The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1900-12-27
PRIer oNn CENT.
TIE HlzING OF BRH7H
Testimony Before the Board of En-
quiry at West Point
The late Cadet said to Have Beers
Subjected Only to the Ordinary
ortlcaIs-CIaImed to Be Suffering
Prom Sickness Numerons Fist
Fights at the Military Aeadenays

WEST POINT, N Y, Dec. z7@Tae
court ef enquiry which is investigating the
bazing of the late Cadet Oscar L Beoz, re-
convened this morning al s:45 O'clock.
First CIasEman Willis c. Peace. os North
Carolina. was the first witness. General
clous questioned him. Peace remembered
one occasion when Cadet Breth vas hazed.
II was during the encampment OF 1897. and
occurred in the tent Of e1-Cadet Bender.
81 don't remember the details Of tne
hazing; think il must have been just the
usual forms, sir" the witness said
WHO were doing the hazingg he Bas
asked.
y don't remember anyone but myself
and ex-Cadet Bender replied Peace.
The witness described the usual forms
Of hazing IS holding out Indian clubs
and going through all the rigmaT-le OF
feats that the cadets have told et in the
last seven days. Breth. the witness said,
was a very awkward man. one Of the most
awkward IN the camp. He seemed TO be
rather nervous and subject to ratties."
Il received letter from him" Peace
testified, some six months after he left
camp ia which he tried 20 explain his
difficulty N doing things while here. He
said that he #es suffering from some
form OF sickness al the time he was IL
camp. He had hoped that he would get
better In The barracks bct did not
What was the nature OF the sickness?'s
asked General Clous.
It don't remember. sir" said the wit
ness.
Did he ever say anything about the
furniture IN his room being piled up be-
fore the inspector arriyedz Ever hear
OF bis being put IN strait Jacket
Ever hear OF MS being required to eat
soap2" asked General Cious- No, sir.
replied the cadet
Peace did not know much about Booz.
Testifyfng with regard to fist fights, Peace
said that he had kept a record during
the first two years that he was here.
There were twelve in his ''pIebe' year,
he said. and nine IL the next
Colonel Helm, commandant of cadets.
came into the court room and took 2 seat
while Cadet Peace was testifying- The
witness proceeded to GorToborate previous
testimony regarding the weil-deE1ed code
by which the cadets regulated pagilism
outside of drilling and hazing. Peace
said the upper elassmea did not have
much to do with fourth cIassmen- Fo nth
ciassrnen might have feeling of dislike
or hatred toward upper elassmen, the
witness admitted, but the feeling passed
away, he thought, when the plebe year
ended
In answer to question by General
Bates, Peace said that ne had Asver seen
any brutality he did not consider = bra-
tai TO exercise cadet to the limit OF en-
durance. Then you don't think that being
required TO exercise yourself physically
against your viii almost to the point Of
exhaustion is brutaI?" asked General
Bates
4 went through It myself, sir. ! don't
think it brutal. II is uncomfortable, but
I never knew it to result in permanent
INJURY said the witness.
Peace admitted that he eoCld not cell at
just what point this kind o. entertain
ment became a brutal exhibition ex-
cept that there are indications when a
cadet has enough Asked whether all
cadets exercise good judgment in hazing,
the witness replied:
There are some, sir, who seem to be
without the faculty of Judging
Isn't it a fact that the most Of the
hazing is done by one set Of men II every
class 20
There are some who haze more than
Others.
seDid you ever hear of this or a similar
expression in the cadet corps: III lay
IL in for you and get even with you for
that7' Peace answered: Something
like that is sometimes said
would 9 cadet thus threatened be taken
apart and, almost IN saeret, exercised al
most to exhaustion ?"
Undoubtedly instances might have oc-
CURED ia the history OF the Academy. I
em sure there have been none recently.
There has been no hazing since the corps
agreement q year ago"
Where do you think brutality begins2''
asked General Brooke.
.Hazing which caused injury or so az
fected a cadet that he had 10 be helped by
his friends. have heard OF such cases, but
only rumors