Baxter Springs news., 1919-07-11
hElcE army 10
SEBEALL-AMERlcAN
| lEllsraiss WIn Be Drilled Men
2 gtaIN % Wei ss Phys
IN q lcalN.
Nalss FsriS Development Battalion
- Camp Upton FurnIShA Basis
ssr New AOtlvIty-spIendId
ar hosults Already Shown.


Camp Upton. L. 1.-The knowledge
gained during the war In connection
with the training and instruction Of
tlliterate and non-Engllsh speakers Ia
% b turned to account In the recruit
Ing q peace-time army.
BY direction Of the war department
thero is being established here the
Arst recruit educational CENTER" for
which 30 barracks and other build
ing1 have been Get aside, and It will
b conducted on the lines followed by
MAJ. Ralph Hall Ferris when he made
such q succeas Of development bat
TALON No. g which went out Of being
when the armistice was signed.
Major Ferris IL retiring as camp
morale Oflcer to become commander
Of the center. which IL the 0utgrOwth
0e his own plan.
Brigadier General Nicholson, camp
commander. received within q few
days the order to establish the center.
and recruiting has begun throughout
The eastern and northeastern depart
ments Of the army.
VIII % Taught English.
An illiterate or non-Engllsh-speak-
ing recruit who enllsts under the new
plan will be taught to speak English,
win receive thorough American train
ing from officers born here. and will
In addition get citizenship papers
when his enlistment term Of three
years has expired. .
Under the draft act 24.0 per cent Of
the men enlisted. or practically one
quarter Of them. were unable to read
q newspaper or write letter home.
There were 1900 such men sent here
and they were put In Major Ferris
development battalion. His method
0e training and educating them at
d.. tTacted attention In Washington. In
the notification sent to General Mich
olson by Maj. Gen. Henry Jervey, as
sistant chief Of stan, he said: "Your
camp has been selected not only
because Il is centrally located
but also because Of the excel
lent results In connection with the
teaching Of English that have been
obtained In development battalion No.
q Camp Upton"
On August n, 1918 the Sixth devel-
0Dment unit was organized and all
rockies who were llliterate or did not
gpeak English. except few who had
pAysical defects. were transferred to
r. The teachers selected were pri-
Yates or noncommisslonSd officers who
held university degrees or who were
teachers In civil life. Race was not
considered In the choosing Of officers.
70 was soon proven that squads and
Dlato0ns composed Of different nation
alities received their military instruc-
tlon a. eaally as II racial groups had
been Organised for the purpose. Only
Enelish was permitted to be spoken
q the mess halls. military formations
and general gatherings Of the men.
Instruction except IN the elementary
classes was given In English.
= Made Coed Progress.
Within three months men who could
sneak little or no English when they
catered the battalion became sufi-
elsntly proficient in military English
% fnlnn the ordinary functions of
soldiers both In organization and on
Ssparnte missions. In addition prac-
tieaIly all Of the recruits proved their
splRit Of Americanism By becoming
eleis6ha. q s.
The recruits upon being accepted
for the new center WIN be classified
aeeordlne 70 their knowledge Of Eng
1lah and assigned to battalions accord
Indy. A school Of instruction of the
illItoFate and -English-speaklng re-
erultS Is being established. The
course Of instruction viii be normally
-four. months, or six months In excep-
tional cases. The men will be classed
IN Kroups Of IS to 20 and win be grad
Cd according to the progress shown.
A board Of examiners win examine
tho recruits for classification and pre-
pars suitable tests 70 determine the
rate Oe progress especially Of slow
learning men and the reasons for their
haekWnrdneas. When the recruits
have developed sufficiently for assign
nsnt Major Ferris win report them
70 tAs adjutaPt general Of the army