Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-06-21
FAILURES WHO
SUCCEED IN WAp
Military Opportunities III
Brought Out Latent oualifio.
in Men Destined for
Greatness

! RIoGRAPHERs of famous men r.,,,
- make a great mistake. Tbov 9uaiy ss
now great their heroes were T., 'uow
career, and think 1t necessary IN n. ,uu'
TINS with flowery account of .ho ..'..e .o'ace
OF greatness that these heroe, .aY,n ,Y''se
boys and young men. What u,o,,s as
mucr more interesting as well ne -, W
Iruthiul would be the recountinp NJ ~
little promise of anything but co,,.,V' nOW
faliure a number of the Caesare 80 ,,
world have shown in youth. '"e
1t is interesting to recall that Ham,. :,
as wild Prince Hail. was courapeou. ~.
genial, but it is more interesting 10 ,1
| that he was a common drunltard
petty thief before becoming tho ,,roa,-l,
military leader of his time. If &c r,,s. s'
observe that John Keats was foro,,,,
and sensitive clild and later a. great NO.,
But 1t is wiser to remember that he,rros-
child and poet Keats was a hopeless1y a.
efficient surgeon. 1t comes down N t,1.
that IL all great men were great vo,,,,''
there would be little incentive for str;v,n-
10 the ordinary run of mortals WHOSE
adolescence has been undistinguished
War has been always the great A..
coverer of hidden genius. The reaso, o..
this probably lies in the fact that tho mo-.
who succeeds in military affairs ro,,s,
have singularly clear ability to trans.
late thought into action. The very Il,
| cidity of this ability to translate baa1o.
him in times of peace, for the cornn,o~
patchwork of ordinary existence reouiro,
| pntippt .,,,lo,,
decisions. The muddler in business NAV
he the Napoleon of field of action, not
because war is unbusinesslilte Gt Is ths
most difficult of all businesses), but be.
cause business is too often muddIed. Eor
example, it was n typical soldierly trick for
Funston, when suddenly placed in charFs
of a Kansas newspaper during the pro.
| prietoT's vacation, tC change it from n
Democratic to a Republican organ. or
course, he was "fred" on the spot But
it was fundamentally the same soldierly
trick which enabled Colonel Funston later
to change Aguinaldo from a dangerous
rebel into a harmless prisoner, and this
time he wasn't fired"
Funston's Failure
man. He had the notion that reporters
life was the most romantic and exciting
life in the world-a notion that is enter
tained by every one who is not re-
porter. In 1895 we find the little Kansan
in New York city looking for work as a
reporter and being turned down. He
learned that the Cuban junta was sending
men into the field. He applied, but was
turned down cold" as less promising as
q soldier than as a reporter. This was
largely on account of his small stature
Funston was only five feet five and
weighed only 100 pounds-but also be.
cause the junta had heard the American
volunteers were unsatisfactory. Going
out of the office, Funston met a friend,
who told him that what the Cubans really
wanted was men who could work Hotch-
kiss guns. So he went to the Hotchkiss
people and in the course of the afternoon
was made over into an artillery officer"
So he again presented himself to the junta,
and was soon in charge of all the Cuban
Hotchkisses as we'll as of the Simms.
Dudley dynamite pieces, and became .
colonel in the Cuban army. The man who
editors blue pencil had found the ma
chine that was meant for him.
If ever failure had marked man for
her own, that man was General Grant
West Point graduate, gallant officer in
the Mexican War, the man seemed rank
incapable in the period between '4S and e
'61. In 1858 Grant, who had found farm
ing impossible as a means of livelihood,
entered a partnership in a real estate and
collections business in Missouri. Then at
the age of SO, at time of life when \
failure would be fatal for most men, Grant
failed again. AS a collector he was
flat" Any hard-luck story would arouse
his sympathies and disarm, him. The
partnership soon lapsed. He made an
effort to obtain appointment as county
engineer, but it was given to some one
who had political influence. BurdeneU
with cares and debts, the dashing horse
man, who was honored above all at Moh'
terey and Molino, found himself bending
over desk at $500 a year, the employs
of his younger brothers, and a despohueh'
and inefficient one at that He hid his
pain. though racked with fever and 'hs
pains of ague. The brothers found nm
of no earthly use at driving bargains .,
tending store. His clothing was poor anu
shabby, his hair and beard grew '0"s
and ragged.
Picture of Grant at 36
A man who came later well'nigh
worship him heard there was a Mexican
war man, a West Pointer, in the nelshooi'
hood, and went to see him. He said later
81 went round TO the store II was
sharp winter morning and there "asn
a sign of one that looked ike soiu'e.
about the shop. But pretty soon a taIpeI
drove up with lot of hides on ms sle'sr
and went inside to dieker and presenw
a stoop-shouldered, brownish-bearaed -.
low, with a slouch hat pulled down UsS
his eyes, who had been sitting wh'''nns