Arizona silver belt., 1901-09-12
PRAISE FOR SOLDIERS
Generous Acknowledgements of h.
 dividual Merit Not Good.
GIorification for Deeds of Vaior and GalIantry Apt to Lessen the Value of
 the Reward.

The disposition to praise the work of others and to give creuit where it
 is deemed of merit are qualities ] which probably should be commended as generous impulse, but under some circumstances this glorification | in unstinted indiscrimination is
 hazardous and apt to lead to results
 which are not the most benenciaL The reports which are being received at the adiutant generals office from | army officers in the field are laden i with acknowledgement of individual merit and with recommendations of | official reward of officers and men. IL who does his duty be given full credit | for his worthy service, and it is equal ! ly proper that officers and men who distinguish themselves by conspicu- ous acts of unusual gallantry receive the just reward for ,--eir daring, says a writer in the Army and Navy Reg ! iSter. lt may be considered that 1 there are many such in the army sent | to the Philippine islands, and in the army which fought before Santiago. but there is a danger that this liberal praise will be without the distinction giving it real value.
 If all those who do their duty are mentioned in reports and dispatches we may expect that the documents and messages will be of great length, and will contain lists of names prac- tically without limit, for when it comes to question of doing their duty, there will be few exceptions among the officers and men of the army, navy and marine corps. I he commanding general who exercises a discrimination in naming those who have distincuishe themselves will give greater value to his encomjums than the officer who mentions every body with whom he comes in contact or who has the chance of serving on his staff or in his command.
 The value Of a hrevct or 8 medal of honor or an honorary mention is iT proportion 70 its rarity. and if 8 ,arg, number receive the high >t r,cugni- ton there win be little m sh5 way ot reward to stand fer cNtranrG nary srry- ice. it will rhtaptH a linvtt in th, American army tp the traditional level of the Legion of Honor. h. decoration of which and death somebody has said were the two things in life no French man could escape.
 The British army seems to be suf- 4 l a e Q praise. The London Gazette few weeks ago contained copies of dis patches reporting inc ops rations of the naval brigade in South Africa. and there has jus appeared from the Brit iSh war office a batch of military dis patches describing minor actions in the Boer campaign. In all these dis patches there are long lists of names of those who are regarded by their commanders as entitled to this special reference. The services recorded in most instances are of genera char acter. such as courage. '"cHolness un- der fire" and "ur ring zeal. qualities which one would naturally expect from soldiers and sailors under any circum- stances in the presence of an enemy and where there was military and naval campaj gning. An amusing in. stance is that of the exceptional com mendation of Commanser Limrus. who is me ntioned with much cordia ty by Capt. Jon, s, commanding the ma Iai brigade. for his service in Inc p ra- tions leading up to the F ..,f of l., IT, smith. Commander iavus' ST, ial achievement, which gained for him official advertisement, was that ht walked a long distance when grcGt'y fatigued," and "hc also Ecpt hi. cy ued 70 a telescope as usual during the hottest fire, when many shells passed within few wards of him."
 If official commendation is 10 mean anything il must stand Ter something unusual. not for merely walking when tired or the protracted usc of tei,- scope. The older officers who saw service through our civil war must re- gard such occasions as paitry and ab- surd. Ii is well to be fair and impartial and generous, but i is disastrous to be lavish and indiscriminate.