Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1900-1911, 1909-06-12
WEST POINTERS
GAIN DIPLOMAS
SECRETARY OF WAR TALKS TO
GRADUATES
BRILLIANT HISTORY OF ACADEMY
REVIEWED
General Porter Speaks In Glowing
Terms of the Efficiency of the
United States Army
and Navy
TRy Associated press.l

no
nencement day exercises at the United
States military academy today Secre-
tary of War Dickinson presented the
members of the graduating class with
their diplomas.
General Horace Porter, a graduate
from West Point in 1860, spoke in glow
ing terms of the efficiency of the Amer
lean army and navy.
There were 103 members in the grad
uating class, including two Chinese and
Hawaiian, A. K. Blyman, who Will
enter the engineer corps.
To-day the eyes of all our people are
turned to you with profound interest,
hope and confidence" said Mr.. Dickin-
son, for they are investing you with a
sacred trust-that of maintaining the
glory of an institution which has great
ly enriched the civil life of the nation,
and has always been its chief bulWark
in time of war.
whatever distrust on account of mil
itary establishments may have existed,
or yet exists in the minds of some of
our citizens, West Point is secure in
the overwhelming general confidence of
our people, and will have their con-
tinued support for the fulfillment of its
great purpose as designed by Washing
ton, who advocated it's establishment
as an object of primary Importance
and that it should be permanent
Peril In Time of Peace
with peace. comes a sense of Sc
curity, oblivion of past reverses and in
disposition to bear the burdens which
alone, until nations have given bonds
for good behavior can secure honor
able peace. Jefferson saw this apathy
affect this institution, and in 1903 urged
upon congress a large establishment
Our people forgot what the War of the
Revolution had taught, and were to
learn with shame another and bitter
lesson in the school of national humili-
alton.
west Point languished, and for a
time did not fulfill it's high destiny. The
War of 1872 came. There were then
in the service but sixty five graduates
of the military academy. Disaster fol-
lowed disaster, and our national capital
was in the possession of a foreign SOL
diery.
This experience was enough to last
until wars and rumors of wars shall be
no more. 1t made new era in the
history of the academy. When the
Mexican war came it had in the service
over 500 graduates, and almost an equal
number in civil life. need not rehearse
the brilliancy of their achievements.
Famous Men on List
at was the training school of most
Of those who rose to great fame as
commanders in the Civil War. Lee,
Grant, Bragg, Jackson, Davis, John
ston, Hardie and Early won their spurs
on Mexican soil. These achievements
fixed forever the fame of this academy
and so established it in the confidence
of the people as to secure that support
which manifested such brilliant results
in the war between the states. All the
great battles of that war were CONF
manded by West Pointers on both sides,
President Madison, in his annual
message in 1922, said of the academy:
Good order is preserved in it and the
youth are well instructed in every
science connected with the great OBJ
jects of the institution
This characterization upon its dis
cipline and training eighty-seven years
ago has returned thus to this very day.
The academy established in 1902 has
graduated 47S2 cadets. We are familiar
with the names of its military heroes.
over half its graduates entered civil
life. 1t has given to our country among
others one president of the United
States, one president of the Confederate
states, three presidential candidates,
two vice presidential candidates, one
ambassador, fourteen ministers plenl-
potentiary, twenty-seven members of
the United States senate and house,
sixteen governors, one bishop, fourteen
judges, forty-six presidents and four
teen regents and chancellors of col
leges and universities, and many others
belonging to useful trades and profess
sions.
Achievements of Graduates
I'm addition it claims one of the few
delegates to the first Hague conference
one to the famous arbitration confer
ence that settled the promising misun-
Outstanding between England and Rus
STA, two of seven delegates to the recent
Hague conference, two of it's alumni
are in charge of the greatest engineer
ing work of history-the Panama canal
and one is recognizing the police
force of the second city in the world.
'Thus, all of you, those who continue
in the service and those who may enter
upon civil careers, have a great prestige
to sustain. West Pointers have so gem
orally maintained the standard of
honor obedience to law love of liberty
and fidelity to duty that the name Is
always accepted as prima facie evil
dence that it's bearer is all that is I'M
piled in it's highest sense in the fine
old term, a gentleman.
Believing that you will prove your
self worthy of such noble fellowship
and that in peace and war you will JUS
tify the confidence and expectation Of
your friends and countrymen, it is not
merely exercising the prerogative of
the office which hold, but with pro-
found sense of the honor the occasion
affords me, that l present to you your
diplomas"