New-York tribune., 1907-09-07
MARS and MINERVA.
a PozcerfuI alliance Peculiar TO the
3 NiitarV School.

One feature of American educational methods.
one phase Of American training of its youth,
there is that is as yet confined to America 1hls
country has no standing army comparable in
size 70 those maintained by far smaller states
of Europe and Yet it is in a sense one of the
most military of all the nations. No small
mart of the credit for the ability of the natlcp
TO turn cut an army Of first class fighting men
at the first call of a President for volunteers Is
due 20 the military schools that exist and -four
fsb everywhere And in turn. the credit for the
military schools and their fine and healthful
influence on the nation is due to the example
that has given rise them-the United states
Military Academy at West Point
Rich in its historical traditions, West Point
has been the envy of almost every normal
American bov TO whom the longing for the sea
has never come. Countless stories Of fact and
fiction have been woven about ii, and the de-
n1and for appointments has always been so
much greater than the supply that very many
schools Of similar type, but Of private owner
ship and administration. have been created
ENCOURAGED BY THE GOVERNMENT
The United States government has always en-
couraged the military school recognizing 1t as
one Of the greatest safeguards of the national
defence Stasa governments have been no eSS
encourag ging, for they have not been slow to
see the stimulus to the recruiting Of the NatlonaI
Guard by the love Of military training and dis
cipline inspired in the youth OF the military
schools.
So much for the value Of these schools to the
nation as providers Of a reserve and as source
from which to draw partly trained men IN case
OF emergency. Their economic value to the ma
ton is no less great. for the economic value to
the nation Of a school must be measured by the
quality Of the men il turns out
The military training given in these schools
Is Of distinct value in improving the standard
Of the scholastic work This is only natural as
discipline is the basis Of all effective military
training First and foremost in the beneficial
result 10 the individual who is subjected to it,
sad so to the society of which he is to form
part and to the nation. is the upbuilding of the
body of the pupil Regularity and system in all
things in the military training the watch
word. The corps Of pupils is regarded first of all
as small army. and in schools of the best type
which follow army methods the individual is
first Of all a soldier. As such he must take his
place in the ranks
EMULATION FOSTERED.
As In the army. the pupil is compelled to meet
his fellows on common ground. He is constantly
being watched and his work is always being
compared with that of his fellows. AS result
the best spirit of emulation and the desire to
excel are fostered The cadet corps which has
8 complete organization like that of the regular
army. is officered by cadets who must win their
spurs. The reward Of promotion is eagerly
Sought for, and II is that the fitness OF
the pupil who succeeds in winning his way TO
the front is not readily recognized by all ms
associates.
constant drill. regular and systematic habits
of living. the performance Of duties at a given
time and ready obedience to authority are
phasized in the military school II is scarcely
necessary draw attention 10 the influence for
good that such a system has the intellectual
development Of the student AS with the more
less strictly military part Of the curriculum
be has a time for study, during which he must
perform certain tasks. He may not always
succeed in performing the task in hand, but at
least he is il and trying.
HONOR SYSTEM PREVAILS.
In the military schools. following the example
Of West Point honor rules. Cheating at exam
nations is frowned upon by the cadets even
more than by the faculty. The honor system
extends all through the life Of the school, and
the whole tone Of the institution is raised i'm
mensely by this fact.
So keen is The interest taken in the spread of
military training in the young by the federal
government that TO schools Of a certain pre-
sCibed standard an officer of the regular army,
either in the active retired service, is de-
tailed. and the military part Of the instruction
IS entirely and directly under his charge
Military training in educational circles is by
no means confined 10 the military academies
and schools Every state university taking ad-
vantage of the grants Of federal lands made by
the government Is required to maintain cadet
CORPS and army officer is detailed to it
Among the examples of fine collegiate corps are
those at Cornell and at Rutgers College in New
Brunswick. ~. J. At the former institution the
field days have come to be one of the features