Evening star., 1919-08-31
HE commissioned personnel OF
the Regular Army owes to it
l self thorough pruning of the

TIME commissioned personnel OIL
the Regular Army owes to it
self a thorough pruning of the
deadwood from it's body. The
unfit and inefficient of the Army have
brought against it a feeling that can
hardly be described. Such an atti-
tude toward regular officers as
against the body is wholly without
warrant, the result of the retention
tn places of responsibility of hard
shelled, antiquated men. kept there
only because the Army has been
too tolerant and has observed too
faithfully it's long-standing spirit of
zone for all and all for one another
The intolerable spirit of the maru-
net in some of these officers. wnom
their colleagues know very we'll ought
10 have been eliminated from the
Army long since, is responsible lot the
hostility which many civll1an oncers
bear to the regular establishment. 10
give an example. a civilian omcer
charged with the care OF the camp
guardhouse was at his station IN
battalion parade. commotlon OF
some sort was raised in the guard
house. He turned his head to ind out
the trouble.
The "old school, regular in COM
mand, with his eagle eye, detected the
fault, called the young of1cer oeiore
him and gave him reprimand when
lasted thirty-two minutes before the
whole command. The absurdity OF
such conduct on the part OF the su-
perior was no surprise to the regular
officers who knew his reputation The
civilian officer asserts that or the
hve regulars that he came directly
hn
were able officers and considerate
men. But the action of the hard
baked" left stigma upon the whole
Army officer personnel. for which they
have no one to thank but themselves
Some officers say there is no way
be gotten rid of. Today a court
martial is the only remedy; and the
officers would rather do the work for
such man and carry him along,
through sympathy-often for his fam
lily, sometimes for him, to the injury
of the service-than resort to such
a measure. But those same officers
know very we'll that a court-marttal
is the sole remedy. only because they
themselves have not asked Congress
for some effective means of having
such timber eliminated automatically.
1t is difficult to comprehend the
harm the relatively few officers of
such type work against the Army.
Admissions. that could not be avoid
ed. of barbaritieS practiced against
American Army prisoners in France
through the connivance of officers OF
this type or the neglect of their su
periors. has thrown a stumbling block
to enlistments in the Regular Army
that Is difficult to get over Reflec
tions from that error come to this
country: and reports. although not
admitted or authenticated. that SINH
lar practices against military pris-
oners prevail in Leavenworth and
other prisons in the United States
are having very bad effect against
the Army.
This is all due to the course of
few officers who are unfit for the
service. either because they permit
the abuse of prisoners or have not
efficiency or astuteness enough to de-
tect and prevent it in their subor-
dinates. Thus far no officers of rank
have been. as far as the public knows,
investigated for this admitted injus-
tice, but it is absurd to expect the
public to acquit those officers who
were, or who ought to be. held re-
sponsible upon the easy statement
that it was the fault of the subordi-
nate officer.
None know better than do the eff
cient officers of the Army that it was
the duty of some officer of rank to
put an end to such practice: and those
fact that their tolerance of any such
course for the sake of old acquaint-
ance Is a neglect of a plain duty to
the enlisted men and to their own
order.
Investigating committees cannot
pick out the responsible men. but
Army officers can, and they can rely
upon the support of Congress if they
will take the steps that are needed
for a thorough housekeeping that
will restore order and cleanliness.
X
Secretary of War Bakers indorse-
ment of the Herman report on the ad-
ministration of
Herman Report on military justice
must be taken to
Military Trials. mean that in the
absence of congressional action the
in n