The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-05-05

lads in grey. smart and erect and full OF
Vigor and enthusiasm, burning to show
the world all over again the qualities
which their fathers exhibited, and which
their fathers boosted they inherited from
-he little islands across the Atlantic. They
We're so high-spirited, so cheerful, so
pleasantly content with their camping
ground among the scrub. and yet so
quietly and steadily intent upon their
soldierly duties that no one could be other
than impressed by them. Physically bar
ring the effects of steady training, they
We're as good men as the regulars" This
nigh estimate of the Savannah soldiers
found to be generally entertained, both
In Tampa and at Knoxville, by exper-
fenced war correspondents both home and
foreign. And it is an estimate that can
always be appropriately applied to them
under all circumstances. Taken as a whole
they are gentleman always and every
where.
Prof. Hugo Knott seems to have par
tally anticipated me in setting aside
the preposterous claim of the friends OF
cadet William Mitchell of Columbus, Ca
VINO expects to graduate in June at West
Point Military Academy at the head of
his class. AS he has not yet gradua ted
1t appears to be a case of counting the
chickens before they are hatched.'
Should he succeed in graduating with
hrst honor, however, he will be a long
way from being the first Southerner 10
achbeve this enviable distinction" as
the Enquirer-Sun would have us all be-
Heve. Why, the fact is, and very
gratifying one it is to Southerners-the
last class before the Civil War was fair
ly started, 1861, was headed by Henry A.
Dupont of Delaware, and the first class
after the war; 1867, was headed by Ern-
est H. Ruffner of Kentucky. Both bor-
der states. it is true, yet both of them
classed as Southern.
Now, Mitchells friends go back to the
starting of the Academy $500, in their
claim. But again, the cold fact stares
them in the face that Walker K. Arm
istead of Virginia was at the head of the
class in 1903, and he became a distin-
guished engineer officer and brevet- brig
adler general, U. S. A. Then we have
George Trescot of South Carolina in 1873
Henry Middleton. same state, in 1876
Edward H. Courtenay of Maryland, in
1S2l-Alfred Mordecai of North Carolina
in 1s2S-Alexander ]. Swift, of North Car
DINA, in 1S30-George l.. Welcker of Ten
nessee, in 1s36-William H. Wright of
North Carolina, in 1sSs-Paul o. Hebert
ney Of Mississippi, in 1S45-John c.
Symmes of Kentucky, in 1S47-George
Washington Custis Lee, son of Gen.
Robert E. Lee, in 1S54-and Dupont in
1861, which makes very good showing
All that Prof Knott says of Henry Jer-
vey is borne out by the facts in his case.
He not only made a sort of Robert E.
Lee record at West Point, but his Subse-
quent career in the army has been equally
as meritorious, and 1 ann quite sure that
Cadet Mitchell cannot show, now or here
after, as clean and meritorious record
as Capt. Henry Jersey Engineer Corps,
U. S. A, who graduated at the head OF
his class in 1888. There are three Jer-
veys in the army, and all three are way
up in G. in military training and SER
vice. James P. is lieutenant in the En-
gineer Corps and Eugene P. Jr., is a lieu
tenant of cavalry. The parents of Capt.
Jersey moved from South Carolina to At
lanta, Ca, some years ago, 1 think, and
James p. Jervey went from there to West
Point, where he made an excellent record.
Henry and James Jervey were born in
Virginia, but the former went to West
Point from South Carolina, and the lat
ter from Georgia. Prof. Knott is mis-
taken about a contest for first honor
Henry was first in all four classes, and
his closest competitor was, part of the
time and finally, Cadet McKinstry of
California. He was captain in the Cadet
Battalion and McKinstry was the adju-
tant. Cadet P. c. Harris of Cedartown.
Ca, was one of the lieutenants. AS
James Postell Jervey stood second in the
second class of 1891, he must have grad
uated very near the head of the class
of 1892 His record for dement's 90 was
the lowest in the class. 1t is a singular
fact that Henry had no dement's except
as a third class man, when he had IL
marked to him, many of which were OF a
trifling character. 1 have given consid-
cradle space in this letter to the Jerveys.
but not more than they deserve. Tir-
ginia and South Carolina share with
Georgia in their splendid records as
cadets and soldiers, as Georgia, l think.
is still the home of their parents.
Sidney Herbert.