Evening star., 1918-05-19
OUR SOLDIERS "OVER. THERE"
ARE CLEAN IN MIND AND BODY
Religious Investigator Finds Standards
High, and That Men Are Living
Up to the Standards

of the American Expeditionary Force
are better, morally and physically
than were these same young men at
of their fellows at home.
This Army is cross-section Of
lAmerican life. The soldiers come from
all parts of the country and all walks
of life. True. they are picked men;
but this scarcely accounts for the
prevalence or even the dominance OF
the college type. An observer would
/ say that nine-tenths OF the soldiers
were at least graduates of American
i high schools. In addressing them
found them. save for the uniforms. re-
! that ] have found in the colleges OF
] America. One would no more think
i of talking down" to these young men
than to the University of Pennsylva-
i mia students. The popularity of seri-
Gus lectures. even along technically
of the Army to visitors.
| Among these men. however. are
some who are accustomed to drink
ing and getting drunk when they are
at home. But they cannot get drunk
| here Others are habituated to other
forms of vice: their opportunities in
=, the Army are either restricted or nom
existent. Some young men, whose vir-
tue was wholly in their environment
and who could not stand transplant
ing 10 dlleH HdNc SohS
wrong. tragically wrong. But they
are the few rather than the many.
This Army in France is a revelation
of the strength and Independence OF
character of young American man
hood. These boys are not the sort
to be seduced by the first bibulous
companion or painted prostitute they
encounter.
II anybody wants to know what the
American Expeditionary Force looks
like. with respect to character. intel
iligence and health. he has but to
look upon the most representative
group of young American men at
home and increase it's efficiency in all
those three respects, and he Will ma
what he seeks. The boys here are
true to type.
They are the home boys. only more
So That is. home has a stronger hold
on them here than it ever had before
the war. They see 1t in perspective
and in relationship. They have mad
opportunity to make comparisons
better sons. better lovers. than in the
old days In passing. it may be SAID
that the home folk should be giving
thought as to how well they are 60
ing to live up to the idealized concep-
tion .of them which the soidiers nave
heart of soldier is the one who Is
busy about self-improvement and edu-
ca tion as he is; for he has been do
ing a deal of growing since he sailed
from an Atlantic port.
Nothing in all these crowded expe-
riences with the soldiers has I'M
pressed me more than the way IN
which they are thinking things over.
There has come a great mental eman-
cipation to the men They are seeing seeing
new lands, new customs. new codes;
They are meeting comrades from al!
over their own country. Night and
day they are thinking and talking
about what they have seen. and about
what is to be the future OF the world.
and about what they themselves are
to do after the war. The whole earth
has come newly into their horizon.
This adventure has given US sud-
denly a generation of American cos
mopolites. All things are going INTO
the scales of their fresh and fearless
judgments. They are passing an
things in review before tneir freshly
aroused intelligence. from God above
TO the French methods of raising and
cooking vegetables
So far as can learn. this expe-
rience is making better Americans
and better Christians and better men
of them.