The New York herald., 1871-07-08
The West Point Academy and the Board
Of Visitors.

The question as to what ought to be done
| and what ought not to be done to make
| West Point what it ought to be has given
many people great deal of needless trouble
of late. There is no denying the fact that
| there are some defects in the system of edu-
cation and discipline of the Academy which
could by proper care and tact on the part Of
the authorities be corrected; but we are of the
opinion that the institution is still sound at the
what some aifeot to call ''social revolution. "
West Point must naturally be in some respects
an unpopular institution. The people of this
country look with little favor upon any system
which, at first blush, seems to foster an exclu-
sive aristocracy based on the military idea,
among the ignorant classes of the community,
who move In no direction but when impelled
by prejudice, there should exist constantly
growing opposition to the Military Academy.
But West Point has made brilliant record for
ITSELF and the people who support 1t are
quite willing, we believe, to put up with
its little weaknesses for the sake Of
the great good 1t has done the nation in times
past and the great good which 1t is yet capa-
BILE Of doing. Still there is very decided
opposition, even among old army officers, as
to The way the Academy should be conducted
and its discipline maintained. The Board Of
Visitors, who did so much prowling about the
post last month, we know were fully alive
to the necessities of the hour, and they, too,
have had their fling and say about how
this, that and the other thing should be cor
rected, modified or abolished altogether, and
tered all over the country for the edifcation
of the general public. Now, we happen to
know that the reports of boards Of visitors in
former years have never amounted to much,
and while we are pleased to find that the
latc Board has been so original as to suggest
and advise changes in certain things which
they deemed not beneficial to the institu-
tion, we are hot quite ready to believe that
they have not, in their over-za aal to make a
'new departure" from the beaten paths Of
their predecessors, advised changes that ought
not to be made. Some time ago certain old
look pious and when he was at liberty to look
quite otherwise (iu the dark), how many eggs
he was entitled to on Easter Sunday and
how he should look upon the smoke
of cigar in cadets mouth as the quintes-
sence Of all that leads to ruin and loss of repu-
tation, were abrogated. Since that time cigars
have had ready sale in the corps, and yet, pre-
dctons to the contrary Notwithstanding, no
horrible murder or aught that could be con-
sidered crime has been the consequence.
This smoke business the Board of Visitors had
intended this year to smother by their report,
but they evidently for some good reason or
other changed their minds before they had
made themselves completely ridiculous.
The freedom with which the cadets are now
allowed to visit the hotels and walk about the
''plains" with their friends seems to have been
perfect nightmare to the Board. Had they
made up their minds to it, the official visitors
could have given Congress great many valu-
able suggestions, which they have not given,
and we did hope that they would have had
better sense than to advocate, as they do, a
return to the old fogy IDEAS Of twenty-five
years ago. which made West Point an actual
penitentiary for the students who had ILL
starred influence enough to get sent there.
The idea of making a solitary hermit of o
cadet has been tried too often to be tried
again. 1t is impracticable in the first place,
and even if practicable would be an absurdity
in these days of common sense, when even a
military student is supposed to be as much of
human being as the majority of men. What
the Board should have done was to have taken
into consideration the absolute wants of the
Academy solely. First and foremost they should
have recommended that the standard of adms-
sion for new cadet should be raised, for
1t Is now ridiculously low. Then the colored
cade. question might have received little
attention, for it deserves it. If they saw any
way by which recurrence of the present
troubles on this point could be done away with
in the future they should not have hesitated
to give their opinion frankly as to what was
best to be done. Congress will doubtless in
due time give the subject all tle consideration
ii deserves, particularly if it finds that the
efficiency of the corps is impaired by the new
innovation. Colored cadets have certainly
the right to 60 to West Point; but how far
the white boys can be compelled to associate
with them is question which ought to have
given the Board matter for serious thought.
It might also have made an interesting
chapter about the way politics have
been allowed to creep into the insttu-
tion. The fact Is that since the war poll
tics and the influence of politicians have
done much, very much, to injure the morale
of the cadets by their unwarranted interfer-
ence in the affairs of the Academy. Why not,
then, have suggested that the cliques who
have sought during past years to rule the
roast on the Point, to the utter exclusion Of