The weekly tribune and the Cape County herald. (Cape Girardeau, Mo.) 1914-1918, 1917-12-21


Mentality and Physique Of Men Ex
cites Admiration.
The training Of young American of
ficers in special camp has grimmel
seriousness and intent than can imag
inc anything Of the sort could assume
at Plattsburg, Fort Sheridan or an!
similar camp in America. There is
first, the psychological reason tina
these embryo leaders Of the Sammle:
in the ranks are receiving instruction
upon the soil of France, and that the
environment surrounding them smells
| more OF real war than would be pos
sible 5000 miles away across blue wa
ter. says q correspondent writing from
the American field headquarters IL
France.
There is also something Of that In.
spiration and quality coming from con
tact with the French people; those In
horizon blue about them; those in civil
ian clothes who are doing their bit be.
hind the lines. For France stands out
among all nations that are taking part
in this war as an example in devotion,
courage and fortitude beyond compare.
In this school several hundred en-
bryo officers are doing everything and
learning everything that the enlisted
man has to perform, and bringing 1t to
degree of perfection ere he can be
truly listed as soldier of modern war
fare.
There is nothing Of the kid-glove,
fireside, easy-chair side Of their work,
and when taps sound at night. their I'M
trained muscles ache, and the cot is a
welcome thing. There is nothing either
of textbook courses or of digniffed
drills. It's practical hustle from morn
ing to night.
Dig Trenches and Throw orenades.
They are digging trenches, learning
the use of machine guns and V. B..
rifles. throwing live grenades, discharg-
ing service shells, going through attack
formation and jabbing imaginary
Boches in the eye. the throat, the heart
and the stomach; taking gas tests, go
ing through every phase Of hard work
that involves trench warfare.
There is an old regular army adage
that any sort Of man physically fit
can be rounded into soldier, but that
the officers are especial creatures, en-
dowed from the gods. This, as many
days of civiliZed-in-the-open warfare,
has gone by the board.
In its place has risen the certainty
of knowledge that the real difference
between the soldier in the ranks and
the officer commanding him is truly
in the stuff that makes the fighter.
What is more genuinely important, In
order to properly command men and
inspire them with confidence, what is
needed is not theory or book larnin'"
or better quality Of cloth in blouse,
but actual experience and knowledge
Of the work itself.
Better Than West Point.
This is General Pershing's opinion
az well as that Of Gen. Robert Billiard.
a veteran infantry officer, in charge of
the camp. who declares in tones of
genuine enthusiasm that the commits
stoned men when leaving this school
to undertake commands will be better
soldiers than they even know them
selves, and that they will go up against
the Boches with the knowledge and con-
fidence impossible were they merely
graduates of West Point.
The school is purely for infantry Of
ficers, who, in the main, will become
second and first lieutenants when they
graduate" if the term may be used.
1t is an established French institu-
ton. combining permanent barracks
forts for the men when off duty. AS it
is the intention TO greatly enlarge it, a
number of new buildings are in course
| Of erection. The location is in beau
tiful section of rural France.
Go Through All War Tactics.
A battalion Of French soldiers may
he seen going through all the stunts of
modern warfare, while embryo officers
from over the sea look on. The Poilus
| captured mock German trenches with
4 an eclat indescribable. demonstrating
rocket signaling, bayonet charges
grenade and liquid fire. and every
branch Of field work.
Immediately afterward the youthful
Americans were put through the same
maneuyers, entering into the work with
III genuine will. It seemed odd to see
these young officers-to-be, working and
active exactly like so many Sammies
in training. as witnessed in other
camps. They will know the game wher
they "get on the real Job" And to
know the game from the ground up IL
the way properly to trim the barbarian
One thing stands out. That is the
use Of the rife. The rifle Is the Ameri
can weapon, and. according to Genera
Billiard, who is here In 100 per cen
harmony of opinion with Generals
Pershing and Sibert, every man in ranl