The Spanish Fork press. [volume] (Spanish Fork, Utah) 1902-current, 1908-09-10

The recent Gaze OF hazlng at the
West Point Military academy has
again drawn the attention Of the pub
lie to the fact that the practice still
prevails among tie cadets despite the
earnest and determined efforts Of the
officials of the academy to stamp 1t
out. 1t is disease Of long standing,
dating back for century, and no doubt
the germs OF the disorder so saturate
the grounds and buildings that 1t will
perhaps take another generation to
fully destroy the vitality of the hazing
microbe and completely eradicate the
disease.
The recent outcropping OF hazing
has been in spite of the voluntary
agreement on the part OF the corps OF
cadets in 1901 to- quit the practice and
in direct violation Of the drastic laws
passed by congress In the same year,
but as we have aaid, century of seed
sowing is still producing it's fruitage.
There are original documents in ex-
istence to prove that hazing began In
the early life OF the institution. For
instance, away back in 1914 Gen. Ram
sey wrote that the new cadets sweep
! out the rooms and shovel the snow,
but there is no hazing."
From this rather innocent beginning
| developed the practices that resulted
in the cadet episode of few days
ago, when Col. Scott, the superintend
ent at West Point. in obedience to the
mandate of congress as expressed II
the law on hazing. sent to their homes
eight cadets who had been convicted
| of hazing, there to await the action o
| the secretary of war, who, under thu
regulations, as prescribed by congress
had no alternative but to "summaril!
expel' the offenders.
That the hazing which began will
the ludicrous acts that characterize
1t before the civil war grew into thu
tortures that caused the congressional
investigation of 1901 is a matter o
history. In the cadet days of Lee
Grant, and Sheridan, and the othe
great martial figures In American hi:
tory. the pebes, of course, had thei
stunts to do but those acts were
mild as can lie imagined when con
pared with tho modern ways OF dom
things that were laid bare in the II
vestigations.
Gen. John NJ Schofield Is on recor
as having told the cadet corps, whe
he was superin teudent at West Poin
that If the acts that the young men
that day we're guilty of had occurre
before the war there would have bee
bloodshed before such things wou
have been submitted to- Other old
officers have talked the same way, al
they tell how, according to the trat
ton. Ulysses S. Cant Robert IL. lie
Phil Sheridan aad Stonewall Jackst
used to brace themselves as pleb
walking about the plains, with Oh
drawn in and shoulders thrown back
But they didn't drink tabasco sauc
neither did they do eagles till they Il
from exhaustion, as did young Dougl
Macarthur and Pegram of Virgin
1 the latter a son OF the confederate
I ficer of the same name.
OF course, in the history of We
Point hazing the case that stands o
4 above all others was the hazing
! young Oscar Booz of Pennsylvania,
the rigors of which treatment his ia
lily went before the congressional
] vestigating committee and swore W
Y due the tuberculosis of the throat ii
eventually caused that poor young
lows death.
Il When Booz died the cause of dea
5 was given as throat tuberculosis. a
L on December II. eight days after
e death, the matter was brought up
II congress, and alter the warmest s.
e of debate the cong -essional commit
was appointed to investigate cor
n lions at West Point
e The father oil Cadet Booz told
D. Brooke board that his son had
r fused to his dying day to disclose
names of the cadets who had torme