Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1883-01-12
WEST POINT INITIATION.
How the Green Cadet. Used 20 be Put
Through the "Piebe Camp"

An old graduate Of West Point
writes 10 the indianapolis journal
an account OF the ordeal which he had
to pass on entering the military acad-
envy. Having mat with the kindest
reception from the adjutaDt-gt neral
and other officials, he thought ms
early experiences ut the institution
I were 10 he most agreeable, and WIN
I that thought he departed from the at-
/ iutant-Veneral's Office. The writer pro-
ceeds AS reached the AREA ana
( heard n hiss from n hundred windows,
and could see the grimaces OF
Z cadets. / felt that my
( hour had come. was SHOWN
B into a room, where several cadets rose
tD receive me. As soon a. they re-
c.ived the note from the hands oi the
orderly. they became at once As iniu1-
ated Inadmen. | was told 10 stand
attention with my eyes on u postage
stamp stuck on the opposite wall OF the
room, to keep my little finger on seam
Of paniaIoons, head erect etc, etc.
They jumped about me like wlld
Apaches, aud IL ! CHANGED to turn my
head to answer one of their numerous
questions uttered with a yell, some one
would bound up in front OF me aud
order me To keep my eyes on that
postage stamp. / had never been
In such "pandemoniun" In my life.
Finally they got through with me, and
/ was sent "a halt mile away to draw my
bedding, which | carried back before
all eyes had scarcely dumped II ON
my iron bedstead in the room assigned
me. when found had roommate.
Il was Dan Floyd of Noblesyille, lndi-
ana, a brother oil Major Floyd of Fort
ner. Floyd g. Co., on Meridian street.
He * now lieutenant In the regular
army. His first query was, ~ Did they
20 Tor YOU like they did me?' Our
respective Visagcs told that we both
had been gone for.N 4 moment after
a couple OF old cadets came in, making
US stand attention. etc, and
reckon We answered ten questions
every minute. They ordered vs. down
10 tile sarea.n We went. REGULATIONS
had lust ended, and the whole corps of
cadets were there. They swarmed
about us, yelling and asking thous-
and questions. Al this time we stood
with "little fingers ON seams
/ OF paualoons. looking straight
( to the front Suddenly the iiy-
( ing mass moved bearing me along
! through hall up three flights of
( stairs 10 vacant room, where was
another "plebe' like myself who had
I reported a lcw hours earlier. They
| had ~ put on boxing gloves and begin.
+ Being som'Ywhat skilled in the art, ]
/ soon lad pny antagonist on "A bed.
/ They saiCiN. was sick, and asked me
What | PROPOSED to do for making "A
/ fellow. beast sick.u Not waiting for
/ an answer | was hurried to another
/ room, where several 'feilOw-beastsn
were being put through every move
/ ment that cadet ingenuity could devise.
/ was put on the mantel-piece, between
| others, and ordered To make "a
! speech Others stood on the tops of
wardrobes, tables, etc. Some were
made to dance and sing. No zone who
was never there could imagine the
bedlam that existed Finally. an iudi-
] ana old cadet took me to his room and
shut the door, and treated me kindly.
| Cadets from the same state always
treat each other thus. The sound of
"Old Bentz's" buglc called all hands
10 supper, where we new arrivals
were treated with courtesy. For one
hour after supper we had calls ut our
lp'lii, NifIS tiit Oits'iilS StSH'S WIZ
repeated. Two hours had answered Ia
make us sufficiently humble Our
day dreams had vanished into the
grim realities of plebe life, and we
thought of "liomc, Sweet Home, -
and wondered what ever in
ouced us To leave there.
But space will not allow TINT | should
describe further the experiences of Il
new cadet how we learned squad
drill, went into camp, and all summer
cleaned arms, carried water and
worked for old cadets. How we stood
guard the first time the night of the
fourth OF July, with dozens of old ca
diets jumping like Fiji Islanders, all
about us, trying to get our gun, or at
tempting to dump us into wheelbar-
rows and wheel us into Fort Clinton
ditch. To describe MI the experience.
of 'Plebe Camp would fill 4 book.
Suffice to say that 1t was on the whole,
n very useful discipline, not without
iis humorous aspects and valuable to
all who experienced it.