The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1918-06-02
ONLY SCHOOL FOR
CHAPLAINS WILL
GRADUATE CLASS

LOUISVILLE. KY, June 1.-ine onis
School of Chaplains ever maintdlneu
by.the United States army soon WIZ
graduate its second class at Cdlnp
Zachary Taylor. There are ninety
students in the class which Is lhaue W
OF ministers of many denominations,
some of whom until recently, serseu
as pastors Of big city churcnes- oome
OF the graduates already have Deen
commissioned as chaplains while otn-
ers are approved candidates for CHAP
lain awaiting appointment.
No instruction on theological supJects
Is ATTEMPTED at the school. The whoie
effort is conferred upon fitting clergy
men. fresh from civilian life ana the
problems of civils life, into the military
scheme of things.
If Private Bill Jones gets what ne
considers a raw deal" from his cap
tain, ten chances to one, he Will finu
it convenient to talk the matter over
with his chaplain, for 1t is to the CHAP
lain the buddy goes in time OF
trouble. When Bill Jones appears with
his tale of woe, he must get SYM
pathetic hearing, and then II he mas
been wrong all the time, and his injury
is but fancied the chaplain must know
enough of military law and military
regulations to tell him definitely just
how and why what was done to Bill
was the right thing. Therefore, the
School for ChapIains bears down hard
on instruction in military law and the
army regulations.
If Bill is in tine right, the chaplain
if he is polite, Will not tell Bill SO,
but will suggest that he see him again.
In the meantime the chaplain has seen
-
such unintentional injustice as may
have been done is rectified before Bill
comes back How it was done Bill
may never exactly know, but if theI
chaplain had lacked the knowledge OF
just how to go about the thing the in
Justice under which he suffered mlgh
have gone uncorrected.
In the words of one or the tnStruc-
tors at the school this is not intended
to make of the chaplain guard house
lawyer, but merely to fit him to give
intelligent advice to soldiers.
II the men in the army are to look to
a chaplain, it is necessary that he
have their confidence to the smallest
detail. And, as the men of the National
Army, are rapidly becoming expertsl
there must be no risk of their coming
to regard the chaplain with the half
contemptuous amusement the experts
feel for an amateur, because of any
lack of knowledge of military customs
on the chaplain's part. For this rea-
son great attention is paid also to I'M
struction in military yetiquette.
The chaplains class is also laugh
the very highest of high spots in in
ternational law. In addition there isl
struction in military etiquette.
and clnthinpr n tho field fnrl
the chaplain follows the men with
whom Sc serves into trenches and may
frequently Ego over the top" with
them. If not he will be found assist
ing in the care of wounded men on
the field under fire. Under such con-
ditions, he, like every one else con-
nected with an army In the field, must
shift for himself and must know how. |
While attending the School of Chap
lains, the students are quartered in
barracks originally built for enlisted
men; they get government straight to
eat three times a day, and they wash
up the mess kits from which they e.
just as would any enlisted men in
addition they sleep on the same straw
filled mattresses to be found on the
beds of the enlisted men,
In this way they are learning some
thing of the conditions under which an
enlisted man lives and works, and
most of them are finding the expert
ences really enjoyable. Their attituee
is summarized in the answer to al
query given by one of them who said !
'Oh boy This bunch of preachersl
never knew how good real food could
taste or how soft a straw tick could
be until they started putting us
through this course of sprouts eleven
and one half hours every day.
The school is in charge Of Major A. |
A. Pruden, Regular Army Chaplain |
and he is assisted by four instructors
all drawn from the Regular Army.