Washington sentinel., 1901-01-05


will mean decreased consumption;
this in turn means decreased reVe-
nues, and decreased revenues in
this line will only entail increased
burdens for the people in some
other direction. And this is but
the beginning-the Indiana exam
pie will be follow ed elsewhere.
Driving Manhood from West Point
Are almost all. asks DR.. w, A.
Crohut, in the Washington
Post, OF the upper class men at
West Point bruies and cowards7
Is hardly any such thing as moral
courage or mauhness known
among the,n7 They seem to vrO-
late, without any hesitation, rules
oi the academy which they have
sworn TO obey, and to lie not
merely in concert, but by delIber-
atelV organized platoons. They
seem to hold that their own man
dates are superior 70 the deerees
OF the Government, and that any
cadet who has the uprightness to
betraY the destroyers of the peace
is a proper subject Tor further bru-
tality. This Aagrant immortality
is vicious enough when it takes
possession Of our public schools,
but in an eleemosynary institution,
where pupils are boarded and
taught wholly a. the expense OF
others, it is intolerable.
~ A young man, just returned to
Washington from graduation at
the great Sorbonue OF Paris, where
he has been for sev-ral years,
amused his father last week by
asking: "What is this 'hazing' I
hear about7" On learning what it
was he was amazed. II never
heard oI it." he said; mo such
conduct is known at the Sorbonne.
Pupils treat one another like gen
tlemen, and foreigners are received
with special courtesy"
By what right do turbulent
young blackguards order a quiet
| youth out TO hght--to fight some
body he does not know and with
whom, oil course, he has no griey-
ance whatever7 Do they think this
is civilizatioh2 Has the saFion's
sense of decencY~and morality
sunk so low as to permit it1 1t is
said that young Booz "lay down"
when he had been dragged into an
"arena" to fight some stranger
who had not injured him in any
way or even spoken to him. or
course he lay down. It is what
brave man should do. 1t is the
only honorable thing ne could do.
Why should he not lie DOWN.
Why should he consent to quarrel
on the terms Of dog 6ghtp Nay,
on terms below those OF a dog fight
for dogs seldom fight without an
ofense, real or ina glnary. Only
a pestiferous coward, be be dog or
man, will voluntarily FIGHT without
cause.
Suppose the West Point code oi
morals prevailed in the War and
Navy Departments here, and any
FIRST class clerk could be "told off,
TO fight anYfourth class clerk at any
tlme-seIected arbitrarily and
without a decent cause and gwen
to the cog pen by the ruffians who
selected hIm9 Is it possible that
there would be people in Wash
ington to approve oil such conduct
at once truculent and puerilep
Suppose any fresh" clerk were
liable at any moment 10 be seized
by a gang OF his official superiors
and held under water or compelled
TO stand on his head for such time
as his tormentors should decide
or to have tobasco sauce poured
down his throat or to be "exer-
cised" trll he tainted and then to be
told that all this was ito make a
man OF him"
Where are the teachers at West
Point while their pupils are being
baited to the death and the organ !
Ized persecution is continued Are |
there no just and manly teachers |
left there, or have they all been
demoralized by hazing smaller
boys till they are now willing ac-
completes in the crimes OF the
cadets7 And what is the country
l. "a