The Savannah morning news., 1902-06-12

struction as thorough as the most ex-
acting could demand. Here every ca
Diet must stand on his own individual
merits. He who would be called Thor
must be able to WELD Thor's battle
ak; he who would be called Ulysses,
must be able to bend Ulysses bow.
In talking with officers of the mill
tary schools in Europe, when l have
told them the requirements OF cadet
life here, the long term of service, tne
exacting course of study, the NUMBER
of drills, the few hours of recreation,
the one furlough only in the four long
years, those officers have been Tree 10
confess that the youth of their LANDS
could never be brought to endure IL.
washington, after having expert
enced the horrors of war, fully appre-
ciated the piping times of peace when
soldiers may turn their battle axes into
bill-hooks and their helmets into bee
hives, and yet he never failed to put
himself on record in favor of the main
tenance of an adequate army. For eX-
ample, when in convention, delegate
moved that the size of the army should
never be allowed TO exceed 5000 men,
the great founder of the republic, with
a display of ready wit which surprised
his colleagues, killed the motion by
Offering an amendment prescribing that
no foreign power should ever be al
lowed to invade the country with more
than 5000 men. An army may be dam
gerous when welded by an arbitrary
sovereign, but never when directed by
sovereign people.
Justice to Volunteers.
"In future as in past wars the great
bulk of our army will always be COM
posed of volunteers, those patriotic
types of American manhood who, at
the call to arms, quit their peaceful
avocations sacrificed their material
interests and rally TO the defense of
their country's standard. They receive
their valuable but hard-learned les
sons in the field and even in presence
of the enemy; the graduates from their
ranks have furnished to the army
some of it's most distinguished officers.
The cordial and efficient cooperation
of these two great branches of the
service has everywhere brought sue
cess to our arms. / have no patience
with occasional writers who would
make 1t appear that there are dissen-
sions and discord between these two
bodies battling in the same cause. 1t
is a common practice fer volunteer
organizations to apply for regular Of
UCtTS 10 COHlUldUQ LICIn Willie thC
regulars have constantly sought COM
missions in the volunteers. In the
field inseparable ties of true comrade-
ship have been formed among them,
for as iron is welded in the heat OF
the forge, so are friendships welded
in the heat of battle. Any one in
either of these two honorable branches
of the army who would be guilty of
petty jealousy or half-hearted coop
Grafton would be unfit for the service
to which he belonged and unworthy of
the name of soldier.
This academy had its birth and
grew to manhood in the most marvel
Gus century of recorded time, an age
Of which the advance in civilization
and the triumphs in useful inventions
and scientific discoveries inspire us
with the grandeur of events and thrill
us with the majesty Of achievements.
During this eventful period, there
were graduated 4,067 cadets. They
have displayed their devotion upon
countless battlefields and attested their
usefulness in all the civil walks Of
life; in science~and art, in trade and
commerce, in literature and oratory,
in law. medicine. theology. diplomacy
and craftsmanship, from the modest
engineer to President of the Republic
Nearly all who entered the army have
been disbursing officers in some ca
pacity or other from post treasurer to
paymaster general, and with such
scrupulous fidelity have the hundreds
Of millions entrusted to them been ac-
counted for that those who have ever
been charged with peculation can be
numbered on the fingers of one hand.
The Heroic Dead.
"Of the total of 4,O67 graduates 23s
have fallen killed or MORALLY wounded
on the field of battle. In the trials of
the self-sacrificing profession in which
they cast their lot, they had to learn
that 'all hours wound-the last one
kills" The record of West Points
heroic dead is inexpressibly sad; IL is
inoomparably glorious. The story of
their deeds rises to the sublimity of an
epic They honored the age in which
they lived and future generations will
read with pride the inscription on their
tombs. The world can better appre-
ciate their services since they have
fallen and the historian has had time
to record their achievements. A tree
is best measured when 1t is down.
When La Tour dAuvergne. who by his
matchless deeds of valor gained the
proud title of the First Grenadier of
France. finally fell with his face to the
foe pierced by the enemy's bullets.
Napoleon issued an order prescribing
that this soldiers name should be car
ried on the active list. and TO this day
the sergeant of the company to which
he belonged calls La -Four d'AuveT-
gne" and the color bearer answers
Mort au Champ d'Eoneur" II the
roll of West Points graduates were
called to-day answer could be made not
for one but for hundreds Dead on the
field OF honor"
The Secretary Of War was the last
speaker.