The New York herald., 1920-11-07
NAVY CLASSES SPLIT
IN TWO BY HAZING
300 Plebes Secluded From
Contact With Upper
Class Men.
BREAKS ACADEMY POLICY
Situation Prevents MiddieS
From Necessary Drill in
Command.

ececioI Despatch 70 THE New YonK HEaALn
As.SAroLIs, Nov. 6.-Nothing like the
present situation at the Naval Academy
hss existed during the previous history
OF that institution. and there are no signs
OF change in the near future The
student body is divided into two sections
jim one the 900 members OF the fourth.
or entering, class, and in the other the
uemainder Of the midshipmen, something
over 1900. The two groups might oe
students Of different institutions so Tar
az contact with each other is concerned.
Tho fourth class men, ''plebes" they
ere called at the Academy. occupy one
wing of Bancroft Hall, the great build
ing IN which the midshiprnen are quar-
tered. and watch of officers and mid
sh,prnen officers is established m the
corridor wh ch connects that section with
tbe main building. The two groups are
separated at drill. on the athletic field.
when on liberty in Annapolis. and even
when they are formed into squads 10
attend mo Annapolis churches on Sun
day morning.
IIazing is at the bottom OF this situa-
ton. for Rear Admiral a. II. Scales,
superintendent Of the Academy. takes
one view OF the subject and the majority
OF the members OF tho first class. from
whom the midshipmen officers are Sc
lected, do not meet his wishes as to the
manner in which they are willing to per-
Sorn their duties. Therefore Superin-
tendent Scales has ordered that the up
per class men must not be permitted 10
have any part in the training. discipline
and drill Of the new mldshipmen and
has placed the latter so that the older
students can have nothing at all 20 DO
with them
Revival of Having.
Nazing was supposed to have been
laid away at the Naval Academy, but
the nidsh!prnen do not seem to be will
ing to let it stay in the ground. In
spite Of repeated pledges the practice
revives, and there has probably been
no period Of any length during which
there has not been more or less or the
practice. This year there has been
some. but all agree that there has been
little of IL. and that mono has been severe
I'm its character.
This Is not enough for Superintendent
Scales. however. He insists that every
vestige of haz.ng shall be wiped out
officers pursue an energetic course III
stopping every bit OF 1t. and here Is the
point of Issue between them. The mid
shipnen officers did not see their way
TO insure the superintendent that they
could meet his wishes and the segrega-
tion followed.
The Issue between the upper class men
and Admiral Scales turns on the distlnc-
tion between haziDg proper and run
ming" which consists OF interference
with an under class man without physi-
cal violence or contact, such as requiring
him to sing or tell story or to sc
through physical exercises Apparent,
tho rnidshlpmen think. and many o.
tlcry, have said go that the traditions oi
she Academy take this out OF the mean
ing OF hazIng.
W Results Are Serious.
This Is entirely a schoolboy notion
such practices as are termed run
ming are Just az much contrary &c
tho law, which precisely defines tnt
practice az physical violence toward
tho mid. lipnan. It has been so de-
clared time after time by courts mar
t!al and IN other official and suthorita'
tive ways. Yet so attached are many