Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-08-14

loenL We passed our examinations and
bade goodby to those who had failed. We
were now cadets, but not in the eyes of
upper class men. To them We were merely
''plebes"
The battalion had by this time gone into
camp. We, who were too raw, as vet, to
90 regular military duty, were drilled sew
eral times day in the vicinity of the bar
racks where we slept AT meal time we
marched down to the mess hall and walked
TO our tables very shy and silent We had
to undergo constant fire of quizzing re-
marks. We had to take a daily ration of
language that anywhere else would be re-
garded as unprovoked insult.
Nor we're we any happier at the table.
We could not talk much nor were we al
lowed TO look up from the tablecloth. After
we had finished our dinner and we're wait
ing the command "rise" we were required
TO look at a potato or some other object
placed on the center of the tablecloth.
There was little pleasure in eating under
these circumstances, and all the way down
TO dinner and all the way back, and like
wise on the march to and from supper and
breakfast, the fleclosers subjected us to
q running fire of command, sarcasm and in
vectiYe.
A Sample of Brutality.
As an instance of their injustice may be
tie more striking as occurring late in the
fourth class year, long after our plebedom
is supposed to be over. This classmate of
ours, a very we'll drilled and soldierly fel-
low, had a great sore on one of his arms
from recent vaccination, so that he could
rot keep his arm Strengthened out, as is
required in ranks. A flecloser ordered
him to strai-hten it out. He told the fle-
closer he could not, and stated the reason
Thar Lot i l,lE al. IL
sergeants and corporals of the company be-
gan abusing him, yelling and shouting at
him until be was very much irritated and
excited.
Finally one of the superior cadet officers
stopped the business and threatened to re-
port the tlecioser who had begun the
trouble. But this man was not SO easily
sllenced- Fora week he and his friends the
sergeants aud lieutenants kept up a contin-
ued fire of abuse Of the unhappy "plebe''
whenever he appeared in ranks, at drill, at
church formation or at formation for meals
or parade. The ''plebe" was so ANNOYED
that he could not study, and his marks for
that week showed startling drop from his
usual high standing. This was bnt one case
OF many. There was often one man in the
corps whom these attentions forced into in
Eomina and drove out of the academy long
before the January examinations
What 10 Expect IN Camp
At length the authorities decided that we
were ready to enter camp. We had been
two weeks in barracks and had learned a
little of the drill. We were also pretty
thoroughly cowed and dreaded the sight of
an upper class man. Some of these had
been detailed as drillmasters over us and
had told us while we stood at ''plsce rest" at
drill that camp would be to us q sort of
miniature hell Nor was these expectations
altogether disappointed.
We took what little property we had-our
water buckets, mirrors, guns and belts-and
making several bundles of them set out
singly or in twos and threes for the camp.
There was number of young ladies sit
ting on the benches in front of the parade
which faces the cadet eneampment As we
crossed the path west of the tents, and came
into the body Of the camp, cadets would
rush out, make us halt and subject us to a
most searching verbal examination of the
kind we had already undergone many times
in our brief cadet experiences. These ques-
tions were all asked in loud, angry tone
that was very irritating. Very seldom are
men ever spoken to so roughly; and certain
" there is no American college where any
OF the students would dream of inflicting or
enduring this irritating and insolent style
Of address Even at West Point the printed