Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-10-05
"DANDIES" MAKE
SNAPPY FIGHTERS
Neatness Is One of the First
Rules a Soldier Must
Learn
By T. R. G. FOX

ODEFORE he went into the army he
ID never took care of his clothes. Ills
trousers were never creased His necltie
did not 1T right Stains appeared on his
vest and did not disappear TIL he got a
new suit. lie was clean enough but he
didn't look clean, somehow. But now he is
so careful about himself-it's incredible.
He's becoming a dandy"
who has not heard this sort Of comment
about some young man who has made up
his mind to SO to the war?
Clothes may not make the man in civilian
life, but they certainly help In the army.
In fact, the military "dandies" make the
best soldiers nlnety-nine times out Of one
hundred.
Civilians may doubt the assertion. Not
so the military. The opinion virtually is
unanimous that the young officers or en-
listed men who arc neat and immaculate
almost to the point Of fastidiousness make
good at a more rapid pace and rise higher
than their more careless brethren.
OF course every one will admit that it
would DO foolish and impossible to turn
out an army Of enlisted men as tailor
mades." Kingdom Gould admitted that in
| lNO NlllNS VI an tNtldSl NllSli ic Nlsiill''''N
an adventurous and misunderstanding tailor
from an army cantonment the other day
Yet the fact remains that neatness is writ
ten over virtually every page of the sol
diers catechism.
It is well known that the neater the en-
| listed man is the more his soldlerly quail
| tiles appear The same applies TO his per-
sonal cleanliness, his uniform, not TO mem
! ton his leggings, shoes and other para
| phernalia. That much has been asserted
| time and again by endless number Of army
| authorities.
| The same is true Of officers. For years
officers Of the regular army have had
reputation for their "nattiness," includ-
| ing men reputed to be among the best in
the service. Before the war, and even
today, they appear always 50 spick-and-
| span as to be easily dstinguishable as
a rule from many National Guard officers
and members Of the officers reserve
corps.
TO the civilian the army officer may ap-
! pear to have a tinge Of the bandbox air
| about him. He stands arrow straight, his
air is smart and snappy, his uniform fits
| like a glove, not to mention his boots
| and spurs, or shoes and leather leggings,
dazzling in their mirror-liie brilliancy
How often some civilian, envious per-
| haps, has watched the officer pass, only
! to imply in far less terms that he takes
himself far moro seriously than his pro-
| fession
He hates himself" is the sarcasm re-
| ferred to-
These hypercritics fail to recognize that
| the officer whose get-up is immaculate and
snappy is just what he should bc-every
| inch soldier.
The Recruits First Lesson
Such officers practice what they preach.
They are required to insist that their
! men be neat and spick-aud-span, and il
is up to them to give the example. Need
less to say, this preCiseness and nicely
evidenced by the officer in his dresS--is
something that he carries into all his other
actions and duties. In other words, he is
the ideal soldier. In European countries
the snappiness Of officers is universal. The
German officers are admitted to be the
most dandy" of all.
Recruits are taught the essentials Of
neatness and trimness in dress almost be-
fore they learn their military A, b, C's Not
only Is each told to- try to be the neatest
man in the company, but later they can
watch the commanding officer choosing an
orderly at formal guard mount. 1t is known
that the most fautlessly dressed and i'm
maculate soldier, one whose bearing is be-
] NvHu ltplOdNllt dlNdNS ~ Scletleu loF inc
post,
Not only is the honor one much sought
but when the company is doing guard duty
the orderly is tho only man to get a full
nights rest That also is not a little matter
from the soldiers point of view.
SO much stress is laid upon the enlisted
mans appearance that at military stations
and camps he often is not allowed to
leave even with n pass, unless all clothing
IS worn just as it should be and every
} | button in place
Brigadier General Price recently issued
orders at Camp Hancock that no man was
to be allowed 70 leave the camp without
| wearing the regulation. The camp has been
} placed on a war footing, in the bargain.
The civilian critic should bear that in mind.
II is generally recognized that more army
| rifles become inaccurate and unserviceable
through lack of care than by firing. That
| is only one instance. The importance which
the War Department attaches TO the care
of equipment may be shown in the fact that
it has been made the subject of one OF the
articles of war, the eighty-fourth. Any SOL
dier who through neglect loses or spos
his arms or clothing is subject to court
martial.
Saving Shoe Leather
The keeping Of shoes clean and shined
not only improves the appearance of the
/ soldier, but saves tho leather as well The
, | same as to clothing As for the men them,
| selves, il helps to prevent disease.
Soldiers also have learned TO act at al
l times as though proud Of themselves, theii
9 | uniform and their country The enlisted
| man and officer alike owe il not only e
themselves to be neat, but also to theiI
, ! company and their country. Shabbiness il
II the army reflects not only on the man. bu
on his brothers in arms and finally On tn,
entire army
Little wonder the soldier is proud He il
c i'm class by himself. He is a member o
an honorable profession and is entitled C
respect BY his oath he willingly will NEE
hardship and sacrifice, suffering death Il
" necessary, for the sake Of his flag
s Napoleon said that of all the element
that make up battle efficiency, moral
counted IS per cent. on the other hand
the three prime requisites of the army ar
,e discipline, discipline and more discipline
c. Carelessness in anything and discpln
| do mot 20 hand i'm hand