The Washington herald., 1915-06-10
The Midshipmen's Ofense.

The Court OF Inquiry at Annapolis is inn
portant tho discipline OF the Naval Academy.
but it is not expected develop any evidence of
disloyaty to the country and to the navy Evidence
produced at the investigation now in progress indi-
Gates that line OF distinction must be drawn
While it is possible there are few culprits in
the classes and possibly outside OF them who
will be found to merit severe punishment it ap-
pears that the majority OF the midshipmcn under
investigation suspected only OF having re-
ccvcd good dope" on the annual examinations
without any actual knowledge OF its origin. which
enabled them to receive higher marks than thew
would have received had they not secured this
advance information. That is breach of dis
cipline and unfair to their fellow classmen. 1t
has little bearing their loyalty to the country
or their ability TO fight. There have been such
discoveries made in colleges. and even in the
public schools without creating a national scam
dial 1t is not necessary that this should become
a national scandal with new sensations eyerv
day. just because it happened in a school man
aged by the Secretary OF the Navy with Con-
grcsS ; a board OF directors
We had such scandal in connection with the
Military Academy ten wears ago because some
OF the cadets were accused OF hazing That COM
plant appeared serious enough to warrant A
Congressional investigation. which made news
paper copy for time and resulted in the disn,is-
sal OF three or four cadets. The next Congress
came along and passed special act to restore
these young men to their places in the academy
Their otense had been looked at through mag
nifyrnG glass at first. but with the naked eve
year later There were similar sensational conf
plants OF hazing at Annapolis. but there hap
pcned to be several graduates of the Naval Acad-
envy among the members OF Congress- They told
their fellow statesmen just what hazing was not.
II they could not define very closely what il was
They had ii from both the point OF view
OF the hazed and the hazers and altogether il
was ono OF the experiences they remembered
pleasantly. Other members who had been COL
lcge boys began to remember, and there was no
investigation.
SO it is now just well to remember that
VIC were all boys and girls once and that when
came were all looking for some
kind of dope as to what the examiners had in
mind that VIC might better be able to satisfy
them. We wouldn't have held up the teachers /
and made them deliver on pain of death, and we
might not have robbed the teachers desk. bu. |
once the dope got into circulation. not even the |
oldfashioned Sunday school boy would have re-
fused to look at that DOPE and remember
The Naval Academy is a government institu-
ton and gouging is breach of discipline, not a |
high crime against the nation. If the professors
allowed themselves to be robbed of the done. or
had it extracted from them by diplomacy or
other means. some of the responsibility ought to
rest on the professors. And if some of the mid
shipmen resorted to unlawful or dishonest methods
in obtaining the information. they should be held
to strict accountability; but it is necessary to dis
rriminate between these euprits and those who
avaled themselves of an opportunity to in
'peet the purloined information when it was
N general circulation. That would be the wayl
We would look at it in an ordinary college or
school, From the day that sehooimasters eamei