The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1868-03-11
The Morals Of West Point How
United States Officers are Trained.

The Morals Of West Point How
UnitedStates Officers are Trained.
/ The Chicago Tribune publishes o pri-
vate letter from o graduate OF West Point,
which Is rather severe on the morals of our
military academy. After praising it as q
school ofscience, the writer says:
At West Point Tiers is no moral inhu-
ehce. Not even the common barriers of
society are there to check and restrain the
strong tendency toward vice. Religion
there is not even name, save to be scoffed
at and derided. The natural result of all
this is immortality, vulearity, profanity and
Righteousness to a fearful degree. Much
Of this is checked by the strict confne-
ment and rigid discipline, but it burst forth
at every opportunity, and nothing but a
strong, thorough recognizing ofthe whole
course OF training can ever change the NOR
al atmosphere of West Point.
Young men go there every year with
good habits, with unsullied regulations,
and ere six months have passed they are
completely debauched- their ideas are all
changed. The principles which were as
dear to them as life are broken and forgot
ten. Morally they are shipwrecked, and
those who come after them imbibe their
ideas, and follow their bad example. In
order to make their practices more dis.
tinctly known to you, will begin With the
time the new cadet reports. Heis put un-
der the charge Of the older cadets, who, un-
der the pretense Of teaching him discipline,
treat him with the greatest brutality !; and
those whose duty it is to care for him will
assist the other cadets to heap insults and
petty indignities upon him. He is made
to repeat, from the mouths Of his tornen-
tors, the vilest and most Indecent stories
and songs stand upon a lilaptelpiece ard
address Upon some vulgar 'suhject) his an.
dience Of old cadets, until his limbs are
ready to fail Of their duty; and many other
harrassing things lsome of which it would
not be decent to write) hei made to do.
You may disk why an American youth o.
any spirit will enaure such things, and why
the officers allow it, First, when new ca.
Diet arrives he is alone, without friends, and
at once he is set upon by twenty or thirty
| old cadets, whom he hardly knows whether
he ought to obey OR not. Ifhe dares to
disobey he must fight, else the opinion o.
the corps will be that he'is d coward 1
he fights he is sure OF being beaten, for Q
strong man is always pltted against him
and it is the custom Of the corps for the
the third class to go into "training about
month before the Plebes arrive, so az
to be able to fog the new corners. Yo,
may exclaim, "What heightened honor 7
It is the honor which West Point cadets
show to new cadets.
After going into camp the new cadet, O.
Plebe," as he is called, must do the worl
of the old cadets, make beds, clean guns
run errands; light pipes, aud I'll pals .
water, which have been Upset on PURPOSE
to make work for him these and othe
things must he do; and at the same tim,
hear the most brutal language addressed t
him at all times. IF he refuses to work h
! is struck, or pail of water is thrown upol
him, and then the public opinion Of tn
corps requires him to fight, and with Sc
conds, umpire and all the equipments 0
4 the prize ring, these affairs Of honor com
| off. Even at mess this petty, tyrannica
spirit is displayed !; the /" Plebes are on
| " allowed what the older cadets do no
wish to eat themselves.
/ There are certain number of the hppe
classes of the cadets appointed officers owe
| the rest, and if they have dislike for an,
Of the fourth class e Plebes"), they shoy
their revengeful spirit by reporting then
for deeds which they have never commit
/ ted. The old cadets do not consider i
| dishonorable to treat q 9 Plebe in thi
manner. They ore dead to every idea Q
Justice, decency, or even commoa human
ify