Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1915-08-11
Would Provide Mil
;tary Training For
Hjoh School Youths

Judge B, r. Cummings. of the Sew
enteenth Iowa judicial district, faVors
military training for high school boys
as a means of development of material
for a standing army for defense.
Judge Cummings has had his military
training, and knows of it's advantages
He was a former captain OF Marshall
towns former crack military company,
D of the First regiment, l. N. g., ana
would like to see the local h1gh scnooi
with military training course.
In communication to the Times
Republican, Judge Cummings says:
Editor Times Repub lican.
What we want in this country nrst
last, and all the time, is peace. we 90
not want any semblance of war with
any country. But in order to preserve
peace we must be of sufficient strength
to avoid war.
We have had SO much of peace that
we have grown into the feeling that
nothing could or would happen Whlch
would involve us in war, and yet we
have been perilously near it many
times within the last three years.
\ few years ago we hurriedly ana
unnecessarily jumped into a war with
poor crippled Spain and found our
selves in the pink of condition so far
as unpreparedness was concerned.
In this country we are pleasure and
sport crazy. In baseball we could un-
doubtedly defy all the rest of the
world In football our center smashes
could not be checked by the whole OF
ba1y
half dozen countries in the number OF
available men to place on the hrlns
line. In movies we lead and enlighten
the world But if an invading army
of half million We're to threaten us
we would be panic stricken.
The writer has a suggestion or two
to make In the high school in this
city there are from 225 to ESQ young
men, from ages of II TO 20, many OF
them just the kind of material used for
soldiers in Europe.
In this country there are number
of central or consolidated schools in
the various towns with from twenty
to eighty boys of same age-in the
whole county every year say 500 boys
within those ages. If the school boards
would provide a course in military
LOT every 10y Atpi'A tiiS NAeoNAN,
grade on such training to take. say
three hours a week. or even five hours
for that matter, teaching them how to
walk, to execute necessary company
movements, to so thru the manual OF
arms. to move when directed, and to
obey orders-in short to put them thru
a practical military discipline. 1t would
be of wonderful benefit to each individ-
o,,l = III
the standing army this country needs.
Guns sufficient for drilling purposes
could easily be obtained for the use of
such companies. Naturally 1t would
develop those who would be best adapt
ed for being officers.
AS it is now, the school boards spend
considerable money on athletics. and
mainly on football Much more than
one hour a day is put in on this spe-
cialty the first half of the year. and
the same amount of time on basketball
and track events the rest of the year.
Out OF the $50 students this year. not
to exceed ten per cent of them have the
benefit of this football training. because
only a limited number can take part.
The remainder develop the proper
yells.5
Does this athletic training, as we
now have it, teach boy how to walk.
how to carry himself, how to be re-
spectful and obedient? Does it give
him any thing that helps him in lie
except some "reminiscences?
We do not feel the necessity of TAX
ing a few years out of the life OF
every young man and putting him in
the army. as Germany does, but rea-
sv1ls.bie regulation enforcing military
training during the fve-year high
school course would take nothing away
from the boy, and in a short time would
give US a fine standing army besides
doing the individual a wonderful lot OF
good and would be of much more in
dividual benefit than the so-called ath-
le-ics as now pursued.