New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1917-08-25
Lesson No. IL.
TEAMWORK IN THE ARMY.

Preceding lessons: 1. Your Post OF
Honor. 2. Making Good as Sol
der. 8. Nine Qualities of a Sol
der. 4. Getting Ready for Camp.
s. First Days in Camp. 6. Cleanli-
ness in Camp. 7. Your Health. 8.
Marching and Care of Feet. 9.
Your Equipment and Arms. 10.
Recreation in Camp. II. Playing |
the Game.
So far in this course we have been |
taking up some of the problems |
which each soldier has to face and :
solve for himself; how to adjust him |
self as quickly as possible to the !
routine of camp life; how to keep
himself and all his belongings clean
in spite Of the difficulties in the way;
how to look after his own health and
comfort; how to take care of arms
and equipment; and how to get real
enjoyment, as we'll as benefit, out of
Army life.
If the course were to stop just at
a false impression. For after all, the
soldier is not an individual player in
the great game OF war; he is valuable
chiefly as a member Of a team. 1t is
a team Of enormous size. It is or
ganized in rather a complicated way.
This team we call the Army.
Your Army life will be more inter-
esting if you know in a general way
how the team Is organized. This will
enable you to see more clearly where
you fit in and what is expected of
you.
If you have been working for a.
business concern, you are already IA
miliar with many Of the elements of
army organization. You have been
in touch with the same things under
different names.
Need for Teamwork.
In a factory or store or Office
! wherever large numbers of people are
working observation-disclosures is almost al
| ways some one in direct charge Of
| each group of workers. This person
| may be called foreman in the shop
chief clerk in an office, floor
walker In department store, or by
| any one of a number of other titles;
! in the Army we call him a corporal
| Or a sergeant. Going up step, you
| know that in every large concern
| there are numerous officers who take
| charge Of various departm ents of the
| business such as the superintendent,
the traffic manager, the advertising
manager, the sales manager, the sec
! rotary, the vice president, and so on;
| in the Army we call the men in CORE
spending positions captains, majors,
colonies and generals. Finally, you
! have at the top of the business con-
Germ president or a general man.
| ager who directs everything; in the
| Army he is commanding general.
This general likeness between bust
| nj ~
ton is helpful, but must not be car
ried too far. There is one vital diff
ference: The average business con-
| Germ is somewhat easy-going; the re-
sponsibility for each piece of work Is
not always definitely fixed. In the
| Army everybody, on the other hand,
is held to the strictest account There
| is very seldom any doubt as to the
man to be held responsible for each
| task
Responsibility Always Fixed
Within each rank, from major gem
eral to private, every man has his in
dividual ranking, depending upon his
length of service in the office which
he holds. This ranking insures that
| in every situation somebody always
/ has authority and is responsible for
whatever is done. Even if two pri-
! vate soldiers are working together
without supervision, the one who has
been longer TN the service takes
! orders. This rule applies every
| where.
I In civilian life there is time for
argument. You may have better
| ideas than your boss about how GER
tain thing should be done and pos
sibly may convince him and get his
| original orders changed. In Army
| life nothing of this kind can be per-
mitted. The officer in charge always
has the full responsibility. What
| ever orders he gives must be instant
| ly obeyed. It is far better to take
action, even though the thing may
| not be done in the best possible way,
| than it is to stand still and debate.
| Lack of Immediate action in the
! crisis of battle might mean that
the Army would be defeated, thou
! sands of lives lost, and possibly the
| honor Of the country stained.
Think over this difference between
Army organization and civilian or
| ganization. The longer you think
| about it, the more clearly you will
| see why your own interests demand
that you snould NJ INTO your place
| in the Army and follow instructions
much more strictly than is necessary
| in civil life.
The Army is governed by military
law. This means that soldiers are
not brought to trial in civil courts,
except for certain serious crimes, but
are subject to military courts of in
quiry, summary courts, and courts
| martial. However, this will never be
| question Of much importance to the
great majority Of men in the National
| Army
Success in Winning Victories.
Srccese in u,ippino 1ic+orIee 4. 49,