The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1900-12-21
THE HAzINe OF CADETS.
army Officers Say 1t Cannot Be Bro
ken Ip.


ken Up
Testimony in the Beoz case has devei-
oped just what army officers have main
tanned prevailed at West Point and viii
probably always continue. perhaps in
more modified form, so long as there is
a Government school for educating young
men intended to serve in the army
The form of hazing prevailing at both
the Military and Naval Academy is ae-
clared by officers Of both services 10 be
of milder type than is practfced at most
of the leading colleges and boarding
schools, and has never taken the form ef
severe physical suffering or injury. While
| the Booz evidence has unlnistakabIy
shown that running or haziRg does exist
at West Point to a greater extent than
was expected to be shown by the cadets.
II does not. in the opinion of army nen.
prove that any cadet is maltreated or that
he suffers any indignities or humiliation
| by the methods now N vogue, which are
| declared to be far less severe than years
| ago
| Army officers, as rule. while deploring
/ any severe form Of hazing. admit that
| some OF the annoyance of pranks PLAYED
/ by senior cadets on juniors is of a nature
10 instil in the youth better esprit 6u
/ corps and 10 have the effect Of leEeling
ali. regardless Of social distinction. wealth
| or political influence Army men as a
rule see nothing in the form practi1ed at
! West Point of II uHmanly nature OF tend
/ ing to be in the least cruel to any cadet
A graduate of tie Academy, and an officer
who has seen long service a West Point
reflected the general sentiment of army
men today when he said:
| The testimony in the Booz case shows
! that hazing exists at West Point. at it has
ton was established. There has been haz-
| ing there all the time, and in some form il
will continue so leng as there are cadets
| While not so offensive and humiIiating as
years ago. form prevails which is in
| tended to bring all new cadets to realiza-
tion that West Point is the most demo-
cratic school in the world and that every
man stands there on his merit and cannot
expect preference to be shown on account
OF any influence, social or otherwise, he
may have.
The form of hazing does not partake of
the nature usually pFactieed at boarding
schools, and is IN the direction Of eouaIsz-
| ing things and making the young cadets
respect authority Of seniors and to rub
out of them any airs they may put or and
| impress upon them that the son of a pri-
vate has the same showing as the son OF
| general In fact, the sons Of great men
| usually come in for the worst running.
When John a. Logan, Jr., was at Vest
Point he went through more annoying in
eidents than perhaps any of mis- class
mates, because he was the son OF General
Logan. Fred Grant now General Grant
was made to forget he was the son of the
| President, so far as any preference that
might be shown him was concerned, and
recently a son of Fitz Lee and grand
| nephew OF Gen. R. E. Lee, attracted more
attention from the upper classmen than
any of his class. Young Phil Il Sheridan
is another cadet who has gone through
the mill. and young Hobson admits that
because be is the brother of Lieutenant
Rohson he should not expect that to assist
| him at West Point.
Sons of prominent men are perhaps the
worst hazed cadets. but it is in good fun
! and nothing Of an ungent1enanly nature
is allowed to be urged on new cadets. sNo.
while the testimony may show that hazing
| exists. ali the regulations and laws made
will not prevent its being practiced in a
mild form. The same is true of Annapo-
lis, though there is perhaps less Of it
there than at West Point