The public ledger. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968, 1920-08-20
ARMY DEMOCRATIC
IN ITS ATHLETICS,
GENERAL SAYS
Briggdier General Shows That Private
Has Same Show as Officers In
Athletic of the Army.

Il wish some of the people who put
up loud cried about how our Army has
ben Prussianized could have cast an
obseryant eye on the nine representa-
tives of the Regular Army on the
Olympic track and boxing teams, who
are now in Antwerp. Four are enlisted
men; five are officers. Every man
Jack of them won his place because
he put out the others. In the Army
finals at st. Louis / saw officers and
men in the hardest kind of competi-
ton, and when soldier put is over
the officer, he got the decision
This was Brigadier General Edward
]. McGlachlin saying it. He commands
the Seventh Division, which won the
Central Department meet and is send
ing more successful competitors to
Antwerp than any other division, The
General made the point that when it
came to any such foolish idea as that
an officer couldn't engage in competi-
ton with his men, somebody was
spoofing the public, officers and men
on the Army Olympic team won their
places by sheer merit,
why" exclaimed General McGlach-
lin, Lieutenant Joseph Cranston, our
snappy middleweight, Tough his way
through many hard-hitting soldier
men in the ranks before he won the
distinction of representing Uncle
Sans Army at Antwerp. On the other
hand Sergeant Tod Schneider, the
Army's light heavy; Private Fred Kol-
berg, welterweight; Sergeant E. j.
Fowler, lightweight, and Jrivate John
Lesser, fiyweight, all pounded their
way through .regimental, divisional,
and departmental preliminary bouths,
putting out many a contender before
they were picked for the big show"
General McGlachlin went on to say
1t was the same in the field and track
events, and in swimming and wrest-
ling. All this is no new thing in the
peace-time Army, as any old soldier
knows. There has to be discipline and
during the World War ours was the
best in Europe because the relations of
officers and soldiers were guided by a
sense of duty, determination to win,
and by sympathetic mutual under
standing and interest. But that bust
ness is over, the discipline necessary
to a desperate campaign against a
ruthless enemy has relaxed, and Off
Ger and ma mare equals not only in
participation in athletics, but in all
activities not of necessity requiring
the obedience essential to leadership
and teamwork.
Speaking of discipline" added Gen
eral McGlachlin, who has been in the
Army more than 80 years, an. peace
| time it is reserved for the strictly mil
itary relation. You will find discipline
in industry. You can no more put
loaded rifles and pistols in the bands
of great number of men without
strictlys enforcing general plan OF
condct than you ca nset men to work
running passenger trains, or handling
great converters filled with tons OF
molten STEEL withous supervision. Sc
where the profession of arms is main
tanned you have and always will have
discipline-public safety demands it
But in the field of sport, the attitude OF
the Army always is, May the best man
win
IF, as we are so fond of saying here
sport is one of the best social Jewelers.
then the Army is one of the most dem
ocratic institutions in America