The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1917-09-27
HOME READING COURSE
for CITIZEN SOLDIERS
Issued ~ the War Department and All
Rights to Reprint ReserUed
MAKING GOOD AS A SOLDIER.

the American character and Ideals. lC
is great democratic army. 1t includes
men Of all degrees of wealth and edu-
cation, chosen through fair and open
selection by lot. All are brought to-
gether on terms of equality. There has
been and there will be in this great
national army no favOritiSm and no
pull" The poor man will drill side by
side with the man who has been raised
In luxury. Each will learn from the
other. The place each man makes for
himself will be determined by his own
work and ability.
The commissioned officers of the first
contingent are picked men who have
voluntarily gone through the hardest
kind of training. The officers of later
contingents will be drawn largely from
the men enlisted in the first cont1n-
gents. There is plenty of opportunity
here for every man to use his brains
and his energy and to earn promotion
according to his worth. This does not
mean easy or quick advancement. 1t
means only that you will have your
fair chance-and you would ask for
nothing more-to develop yourself and
to climb upward step by step.
In order to make good in the Ma
tiona1 army you must, first Of all, fit
yourself to carry with credit the SIM
pie title of American Citizen-Soldier"
-one of the proudest titles in the
xx,orId nyb;e ynoo1C %hof v0r1 Yuuct do
velop in yourself the qualities Of sol
der. The more quickly and thorough
ly you cultivate them, the greater VIII
be your satisfaction and success.
There is very little real difference
Of opinion as to soldierly qualities.
They have been determined by ages OF
experience. Weapons change, but the
soldiers who handle the weapons re-
main much the same.
There are three basic qualities, with
out which no man can be real SOL
der even though he may temporarily
wear uniform. They are:
Loyalty.
Obedience.
Physical fitness.
A man without these qualities is In
the way and is a source of weakness
to an army, both in the camp and on
the field of battle.
The articles of war in the United
States set forth the military crimes
which are punishable by heavy penal
ties. Among these crimes are deSer-
ton, cowardice, differentiation, drunk
enness while on duty, sleeping while
on duty as a sentinel, disclosing the
watchword, and giving aid or comfort
to the enemy. Run over this list and
you will see that every one of these
military crimes can result only from
the absence of one or more of the three
basic qualities of a soldier.
A soldiers loyalty governs, first of
all, his feelings and actions toward
his country his government and his
flag. There can be no such thing as
halfway loyalty. The slightest COM
promise opens the door to treason.
But soldiers loyalty does not stop
here. 1t governs also his feelings and
actions toward the army and toward
all the officers under whom he serves.
1t absolutely forbids disobedience
among both officers and enlisted men,
or disrespect toward those in authority.
Going a step farther, loyalty gov
ems also the soldiers feelings and
actions toward his own regiment, his
own company and his own squad.
Without this form Of loyalty there can
be no real cOmradeship; without it you
will never feel that personal pride and
satisfaction in the service which should
mean so much in your army life.
The second of the soldiers basic
qualities is obedience, based on dis
cipline. Without obedience and dis
cipline an army cannot long continue
to exist; it will quickly degenerate into
an armed mob. AS the infantry drill
regulations put it, discipline is ''the
distinguishing mark of trained troops"
Frequently the recruit, with his in
born dislike of being bOssed, makes the
mistake during his first few weeks in
the army of resenting the fact that i'm
mediate and unquestioning obedience
is required of him. He quickly learns,
however, that obedience enforced
throughout the army is in all situa-
lions the chief safeguard of the rights,
the comfort and the safety Of every
man, from the raw recruit to the COM
handing general. 1t is a guarantee
that the small number of unruly or
cowardly men to be found in every
group shall be kept in check and forced
to comply with rules made for the
benefit of all.
Military discipline is always imper-l
sonal. Obedience is required not
merely of you, but of every man in the
army. It is required of officers by
their superiors with fully as much
strictness as it is required Of you. It
will become your duty, whenever you
are given authority over other men, to
demand from them the same full meas
ure of obedience that others will re-
quire Of you.
Discipline is not only essential in de-
veloping the army, but also in develop
ing your own character as a soldier.
"The soldier who is by nature BRAVE,
will by discipline become Drawer"
The third basic quality, physical fit
ness, is so essential that large part
of the time devoted to your training
will be spent in building 1t up. Physical
fitness includes not only muscular de-
yelopment but good health and en-
durance as well. 1t is quality which
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