The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-10-23
W EST POINT STAFF.


POINT STAFF.
How far do the best interests Of Wes'
Point require the spirit OF exclusive
militarism to be carried? There is tn,
bombshell that the latest report OF tn.
board Of visitors explodes under the
nose OF the secretary Of war. In the OK
%ecution OF its duties the board has
discovered what seems to it a startling
anomaly. For its continued existence
the war department is directly rsspon-
sible, and the board has no hesitation in
hosting the secretary with the petard
which the practices OF his predecessors
have put ready to its hand, With the
present method Of certain appointments
to the teaching staff the members Of the
board are far from satisfied. To take q
man from the army because Of his rank
and abilities as a soldier, and tc
make him a professor Of modern
languages at the military academy
solely on that account, is a pro-
cedure so preposterous in the eyes OF the
| visiting committee that 1t anticipates
the reception of the statement by the
public with absolute surprise. But the
establishment of the public will not neg
alive the fact. Not only has this been
the persistent practice of the depart
ment, but the board has reason to be-
lieve that a similar move is contem-
plated in the near future, and that a
good soldier will soon be converted into
an incompetent professor. Such an ap-
pointment the board cannot look upon
with complacency, and it's report
strongly urges the secretary of war to
bring the matter TO the official notice of
the president with a view to reform.
What action the secretary will take IN
the matter remains to be seen. In the
meantime, with a world of zeal and a
greats worth Of discretion, a military
man has rushed into the breach and
stands on guard in defence of the abused
department. His communication in the
Pioneer Press is not only offensive, but
absolutely puerile. The members of the
board are a set of know-nothings. They
have never had the supreme advantage
OF an education at West Point, or they
would have known enough to hold their
tongues in this matter. He himself has
been at the military academy, and while
he was there a civilian was in charge of
the department. of Spanish. The whole
proceedings Of the class were a farce.
At every opportunity cadets we're taking
advantage Of the Spanish professor.
They fooled him in every conceivable
way, and the writer is conf
dent that a civilian professor
a never command the respect and CON
fdence of the cadets, or insure that
obedience, discipline and advancement
which are the boast of the military
academy under the guidance of it's w
graduates.
There is little honor or advantage to
be gained in crossing swords with an
opponent of this stamp. His own state
ments prove and prove conclusively tnat
the Spanish professor of his cadet days
failed, not because he was a civilian. as
arrogant military friend would have
us believe, but simply because he was
thoroughly incompetent for his position.
He failed at West Point, as he would
have failed in any other educational
establishment, because he was not pos
sessed of the tact and power Of -disci-
pline that his duties demanded. Pro-
lessor and pupil may be dismissed in a
word. But, when we come to the recon-
mendation of the board, there is much
to be said in it's favor, SO much that it is
difficult to understand the existence of
the mistake which they condemn. A
teacher Of modern languages should not
only be thoroughly posted on his sub
ject. He must possess the rarer faculty
of impartlng his knowledge to others,
and it is no stretch of imagination to
suppose that that is the object of the
chair at West Point as in every other
scholastic institution. A man may be a
first-rats soldier and an excellent
student, but it does not follow in the
least that these qualifications are the
only requisites for his appointment to a
PROFESSIONAL position. Other things be-
ing equal, it is perfectly simple tt I'M
derstand that a military man is more
likely to win the sympathy and grasp
the ambitions of West Point cadets than
any civilian in the world. But when
other things are not equal, the board is
in the right in asserting that it is the
height OF a%bsurdity to appoint to a chair
OF modern languages a soldier, simply
because he is a soldier, in preference to
a thoroughly qualified civilian. Any
to the contrary is simply proof
Of a spirit of class egotism that should
have nc existence among any class or
profession Of Americans. The matter
needs reform.
RINKER COMING BACK.
The Long Missing Man Will Probably Be