces do come together to create a pleasant read.

A well-written story of Army life in the second half of the 19th century, the American frontier, old-style military justice and some other interesting subjects. I would unhesitatingly give this book five stars if it were not for the fact that the author has a feminist ax to grind and keeps grinding it in the most inappropriate places -- it's a bit like going to an opera and every five minutes the leading tenor feels compelled to wave Chairman Mao's Little Red Book about and quote from it. I suppose she will have to be forgiven as she is an academic at an East coast university and would probably be disbarred if she did not bung this feminist rhetoric into everything she writes. Her ax is only a mediom-sized one and she does keep it mostly under control, but it does detract from the rest of the book. Without this stuff this would be a five star book. I recommend you buy it, read it and ignore the PC stuff that crops up every fifth page or so. Hope she will write some more history books and tone down the rhet.

This is a fascinating account of the court marshal of Army Captain Andrew J. Geddes for 'Conduct Unbecoming and Officer'. He accused another officer, Lieutenant Louis H. Orleman, of incest with his daughter Lillie. Orleman preempted the charges of Geddes by filing his own complaint that Geddes tried to seduce and abduct his daughter. The act of incest was so unspeakable at the time (1879), the Army chose to court marshal Geddes instead Orleman for 'Conduct Unbecoming' with specifications 'not fit to be specified'. The Army was out to get Geddes (for other improprieties) and the trial was a sham with Geddes found guilty and cashiered from the Army. He was reinstated due to the diligence of Inspector General Dunn, but higher powers, General Sherman in particular, wanted Geddes out of the Army as unfit. Geddes was tried a few years later on trumped up charges of being drunk on duty and again cashiered.The main events of this book took place at Fort Stockton in Western Texas. The author masterfully paints a picture of the bleak frontier and the problems inherent with isolated outposts: drunkenness, adultery, seduction, gossip, and petty feuds that blossomed into hatred. The book also contains a wealth of interesting information about the Army legal system, the moral mindset of the time, Army units and personnel, literature of the time, and many other facts and observations. I read this book cover-to-cover and highly recommend it to any fan of American History.