“All officers or persons in the military or naval service of the United States are prohibited from employing any of the forces under their respective commands for the purpose of returning fugitives from service or labor, who may have escaped from any persons to whom such service or labor is claimed to be due, and any officer who shall be found guilty by a court-martial of violating this article shall be dismissed from the service.”
Which sentence below comes closest to capturing the meaning of this passage?
All members of the military have a duty to return freed slaves to their former owners. Any member of the military caught returning slaves to former owners will be dismissed. Former owners attempting to stop freed slaves from leaving will be court-martialed. Freed slaves attempting to join the military will be immediately court-martialed.