Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1918-09-20
ON THE MAKING
OF A SOLDIER
CONTINUED from page four

fllNHENl VIII Nv NNWl 'NHNiNfNHNfF' Ff
those who brought II on, The more
thoroughly you sift the facts a. 10 the
methods which have been employed In
the conduct Of the war, the iercer viii
be your anger against those responsible
for them The more completely you
understand the political Ideals which
are struggling for the mastery Of the
world, tho more fixed win be your con
yiction that the triumph of Germany
would be an unspeakable disaster The
more you study into the conflict the
deeper will be your appreciation mat
il IL no more quarrel over boundaries
or trade advantages, although these
may be involved In II, but that IN
essence II is war for the maintcn'
ance on the earth Of liberty and Justice
and Christianity itself
And the deeper your sense OF these
things the more effective you viii be as
n soldier and az leader Of soldiers
Mercenari0s never fought like free citi'
2cns They fight hardest who know
what they are fighting for, and the
greater your intelligence on the issues
of the conflict, the deeper your appre'
citation of the ideals IL Is in the heart
Of our nation 10 maintain, the larger
will be your usefulness to your country
No man is too good TO be a soldier
and the larger the man, the more high'
" developed in mind, the farther adj,
vanced in culture, the purer ana
worthier in soul and spirit, the better
he will be M n soldier You can not
make a man in day. but the process
Of development is greatly quickened 10y
lofty and immediate incentives and by
tho stimulus Of participation in great
events The studont.soldicrs Of today
have this great advantage and those
who respond to IL will take to them
selves stature Of manhood even IN a
brief period Of preparation altogether
beyond our normal expectations,
II is noteworthy that our colleges
have been selected az the training
places of what is Judged TO be promis'
ing officer material for the large in
crement Of our armies. II may be pre-
sumod that they have not been chosen
for this purpose merely because they
have dormitories and dining halls. hut
because of what they are as education
al institutions, Consistent with mill
tary requirements and discipline, the
more of the normal atmosphere and m
fuence of college we can preserve the
greater will be our success. We want
You to feel that you are college stud
cnts. and students Of this college in
particular. You viii he required to do
college work. MANY of you, we hope
most of Won, will desire to return to
college after your military services
The best that we have and al that
we have is at your DISPOSAL. We cx'
pect YOU to govern yourselves, not only
MS soldiers of the United States but as
Young gentlemen in an institution DE-
voted TO culture. An officer in the
United States Army is additionally a
gentlemen and tNe standG"ds Of GER"
manly conduct may well govern his
period Of training. .
I understand that on October ! !
shall be asked to submit list of men
recommended ms candidates for the
Middleburv College unit of the
Students Army Training Corps. Since
our rating and standing will depend on
the proportion Of tho mon r""ormonded
who are found worthy for the purposes
the War Department has in mind ~
its cooperation with the colleges, !
shall ask our Faculty to cooperate ac'
tivelv with me in the next two weeks
in sitting out any who do not deserve
recommendation ms promising material
whether from failure in character. con
dud. or scholarship. We have tried
thus far TO admit no ono who has not .
fair chance to succeed, Success will
mean admission TO tho greatest on
rortunitv ever afforded to Young men
of your age and the largest privilege
of responsible service that will come to
YOU in all Your lives. For your own
sake for our sake. andfor our country 5
sake we wish Won success
I realize that my remarks this morn
inc have been directed quite partially
to the men, which was perhaps newt
able. But responsibility for success in
our present endcavor does not rest en-
tirclv with those on my right The
women also have duty to perform, and
they NAV be very helpful or they may
hinder very seriously
Deep in the rock fortress of Verdum
there is flag borne by a woman
centuries ago at the head of the vic
torious armies of France. 1t is the
standard of Joan of Are, guarded all
these years as the symbol of the beauty
of the soul Of France, and now en-
trusted to the uncomfortable defenders
of the most coveted fortress of the
heroic nation, beyond which the Hun
shall not pass.
Fifteen miles to the west of us, on
the lake which bears the name of the
great French explorer of the early 18th
century, at point which was once the
farthest outnost of the French empire,
is a bit of bronze wrought by the
greatest of French sculptors and pre-
scented by the French people to the
people of America. 1t is the face of a
pure maiden and the name beneath it
is La France This is the France for
which the worlds best soldiers fight,
a nation symbolized by woman 8 face.
It is for the women of Middlebury,
by the seriousness and earnestness of
their spirit, by the dignity and poise
thew exhibit in daily conduct. by the