Whena new class of cadets reports at West Point, it is composed of men as diverse in appearance, in points of view, and in character as the parts of the country from which they come. But after they have been at the Academy for a couple of years a marked change occurs, and by the time they are ready to graduate they have undergone a complete metamorphosis. In some mysterious manner they seem to have been leveled to a certain standard, like some scraggly hedge that has been scrupulously trimmed by its painstaking guardian. The fat ones have lost their extra pounds; the thin ones have made good their deficit; the round-shouldered have straightened up, and the hollow-chested have filled out. Instead of a heterogeneous looking lot of men, they give the impression of having been made from the same die. And then too there is a uniformity about their point of view. Whereas at entrance their whole thought was colored by the life from which they came and by what they hoped to be, once enrolled in the Corps, they quickly and involuntarilyhave found themselves worshiping identical ideals—the ideals of Duty, Honor, and Country. They have discovered at West Point certain standards that have been approved by other men, and they have gradually adopted them as their own. But the real stamp of West Point appears in their faces. The imprint is evident wherever a group of the cadets are gathered together, but it is never so apparent as at the graduation ceremonies when the cadets individually mount the platform to receive their diplomas. Then one can see a certain look in the eye and a certain feeling of strength about the features that is the same. It is the look of men who have accomplished something and of the strength that comes from character.
What, you ask, is this leveling influence at the Academy? It comes from discipline, the discipline of the body, the discipline of the mind, and the discipline of the soul. It is the one governing factor in the success of West Point. All three kinds of it begin on the day that the cadet reports for duty, and continues without interruption during his entire course. The discipline of the body and the mind is a comparatively simple affair, especially when there is a willingness on the part of the subject, but the discipline of the soul is the influence that is hardest to make cadets appreciate. Some people shy when the word discipline is mentioned; they think that it means to break a man’s will and to destroy his individuality,but that is not so. The discipline that I speak of is a process of education whereby a man’s mental attitude is trained to a certain viewpoint; whereby his actions unconsciously respond to the correct ethical view of his duty. It is aimed to teach respect for law and order, to teach truthfulness and honesty, loyalty and obedience. It inculcates respect for superiors, if not for the man, then for the office that he holds. It teaches a soldier the sacredness of orders; it is the quality without which no army is successful.
Under this strong influence of discipline come men from all sections of our great country and from all classes of society. Viewed exteriorly they are, upon reporting, as motley a looking lot as could be imagined. An examination of their interiors would reveal natures and characters of equal variety. Some come from homes where they have received the most careful moral nurture; others from environments of vague and lax standards. Side by side with youths who are models of truth are lads with uncertain ideas of right and wrong. Among the throng are brilliant boys and stupid ones; well-educated lads and those whose advantages have been of the most limited sort; sons of rich men and boys who have known the meaning of want. From everywhere they come: from the city and from the farm; from the mountain and from the plain.
It is interesting to dwell for a moment on the following table showing the sources of the personnelof the cadet body. Herein are listed the occupations of the parents of the cadets and the number engaged in each, covering a period of fifty years.
It is to the sons of men in this list that West Point applies its discipline in order to create the type of officer that the Government desires for its Army. From them must be eliminated the unfit and the unworthy during the molding process to which they are subjected.
The immediate effect of the application of discipline to this variety of material is the creation ofan ideal democracy. All of the new arrivals are thrown indiscriminately into the melting pot, and no attention is paid to any man’s antecedents. The boys of rich and influential parents are not allowed little life-preservers of wealth, family, and position whereby they might remain on top, but they must boil away, sometimes on top, sometimes at the bottom of the pot, rubbing and bumping against boys to whom riches and influence are strangers. Whether they sink or swim, live or die, survive or perish, depends on individual effort alone. Men are esteemed at West Point for what they are and not for what they have. Each man feeling that he has as good an opportunity to succeed as the other man becomes imbued from the outset of his cadet career with the spirit of democracy that exists at the Academy.
From the moment that a cadet enters West Point, his past life, experiences, advantages, record, disappear into oblivion so far as the authorities and other cadets are concerned. No reference is ever made to any cadet’s home, to his connections, to his family, unless he introduces the subject. Once he becomes a cadet, a new clean sheet of his life is started for him, and whatever is entered thereon depends solely upon himself. Every man at West Point has the same chance—the chance of advancement based upon merit and efficiency and upon nothing else. It makes no difference to the officers in charge or to the other cadets whether a man’s family is wealthy or distinguished.As a matter of fact this information is rarely known because all of the cadets report together; they are totally unknown to those in charge so that there is no possible way to ascertain anything about the cadet’s antecedents. They lose their identity completely, and so much so that the upper-classmen take months to learn their real names, meanwhile calling them by the generic names, Ducrot, Dumbguard, and Dumbjohn.
The character of the rooms in barracks illustrates most strikingly this democratic ideal that discipline fosters. The plain and homely furnishings of each room are identical in pattern, material, and quantity, so that no cadet is housed better than his fellow. The walls are free from pictures, the windows from curtains, the floors from rugs. There are no soft easy chairs but only an old-fashioned wooden one for each man, that is as hard for the rich cadet as for the poor Mr. Ducrot. Nor are there any cliques that occupy particular rooms in the barracks. Each company has so many rooms for its members, and as far as possible the men within the company may choose their roommates. Their selection is made on mutual attraction and congeniality solely. Whenever two chaps enjoy each other’s companionship, that indefinable mingling of mute spirits, they try to room together.
And then again, the cadets are free from the distinctions and the social barriers that moneycreates. They are prohibited from receiving any money from their homes and are not allowed the handling of the pay that they receive from the Government. Instead, the authorities supply all of their wants, their food, their clothing, their books, their amusements, so that they might have no need of cash. In fact there is but one store on the reservation where they can spend money, and that is a place called “The Boodlers,” a sort of a general store at the foot of the hill near the gas tank. Here they may, if out of debt, obtain a permit for two dollars per month, and only those cadets with permits are allowed even to enter the store.
In this ideal democracy, among the influences that are considered prejudicial to good order and military discipline are drinking, gambling, and cigarette smoking. All alcoholic drinks are consequently banished from the life of the young embryo officer, for he must keep a clear brain in order to think straight and master his problems. He is permitted only the wholesome beverages of milk, tea, and coffee that are supplied in the greatest abundance. Occasionally there is a case of drinking among the cadet body, but as a vice, intoxication does not exist at the Military Academy. One has only to look at the healthy ruddy complexions of the cadets to be convinced of the truth of this statement. Any girl might envy them their skins, whose brilliancy and transparency would soon disappear if late hours and beerwere permitted. Nor is there any gambling in the Corps, unless the betting of one’s ice cream on the result of some football game be so considered. The cadets are not even allowed the use of cards or of any games of chance. They may not indulge in so harmless a pastime as bridge. Their chief solace in their free moments must be their pipes of briar, for cigarettes are frowned upon and regarded as contraband of war, liable to seizure by any Tactical officer. The weed is confiscated and the cadet receives a report. What becomes of those confiscated cigarettes has always been a matter of great speculation. Tactical officers are always under suspicion. I remember one case where a cadet was caught with three hundred cigarettes in his possession and told by his officer to turn them in at the Guardhouse. This order grieved the cadet very much because he felt that perhaps someone else would enjoy those cherished smokes. He therefore bored a hole in each one with a pin, before complying with his directions. Soon after turning in the cigarettes, he was reported for having mutilated them and was made to walk punishment tours on the Area for many days. The inference was that some disappointed Tactical officer could not make the cigarettes draw.
The ability to maintain a high state of discipline at West Point is due partially to the wisdom of placing the instruction of the cadets in the hands of officers who are themselves graduates of theAcademy. The officers have more prestige with the cadets and they understand better the preparation of these young men for their future duties than could civilian instructors. They have to a greater degree than most instructors the prestige of a physical and moral superiority over their students. They are familiar with the spirit of the institution and are always on the alert to guard against corrupt influences. They better understand how to instill the austere virtues that a soldier ought to have, and how to form a brave and virile heart in their young charges. In a measure they re-create the man and develop in him the national soul.
The attitude of the cadets themselves, however, toward their discipline is the real reason for the success of West Point’s efforts to turn out men who are high-minded and honorable. They are as zealous as the officers over them in seeing that their associates live up to certain standards. Honor is their shibboleth, and each new man upon his arrival is instructed in what is meant by Corps Honor. Upper-classmen give the plebes lectures wherein they explain the ethics that govern their body, and leave them no room for doubt regarding the penalties for an infringement of their code. From the outset of their careers cadets are taught the hatred of a lie, and are made to understand that only by the most scrupulous regard for the truth, every detail of it, can they be considered fit to hold their places as cadets and gentlemen.Any cadet who is found guilty of making a false statement regarding even the most trifling circumstance is dismissed. If he is caught in a dishonorable act, he is reported by his fellows to the authorities, or told by his classmates that his resignation would be favorably received. In order to do justice to any man accused of breaking the code, the cadets have among their body a Vigilance Committee that is composed of representatives from the three upper classes. These men investigate all questionable acts that ordinarily would not come to the eyes of the authorities, and if they are satisfied that the man is guilty they report him. For example, at the written examinations the officers never supervise the cadets as regards their moral conduct, but frequently leave the room for long periods. If any man should take advantage of these circumstances to cheat, his act, if seen by a comrade, is at once reported to either the Vigilance Committee or to the officers. It is apparent therefore that the honor of the Corps will always remain unsullied so long as it is left in the hands of the cadets themselves.
A Review for the Chief of the Staff of the Army
A Review for the Chief of the Staff of the Army
This rigid code of discipline to which the cadet is subjected for four years and the influence of the honor system in the Corps develop in him to a high degree the sentiment of duty. At West Point duty comes first. The idea is that when a cadet is given a task to perform he will approach it with a strength of purpose that never gets wearyor tired. It teaches him to make his resolve so strong that he can listen to the murmurings of the ignorant, to their sophistry, receive their insults and slanders, conscious that the ideals for which he stands will eventually triumph. It is the sentiment that will sustain him not only in time of war, for then he has the sympathy of the people, but in time of peace when the average layman who does not understand the character of his work condemns it as an activity that produces nothing.
The result of four years’ immersion in the atmosphere at West Point is the molding of the cadet’s character. When he entered the Academy he was just a boy, fresh from the hands of his parents and still malleable, but when his course has been completed under the painstaking care of his foster mother, his standards have been crystallized and he has developed into a man of courage, intellect, and honor. And when graduation day arrives, and West Point hands each man his diploma, with it she gives her stamp of approval and acknowledges her willingness to entrust to his keeping the cherished traditions of the Military Academy.
Cadetslove to lay aside the restrictions of their everyday routine life, put on their athletic uniforms and most care-free manners, and wander among the beautiful hills that are all around West Point. They like to enjoy the emotions that spring from a close communion with Nature, both in the winter, when the afternoons are short and the valleys quickly fill up with purple lights, and in the summer, when the country is extravagantly clothed in luxuriant foliage. If the day of the cadet has been warped by all sorts of petty annoyances, all that he has to do is to climb to Redoubt No. 4 or go to Fort Putnam, and feast his eyes upon a scene of unsurpassing beauty in order to have his cramped soul straightened out and to be lifted above his material surroundings. What greater pleasure does his life afford than to lie in the warm spring sunshine of Fort Putnam and drink in the panorama below? All of the cares of his daily existence drop away under the spell of a mysterious kind of an influence that fills his being and stirs his innate nobility.He is thankful that he is privileged to live in such a wonderful and beautiful place. Its effect is like that of some drug that soothes and calms, that gives him a kindly feeling toward humanity, and that makes him glad to be alive. On all sides he is affected by Nature who has done her best to develop all of his spirituality and to awaken his finer sensibilities. Wherever he wanders or wherever the eye roves, there is a scene to admire, almost reverentially. No less appealing than the hills is the river with its many moods.
And there are the buildings whose beauty likewise exerts a subtle spiritual influence and acts as a stimulant to the development of the cadet’s æsthetic tastes. His Barracks, his Recitation Halls, his Riding Academy, his Gymnasium, his Mess Hall, and especially his Chapel, built as they all are from the natural rock of West Point’s hills, seem to grow right out of their surroundings as if God planted them there as a part of His natural design. Their presence is ever a reminder to the cadet that he has consecrated his life to an ideal, for on their exteriors are carved in conspicuous places the shields of his Alma Mater and of his country, bearing their motto of duty and honor. The walls of the interiors are hung with the portraits of famous sons of the Academy, whose devotion to their country and to an ideal serves as an inspiration to the cadet and makes him sensible to the value of moral qualities.
Hovering over both the grounds and the buildingsis the influence of the flag. As a cadet sees it floating from its tall white staff, somehow it has come to have a different meaning from the days when he was a care-free civilian. It seems to him to possess a personality of which he never before was aware. He feels for it a real reverence, because he is conscious of being in the presence of something big, as if beholding the whole power of a nation. He sees in it the emblem of the country’s sovereignty and the symbol to which he has pledged his life’s service. Mingled with his feeling of reverence is his personal affection. Day after day he has watched it silhouetted against the sky and has felt the thrill of patriotism, when it was being lowered at retreat to the accompaniment ofThe Star Spangled Banner.
It is not to the beauty of Nature and to the flag alone that the cadet must turn for his spiritual refreshment. The Chaplain, a man with a fine grip upon the Corps, gathers together in classes those cadets who desire to come, and explains to them the word of God. His Bible classes today are a continuation of the famous classes that were held at West Point for so many years by Miss Anna Warner. During the summer encampment, she taught her boys in the old chapel after the morning services, where for one hour the cadets received from her sainted lips an interpretation of the Scriptures, and were elevated by contact with her noble character. I can see her before me now, her quaint silk dress, her small delicatebody, her ethereal face framed in the neatest and whitest of curls that peeped from out of her charming poke bonnet. Her whole presence radiated goodness and spirituality. Prior to the dismissal of the class she would regularly present to each cadet a fragrant little bouquet of flowers that she had that morning gathered from her modest garden, and arranged into the daintiest of nosegays. These few flowers were simple, like the donor, but they brought into the life of the recipient a spiritual perfume that awakened his memories and took him back home to rose-scented gardens and neat graveled paths where another sainted woman was praying for the welfare of his soul. So he took the little nosegay back to camp with him and put it carefully in his tumblerful of water alongside of his tent, as a reminder of what he should be, and as a check on ignoble impulses. Here and there in his own company streets, he would see his comrades’ bouquets, little dashes of color, the red of the petunia, the blue of the cornflower, the yellow of the marigold, and as they caught his eye they seemed to be a part of Miss Warner still exerting her inspiring influence.
It is regrettable that the cadets of the future will never have the good fortune to know her, for last year (1916) she passed to her reward after ninety years in the service of God. Although it is rare that anyone outside the Academy is buried in the cemetery at West Point, her body was laid to rest there, near the bluff that overlooks the Hudsonand in sight of her home on Constitution Island across the river, that a short time before her death she generously gave to the Government. To the Corps of Cadets that she loved, she willed a magnificent original portrait of Washington by Gilbert Stuart, that now hangs in the library.
Her Bible class still goes on. Every Sunday when the weather is fair the Chaplain takes the cadets over to Constitution Island, where, under the trees that Miss Warner loved so well, he continues her work. If Miss Warner sees her “boys” studying the word of God in the shadow of the old Revolutionary House, hallowed by her presence, what pleasure she must feel!
If, however, neither the beauties of Nature nor the interest of the Bible class appeal to the cadet, he cannot help having his spiritual self stirred by the impressive service at the Cadet Chapel. All cadets are required to attend divine service. The large majority go to the Cadet Chapel because it is for all denominations, the building never having been consecrated to any particular faith, but about ten per cent. of the cadets attend service at the Catholic Chapel.
The service at the Cadet Chapel is so impressive and interesting that the majority of the cadets look forward with pleasure to Sunday morning. I suppose that all former cadets will smile upon reading this statement, when they remember the reluctance with which they donned their dress coats and belts for the weekly service, at whichthey had difficulty in keeping awake while the lessons and sermon were being read. But times have changed since then, due principally to the atmosphere of the new Chapel and the music of its splendid organ. Sir Roger de Coverly would rejoice to behold so model a congregation and to hear such excellent singing.
The interior of the Chapel is worthy of its beautiful service. “Storied windows richly dight” rise majestically to the high Gothic roof and throw upon the gray walls a myriad of delicate lights, pale blues and pinks, saffrons, and deep purples. Two parallel rows of silk flags, the scarlet of the artillery, the somber blue of the infantry, and the gold of the cavalry, hang from the long covered galleries on either side of the nave. The deep rich shades of the magnificent memorial window shroud the chancel in a “dim religious light.” Nor is the service lacking in military pomp. Company after company of gray-clad cadets, their brass buttons shining, file briskly into the Chapel. The tramping of hundreds of pairs of feet up the aisle and the rattling of their buttons against the pews as they take their seats reverberate through the vast hall. The officers, in their uniforms, and their families assemble in the seats along the sides.
The first note from the organ announces the commencement of the service. The choir of over a hundred voices, singing the processional hymn, walk two by two in slow and solemn order up theaisle to their places in the stalls. A wave of music sweeps through the church as the procession moves forward. Last of all comes the Chaplain, immaculate in fresh linen surplice, and conspicuous by his distinguished bearing.
The service proceeds. The Chaplain advances to the reading desk and reads the lessons for the day. Inspiring hymns are then sung, followed by an eloquent sermon upon subjects that touch the daily lives of the cadets. Once again the celebrated organ peals forth, and during the offertory casts with its music a spell over the devout congregation. Two stalwart cadet officers then march quickly up the aisle to the chancel where awaits the Chaplain to receive the offerings. The organ’s music fills the church anew and the hall resounds to hundreds of strong voices singing “Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,” followed immediately by the patriotic hymn,
My Country ’tis of thee,Sweet Land of Liberty,Of thee I sing—Land where our Fathers died,Land of the Pilgrims’ pride,From every mountain sideLet Freedom ring!
My Country ’tis of thee,Sweet Land of Liberty,Of thee I sing—Land where our Fathers died,Land of the Pilgrims’ pride,From every mountain sideLet Freedom ring!
The Chaplain standing upon the steps of the altar pronounces the solemn benediction, which is scarcely concluded when the choir begins to sing the “Amen” to the accompaniment of HolyGrail motif fromParsifal. Faintly at first the singing arises from the stalls, then stronger and stronger, then diminishing in volume until it dies away with a final “Amen.”
Besides the service at the Chapel there is another service held on Sundays. It is the Y. M. C. A., a purely religious body among the cadets and not as in the cities a sort of club house where a swimming pool, assembly rooms, and gymnasium are the main attractions. These advantages are already a part of West Point’s equipment. The Y. M. C. A. at the Academy meets every Sunday evening after supper in a hall over one of the sally-ports, and here after a few prayers, a speaker makes a short address. On week days the hall is frequented by cadets only to read the papers or to play the victrola, and in Lent the Chaplain holds afternoon services. Formerly the Chaplain held these prayers immediately after breakfast, but once a cadet captain, wishing to remind the cadets that the services would take place immediately after the dismissal of the Battalion, mixed up his verbs and announced very emphatically “cadets arecautionedabout the ten-minute service in the Y. M. C. A.”! The Sunday service, however, is the reason for the existence of the organization. The prayers are not long and the addresses sometimes most interesting, especially when they relate to the work that the cadet will have to do as an officer. The meetings are usually terminated when the bugler blows the evening call to quartersin the sally-port under the hall. Of all the sounds at West Point, Sunday evening “call to quarters” is the most doleful and depressing. It means that after the break of Saturday and Sunday, the cadet must once more turn to his books and dig out the problems for Monday. When he hears its melancholy, long-drawn-out notes, he has the Sunday evening feeling, which is only a degree more cheerful than the blue Monday feeling, and he reluctantly goes back to his room to begin anew the weekly cycle.
The cadet is really never quite free from the spiritual influences of the Academy. Nature, his Chapel, traditions, precept, and example so arouse and sharpen his insight into things and into himself that his day gradually assumes a new background. These are the influences that, when he is an officer, draw him back to his Alma Mater and make him speak of it always with undisguised affection.
Ona fine bright morning about the middle of June, every year, the Corps of Cadets wakes up to find that Battle Monument and vicinity have been completely transformed. The Quartermaster’s men have canopied a portion of the monument’s platform with beautiful brand-new flags, and placed under them comfortable wicker chairs for the President, the Secretary of War, the various generals, and other dignitaries who usually honor West Point with their presence on this graduation day. On the front edge of the platform is a rostrum, flag bedecked, for the speaker of the occasion, and spread over the green lawn are rows and rows of seats that await the coming of the cadets. Promptly at ten o’clock, the Corps swings across the parade ground to take its place for the final ceremonies that mark the separation of another class from its midst.
This is the day of days in the life of each man of the graduation class. His four years are at last completed and he is about to be given the greatprize for which he has so ardently striven—a commission in the Army. As he takes his seat in front of the platform, he is a little nervous in spite of the joy at having achieved his ambition. He realizes that he is about to sever the ties that have held him fast for the last four years and to bid farewell to a portion of his life that is finished. A little tug comes at his heart-strings but it quickly vanishes as he listens to the eloquent words of the chief speaker, oftentimes the President, unfolding to his receptive imagination the duties and honors that await him in his new life as an officer. And when the President reminds him of West Point, of her traditions, of the advantages that he has been lovingly given, and of what is expected of him in the Army, there comes to his eyes a moisture from pride and gratitude. Into his mind rapidly crowd a thousand and one recollections of his associations at the Academy. He knows now that he must leave the Corps behind, that he must renounce the delightful camaraderie of its members, and give up the beautiful surroundings wherein he has grown in body, mind, and soul.
It is true that he can no longer wear the “gray,” or take away with him his friends, or the buildings, but he does take away with him something that is finer than all of these. One can see it in his face and in his bearing. He goes forth, his heart armed with the triple brass of Duty, Honor, Country, and his soul filled with the Spirit of West Point. All of his nature has been elevatedand benefited by this indefinable essence. It forever connects him with hundreds of other men in all parts of our country and identifies him with an institution whose very name,West Point, no matter where seen or heard, thrills him with pleasure. This name connotes the details of the most impressionable period of his life. Even the words themselves seem to have a distinction and personality that no other words possess. They are flavored with romance and make one think of something fresh and crisp and clean, something almost hallowed. They are themselves clothed with the spirit of the place under whose influence and power he will forever remain.
He leaves the Academy to join the great fraternity of West Pointers in the Service, animated by the same spirit. With them, he is this year (1917) called upon by the President to train for war a large army of his fellow citizens, and prepare them to meet an enemy schooled in the art of war by disciplined leaders. West Point sends him forth to this task, rich in knowledge. His Alma Mater is confident that he will train these men of the new Army in the fundamentals of their profession and that he will inspire them with his ideals of courage and of honor, and imbue them with the Spirit of West Point.
Photo White StudioGraduation—President Wilson Addressing the Graduating Class“We’ll bid farewell to Cadet grey and don the Army blue”
Photo White Studio
Graduation—President Wilson Addressing the Graduating Class“We’ll bid farewell to Cadet grey and don the Army blue”
In the training of the National Army, he will have all sorts of men under his command, but the spirit of the Academy will make him patient and kind with the stupid, lend a hand to the weak, give a word of cheer to the down-hearted (therewill be plenty of them), and instill into all the ideal of duty. The kind of discipline that he himself received at West Point will be theirs. He will teach them to bear uncomplainingly their burdens, to be loyal and obedient, to care for their health, and to march and to fight with a spirit that knows not weariness or depression. Then when these men shall be sufficiently trained, he will go with them to France, in the wake of the first division of Regulars led by a gallant West Pointer, Major-General John J. Pershing. Here he will appreciate as never before the value of a great moral force like the spirit of West Point. It will aid him in overcoming the obstacles in his path and in those of his men, especially when the heroics of war and the novelty of being abroad have ceased to interest them, and they find themselves in the trenches in No Man’s Land. They will be drenched by the rain and burnt by the sun; they will have to endure the vermin, the mud, and the dust. They will be driven nearly mad by the shrieking and bursting of the shells, they will see their comrades killed and wounded, and perhaps they too will suffer the same fate, but they will not flinch; because he who leads them will have given them something of his spirit—a part of himself that West Point made. He must be the prop upon which they may lean, if need be, and his spirit the reservoir upon which they may draw for refreshment. And should he be called upon to pay the supreme sacrifice, he will leave themthe Spirit of West Point to carry them to victory, while he goes to join the ghostly assemblage of his fellow West Pointers, standing bareheaded to salute him, as he has stood many times in the presence of the living Corps.
The Corps! Bareheaded salute it,With eyes up, thanking our GodThat we of the Corps are treading,Where they of the Corps have trod—They are here in ghostly assemblage,The men of the Corps long dead,And our hearts are standing attention,While we wait for their passing tread.We, sons of today, we salute you,You sons of its earlier day,We follow, close order behind youWhere you have pointed the way;The long gray line of us stretchesThrough the years of a century told,And the last man feels to his marrowThe grip of your far-off hold.Grip hands with us now, though we see not,Grip hands with us, strengthen our hearts,As the long line stiffens and straightens,With the thrill that your presence imparts.Grip hands, though it be from the shadows,While we swear, as you did of yore,Or living or dying to honorThe Corps, and the Corps, and the Corps.
The Corps! Bareheaded salute it,With eyes up, thanking our GodThat we of the Corps are treading,Where they of the Corps have trod—They are here in ghostly assemblage,The men of the Corps long dead,And our hearts are standing attention,While we wait for their passing tread.
We, sons of today, we salute you,You sons of its earlier day,We follow, close order behind youWhere you have pointed the way;The long gray line of us stretchesThrough the years of a century told,And the last man feels to his marrowThe grip of your far-off hold.
Grip hands with us now, though we see not,Grip hands with us, strengthen our hearts,As the long line stiffens and straightens,With the thrill that your presence imparts.Grip hands, though it be from the shadows,While we swear, as you did of yore,Or living or dying to honorThe Corps, and the Corps, and the Corps.
The Act of Congress approved May 4, 1916, provides as follows:
“That the Corps of Cadets at the United States Military Academy shall hereafter consist of two for each Congressional district, two from each Territory, four from the District of Columbia, two from natives of Porto Rico, four from each State at large, and eighty from the United States at large, twenty of whom shall be selected from among the honor graduates of educational institutions having officers of the Regular Army detailed as professors of military science and tactics under existing law or any law hereafter enacted for the detail of officers of the Regular Army to such institutions, and which institutions are designated as ’honor schools’ upon the determination of their relative standing at the last preceding annual inspection regularly made by the War Department. They shall be appointed by the Presidentand shall, with the exception of the eighty appointed from the United States at large, be actual residents of the Congressional or Territorial district, or of the District of Columbia, or of the island of Porto Rico, or of the States, respectively, from which they purport to be appointed:Provided, That so much of the Act of Congress approved March fourth, nineteen hundred and fifteen (Thirty-eighth Statutes at Large, page eleven hundred and twenty-eight), as provides for the admission of a successor to any cadet who shall have finished three years of his course at the academy be, and the same is hereby, repealed:Provided further: That the appointment of each member of the present Corps of Cadets is validated and confirmed.
“Sec. 2. That the President is hereby authorized to appoint cadets to the United States Military Academy from among enlisted men in number as nearly equal as practicable of the Regular Army and the National Guard between the ages of nineteen and twenty-two years who have served as enlisted men not less than one year, to be selected under such regulations as the President may prescribe:Provided, That the total number so selected shall not exceed one hundred and eighty at any one time.
“Sec. 3. That, under such regulations as the President shall prescribe, the increase in the number of cadets provided for by this Act shall be divided into four annual increments, which shall be as nearly equal as practicable and be equitably distributed among the sources from which appointments are authorized.”
Annual Increments.—States at large, 21; Congressional districts, 92; Alaska, District of Columbia, Hawaii and Porto Rico, combined, 1 each year to the source longest without an appointment, and, when the periods are equal, the choice to be by lot; Honor Schools, 5; Regular Army, 23 in 1916, 22 in 1917, 23 in 1918, and 22 in 1919; National Guard, 22 in 1916, 23 in 1917, 22 in 1918, and 23 in 1919.
How Made.—The appointments from a Congressional district are made upon the recommendation of the Representative in Congress from that district, and those from a State at large upon the recommendations of the Senators of the State. Similarly, the appointments from a Territory are made upon the recommendation of the Delegate in Congress. The appointments fromthe District of Columbia are made upon the recommendation of the Commissioners of the District. Each person appointed must be an actual resident of the State, District, or Territory from which the appointment is made.
The appointments from the United States at large are made by the President of the United States upon his own selection. The cadets from Porto Rico, who must be natives of that island, are appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Resident Commissioner.
The appointments from among the honor graduates of educational institutions designated as “honor schools” will be made upon the recommendation of the heads of the respective schools.
The appointments from among the enlisted men of the National Guard will be made upon the recommendation of the Governors of the respective States and Territories.
The appointments from among the enlisted men of the regular army will be made upon the recommendation of the Commanding Generals of the Territorial Departments.
The Secretary of War is authorized to permit not exceeding four Filipinos, to be designated, one for each class, by the Governor General of the Philippine Islands, to receive instruction at the United States Military Academy at West Point:Provided, That the Filipinos undergoing instruction, shall receive the same pay, allowances, and emoluments as are authorized by law for cadets at the Military Academy appointed from the United States, to be paid out of the same appropriations:And provided further, That said Filipinos undergoing instruction on graduation shall be eligible only to commissions in the Philippine Scouts. And the provisions of section 1321, Revised Statutes, are modified in the case of Filipinos undergoing instruction, so as to require them to engage to serve for eight years, unless sooner discharged, in the Philippine Scouts.
Date of Appointments.—Appointments are required by law to be madeone year in advanceof the date of admission, except in cases where, by reason of death or other cause, a vacancy occurs which cannot be provided for by such appointment in advance. These vacancies are filled in time for the next examination.
Candidates.—For each vacancy from a State at large, or Congressional or Territorial district,three candidatesshould be nominated, one of the candidates to be named asprincipal, oneasfirst alternate, and one assecond alternate. The first alternate, if qualified, will be admitted in the event of failure of the principal; the second alternate, if qualified, will be admitted in the event of the failure of the principal and the first alternate.
For vacancies in the cadetships allotted to the honor graduates of the “honor schools,”one candidatemay be nominated each year before September 1st from each school. In case the total number of candidates so nominated is not equal to three times the number of vacancies, the War Department will assign additional appointments among the schools to complete this total.
For vacancies in the cadetships allotted to the enlisted men of the National Guard, the candidates will be apportioned as near as practicable among the States, Districts, and Territories according to their enlisted strength. With the exception of the candidates from the District of Columbia, they will be selected by the Governors from successful competitors in apreliminary examinationheld between January 1st and January 15th of each year, such examination to be of a scope and nature similar to the regular examination for entrance to the United States Military Academy. The candidates from the National Guard of the District of Columbia will be similarly selected by the Commanding General of that organization.
The candidates nominated for the cadetships allotted to the enlisted men of the regular army shall not exceed three times the number of existing vacancies and shall be equitably distributed among the Territorial Departments by the War Department. If the number of applications in any Department exceed the share allotted to it by the War Department, the candidates in such Department will be chosen from the successful competitors in apreliminary examinationheld between January 1st and January 15th, such examination to be of a scope and nature similar to the regular examination for entrance to the United States Military Academy.6
Each candidate designated to take the regular examination for admission to the United States Military Academy will receive from the War Department a letter of appointment, and he must appear for examination at the time and place designated therein.7
Fitness for admission will be determined as prescribed in the Regulations, United States Military Academy.
Examinations of candidates will be competitive in the following classes, and will be the regular examination for entrance to the United States Military Academy:
(1) Candidates from the United States at Large, other than honor graduates of honor schools.
(2) Candidates from the United States at Large, who are honor graduates of honor schools.
(3) Candidates from the enlisted men of the National Guard.
(4) Candidates from the enlisted men of the Regular Army.
The Filipino candidates selected for appointment, unless otherwise notified by the War Department, shall appear for mental and physical examination on the second Tuesday in January of each year before a board of Army officers to be convened at such place in the Philippine Islands as the commanding general of the Philippine Department may designate.
Admission by Examinations.—On the third Tuesday in March of each year candidates selected for appointment shall appear for mental and physical examination before boards of Army officers to be convened at such places as the War Department may designate.
Each candidate must show by examination that he is well versed in algebra, to include quadratic equations and progressions, and in plane geometry, English grammar, composition and literature, descriptive and physical geography, and general and United States history, as explained in the circular of notification.
Admission by Certificate.—The Academic Board will consider andmay acceptin lieu of the regular mental examination:
(1) A properly attested certificate (Form I) that the candidate is a regularly enrolled student in good standing without condition in a university, college, or technical school accredited by the United States Military Academy, provided that the entrance requirements of the course he is pursuing require proficiency in subjects amounting to not less than 14 units of the list given below.
If attendance at college extends over a semester, a full record of academic work at the college, giving subjects taken and gradesattained in each, must accompany the certificate; if attendance at college extends over less than a semester and the candidate was admitted to college by certificate, a certificate (Form II) from the preparatory school giving a full record of studies taken and grades attained must accompany the college certificate. If a scrutiny of the certificate submitted shows low grades, the certificate will be rejected.
A certificate indicating enrollment in or admission to an institution at any other time than that specified in the college register for regular admission or enrollment will be not accepted.
(2) A properly attested certificate (Form II) that the candidate has graduated from a preparatory school or public high school accredited by the United States Military Academy, provided that he has in his school work shown proficiency in subjects amounting to not less than 14 units of the list given below.
If a scrutiny of the certificate submitted shows evidence of low grades or of graduation at an irregular date, the certificate will be rejected.
(3) A properly attested certificate (Form III) from the College Entrance Examination Board that the candidate has shown proficiency in the examinations set by the board in subjects amounting to 14 units from the list given below. If a scrutiny of the certificate submitted shows low grades, the certificate will be rejected.
The list of subjects and the corresponding weights in units is as follows:
Every certificate must show evidence of proficiency in the following subjects.
(b) OPTIONAL.
The remaining 6½ units may be supplied from among the following subjects, and no others.
The definition of unit and of the ground covered by the designated subjects is that of the College Entrance Examination Board. Credits must correspond to the unit values of the respective subjects. Greater credit than indicated will not be allowed; less credit will be understood as evidence that the entire subject has not been completed.
Certificates should be submitted not later than February 15th. A certificate received between February 15th and the examination will receive consideration, but in view of the short time left to the Academic Board to investigate its value, no assurance will be given that such certificate can be acted on in time to exempt the candidate from the mental examination.
Candidates who submit certificates on a date which does not allow the Academic Board sufficient time to investigate its value and notify them regarding the final action thereon prior to the day set for the examination, should proceed with the regular examination.
Candidates who are informed that their certificates have been accepted must present themselves at the regular time and place as herein prescribed, for physical examination.
A certificate which is accepted as satisfactory for one examination will be regarded as satisfactory for any other examination which may be set for entrance with the same class.
Any certificate accepted for one class, and presented for a succeeding class, should be accompanied with a full statement of the candidate’s educational work in the interim, and both certificate and statement will be subject to careful scrutiny by the Academic Board. (Par. 65, Regs., U. S. M. A.)
All necessary papers,including a set of blank certificate forms, are furnished to each duly nominated candidate by The Adjutant General of the Army.
Note.—Certificates will be accepted only from candidates appointed from States at large, Congressional districts, Territories, and the District of Columbia.
Certificates may be accepted for admission of candidates from the Regular Army and National Guard in the same manner as they are accepted for candidates nominated by Congressmen, except that acceptable certificates entitle the candidate to appointment only in case the authorized number of vacancies for that year are not filled by the regular examination.
Date of Admission.—Candidates who fully conform to the requirements set forth in the preceding paragraphs, and who report in person to the Superintendent before 10:30A.M.the second day, Sunday excepted, following the date of regular graduation, shall be admitted as cadets of the United States Military Academy, and shall receive their warrants as soon as practicable.
Engagement to Serve.—Immediately after reporting to the Superintendent for admission and before receiving their warrants of appointment candidates are required to sign in the presence of the Superintendent, or of some officer deputed by him, engagements for service in the following form:
I, —— ——, of the State (or Territory) of ——, aged —— years, ——months, do hereby engage (with consent of my parent or guardian) that from the date of my admission as a cadet of the United States Military Academy I will serve in the Army of the United States for eight years unless sooner discharged by competent authority.
In the presence of —— ——.
In the case of the Filipino cadets the engagement shall be made to serve in the Philippine Scouts. (See Sec. 1321, R. S.)
Oath of Allegiance.—Each cadet shall, previous to his admission to the academy, take and subscribe an oath or affirmation in the following form:
I, —— ——, do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States and bear true allegiance to the National Government; that I will maintain and defend the sovereignty of the United States paramount to any and all allegiance, sovereignty, or fealty I may owe to any State, county, or country whatsoever, and that I will at all times obey the legal orders of my superior officers and the rules and articles governing the Armies of the United States. (Sec. 1320, R. S.)
Sworn to and subscribed at —— this — day of ——, nineteen hundred and —, before me.
Qualifications.—No candidate shall be admitted who is under 17 or over 22 years of age or less than 5 feet 4 inches in height at the age of 17, or 5 feet 5 inches in height at the age of 18 and upward, or who is deformed or afflicted with any disease or infirmity which would render him unfit for the military service or who has, at the time of presenting himself, any disorder of an infectious or immoral character. Candidates must be unmarried.
Each candidate must on reporting at West Point present a certificate showing successful vaccination within one year; or a certificate of two vaccinations made at least a month apart, within three months.
Note.—Candidates are eligible for admission from the day they are 17 until the day they become 22 years of age, on which latter day they are not eligible.
Each candidate designated as principal or alternate for appointment as cadet at the Military Academy should ascertain as soon as practicable whether or not he has any physical defect that would disqualify him for admission to the academy or any that should be corrected by treatment previous to presenting himself for examination. For this purpose he should immediately cause himself to be examined by his family physician, and, if he desires, also by an Army surgeon at the nearest military post. Such an examination should enable the candidate to decide whether to devote the time and possible expense which may benecessary for preparation for the entrance examination or to relinquish his appointment.
The presentation by a candidate of his letter of conditional appointment, or the presentation by aprospectivecandidate of a letter signed by a Member of Congress stating that the bearer is to be a candidate for cadet appointment and requesting that he be physically examined, will be sufficient authority for an Army surgeon at any military post to make the desired physical examination. Upon completion of this examination, the Army surgeon will inform the candidate of the result, and, in case a disability be found, whether such disability is believed to be permanent and disqualifying for military service or whether it is believed to be of a temporary or curable nature. The examination is to be regarded as preliminary only, and in no manner to affect the decision of the regular medical examining board.
The physical examination is conducted under the following instructions prepared by the Surgeon General of the Army: Candidates who, upon reporting, present evidence that they have been excused from the mental examination under the provisions of the certificate privilege, or as the result of having qualified mentally at a previous examination, are usually examined physically as soon as possible after reporting and are not required to wait until the schedule of mental examinations has been completed. The physical examination of all candidates taking the mental examination begins on the fourth day and is continued daily until completed.
Hearing must be normal in both ears.
Vision as determined by the official test types must not fall below 20/40 in either eye. If below 20/20, it must be correctable to 20/20 by proper glasses.
In the record of all examinations the acuity of vision without glasses, and also with glasses when the acuity is less than 20/20, will be given for each eye separately; in the latter case the correction will also be noted.
Hyperopia with vision less than 20/20 and myopia or astigmatism,either hyperopic or myopic, with vision less than 20/40, are causes for rejection.
Squint uncorrectable by glasses (not prisms) is a cause for rejection.
Color blindness, red, green, or violet, is cause for rejection.
The foregoing requirements apply to eyes from disease, either acute or chronic. All lesions of the fundus, except those due to simple myopia, lesions not progressive in character, whether old or of recent origin, are causes for rejection.
A certificate from a competent oculist may be accepted at the option of the examining board, as evidence of freedom from lesions of the fundus.
Teeth.—A candidate must have at least 12 of the 20 double teeth in serviceable condition, so placed that 6 of them are “opposed” by 6 others. Where not all of the third molars have erupted and there are none opposed, 8 serviceable double teeth must be present, so placed that 4 are opposed by 4 others. Where there are two opposed third molars, the requirements will be at least 6 double teeth opposed by 6 others. Well crowned teeth are considered as good teeth. Teeth containing large cavities or exposed nerves are considered as cause for rejection, but a candidate with unsound teeth may be accepted subject to the condition of having cavities filled and teeth put in satisfactory shape before the date set for his entrance to West Point.
The following are causes of disqualification if found to exist to such a degree as would immediately or at no very distant period impair the efficiency of the candidate:
1. Feeble constitution; unsound health from whatever cause; indications of former disease, glandular swellings, or other symptoms of scrofula.2. Chronic cutaneous affections, especially of the scalp.3. Severe injuries of the bones of the head; convulsions.4. Impaired vision, from whatever cause; inflammatory affections of the eyelids; immobility or irregularity of the iris; fistula lachrymalis, etc.5. Deafness; copious discharge from the ears.6. Impediment of speech.7. Want of due capacity of the chest, and any other indication of a liability to a pulmonic disease.8. Impaired or inadequate efficiency of one or both of the superior extremities on account of fractures, especially of the clavicle, contraction of a joint, deformity, etc.9. An unusual excurvature or incurvature of the spine.10. Hernia.11. A varicose state of the veins of the scrotum or spermatic cord (when large), hydrocele, hemorrhoids, fistulas.12. Impaired or inadequate efficiency of one or both of the inferior extremities on account of varicose veins, fractures, malformation (flat feet, etc.), lameness, contraction, unequal length, bunions, overlying or supernumerary toes, etc.13. Ulcers or unsound cicatrices of ulcers likely to break out afresh.
1. Feeble constitution; unsound health from whatever cause; indications of former disease, glandular swellings, or other symptoms of scrofula.
2. Chronic cutaneous affections, especially of the scalp.
3. Severe injuries of the bones of the head; convulsions.
4. Impaired vision, from whatever cause; inflammatory affections of the eyelids; immobility or irregularity of the iris; fistula lachrymalis, etc.
5. Deafness; copious discharge from the ears.
6. Impediment of speech.
7. Want of due capacity of the chest, and any other indication of a liability to a pulmonic disease.
8. Impaired or inadequate efficiency of one or both of the superior extremities on account of fractures, especially of the clavicle, contraction of a joint, deformity, etc.
9. An unusual excurvature or incurvature of the spine.
10. Hernia.
11. A varicose state of the veins of the scrotum or spermatic cord (when large), hydrocele, hemorrhoids, fistulas.
12. Impaired or inadequate efficiency of one or both of the inferior extremities on account of varicose veins, fractures, malformation (flat feet, etc.), lameness, contraction, unequal length, bunions, overlying or supernumerary toes, etc.
13. Ulcers or unsound cicatrices of ulcers likely to break out afresh.
The requirements of the following tables of physical proportions areminimum for growing youthsand are for the guidance of medical officers in connection with the other data of the examination, a consideration of all of which should determine the candidate’s physical eligibility. Mere fulfilment of the requirements of the standard tables does not determine eligibility, while on the other hand no departure below the standard should be allowed unless upon the unanimous recommendation of the medical examining board for excellent reasons clearly stated in each case.
The physical requirements should be those of the age at the birthday nearest the time of the examination. Fractions greater than one-half inch will be considered as an additional inch of height, but candidates 17 years old must be at least 64 inches, and those 18 years and upward at least 65 inches in height.