New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-08-05
| IFE IS JUST WORK &
FOR ROOKIE OFFICER
For Ten Weeks He Has Put in ) Hard
Hours a Day-Men, Now Like Over
Trained Athletes, Nervously Await
Awarding of Commissions

Myer we have not had the flies and
mosquitoes, but enough heat and phys.
ical exercise to make a very full day
for any one, so much so that IL would
be impossible to describe the effort
necessary to keep awake through The
conferences, as they call our lectures.
and the study periods in the evening.
Fifteen Hours Work Daily
Fifteen hours a day, during which.
with the exception Of half hour after
luncheon and supper, life certainly has
been lone damn thing after another
without enough time in between 10
even think how tired We are.
Every one wants to know what We
are doing and what we are studying,
and when we tell tlrem, they don't IN.
derstand why we have to do this and
that when re have so many more in
portant things to do. The point that
most of them miss is, that IN order to
be a good officer a man must first learn
to be good private. That is why,
with the exception of cooking our own
meals, we are doing all our own work
and living just as the men under US In
the new army will have to live.
The outsiders, however, are not the
only ones who do not understand A
great many men, not a few OF whom
had previously received their commits.
sions in the Officers Reserve Corps as
d result of a paper examination, have
never become entirely reconcled TO
sweeping and scrubbing floors and SEW.
ing in the ranks as a private. There
are also those who know so much that
l. is impossible to teach them anything
Added to these are the boys that came
for a lark, and, worst of all, those who
came merely to escape being drafted.
But somewhere around rs per cent Of
the men have taken the work very sen.
ously. They have given their best, and
if our instructors decide that through
no fault of the men they are not quail.
most Of them in the ranks.
Candidates Overturned
Do you wonder that men who have
given so much are so nervous? IL Mike
Murphy were alive and could see this
crowd he could tell in minute what is
the matter with them. They are over
trained worse than any football team
ever saw. You can hear them drilling
imaginary troops all night long in their
sleep, and can see the lights OF many
cigarettes up and down the barrack
room for a long time after taps, and
some men smoking and walking around
outside at almost any hour OF the night
However, this phase of our training
to be leaders of men in actual warfare
will soon come to an end. The next two
weeks will be devoted to reviewing and
consolidating all the different branches
of the work preparatory TO our taking
charge Of some new regiment on Sep
TENDER /. On August Ia they are plan.
ming to have what might be compared
with the graduation exercises at West
Point. Most of the men will not know
whether they will get a commission, an
invitation to attend the next camp or q
discharge until that time.
There are going to be some heart
breaking disappointments, some mis-
takes, some Injustice, but il is the
unanimous opinion of every man in the
camp that our instructors have done
their damndest to pick the best men q
they have found them, regardless q
who they are or where they came from.
/ q
for much longer than three months, but
they won't be able to fool the privates
in the National Army.
Great Many Extra Officers
The War Department is going to Is.
sign great many extra officers TO each
regiment as assistant instructors, but
we are convinced that the main purpose
for this arrangement is to have trained
men ready at minutes notice to jump
in and take the places of those officers
who do not make good, so that the pub.
lie may rest assured that by the time
our army is ready to start for France Il
will be Offered by the best Of those
that the War Department has had at It's
disposal.
II didn't seem possible that there was
so much to learn or that one. could
learn so much in so short a time. II
has been a tremendous task, done under
high pressure all the way, and too much
praise cannot be given to both our in.
structors and the men.
Six months on the border was worth
six years of armory work. Three
months az Fort Myer, following those
six months on the border, has de.
veloped the material for officers who
will surprise every one.
We are overturned, anxious and ner.
vous, but we are ready-and not afraid
to tackle the tremendous task before Us.
SARGEANT HILL