The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1922-05-04
A Soldier Speaks.
To the Editor, The Washington Herald:

To the Editor. The Washington Herald:
am not a trouble-seeking busy
body and I am not rallying to John
Dos Passos' defense. He needs no
defense in this country. which does
not maintain a Siberia for those
who dare speak the truth in the
face of their government, but it
does seem as though a person who
impresses one as having served
overseas in a combat outfit, who
has undergone the hardships. rig
ors, fears and hopes of actual war
fare and not as fought at lie Mans,
Tours. Blois or Paris in a mahog-
any chair; who has lived the SOL
dier's life and thought the soldiers
thoughts. must have dwarfed
vision or else seeks promotion or
to curry favor from his immediate
superiors, to set down in black and
white and. worse. to have signed
his name to such a scathing and
distorted criticism of the truth and
facts as they existed.
John Dos Passes readers already
number in the thousands and his
book will be included among the
best sellers before long. 1t is the
one book that should be read by
every former service member of a
combat division because ii is the
absolutely authentic book Of the
war from the enlisted mans view
point and tells their story for them.
l would recommend the book to all
who served in the service of sup
ply or who would like to know
something about conditions and
life at the front. on any old sector
in any old outfit of the A. Z. F.
Jose Passos paints vivid and
truthful picture of a buck private.
his criticisms are just and true and
the truth is hard to hear some
times. hence the cry of an army
non-com who favors rigid silence.
A close student of people the
world over would know that to cur
tail the distribution of the truth
breeds Bolshevism quicker than
anything else and it will be a sad
day for this country and the world
when the government establishes a
Siberia for those who dare assert
themselves in the face of loss of
personal freedom.
As to the officers l do not think
the author intends to convey to the
American public the point that our
army was PrussianiZed for to at
tempt as much would be to insult
the intelligence of the American
public. 1t is undeniably true that
there were isolated cases such as
Hard Boiled" Smith and Col. Peek.
however. speaking from a personal
viewpoint, and /, having spent eigh-
teen months in France. landing
there in September. 1917, had ample
opportunity to look em over" to
use the vernacular, from front
line trench vantage point found
them to be a decidedly humane lot.
and at the same time sufficiently
strict disciplinarians to control
their men at all times; that much
in fairness to the officers OF the A
E F.
The BOYS have been out of the
uniform three years now and have
had ample opportunity for protest,
yet We have heard no hue and cry
about inhumane treatment at the
hands of their former officers. and
even though the question is
mooted one pro and con. and grant
ing that there were a few bad ones.
we should not condemn the whole
barrel of apples because 1t contains
two or three rotten ones. l am Tor
the officers and think Don Jose Is
every whit as strong for them ana
would commend my statements.
Neither do l read of any memo
rails being erected to the dasning
Y. M. C. A. coffee men by contribu-
tions from former doughboys. l per-
sonally believe that my regiment
had the best Y. NJ. C. A. secretary in
the A. Z. F. with them for sixty
days, but when we entralned tor
another sector. Mr.. -- was leI' pc
hind and we never again met one
who even approached this man In
deeds or manners, which only iliu-
strates the old adage that there is
good to be found everywhere and IN
everything II We are ourselves ohIS
willing to see the good as we'll as
the evil. 1 could not in. fairness to
myself or in simple justice to any
OF my former buddies. commend the
work of the ~" but will say that IN
spots they proved themselves hIe
savers in more ways than one.
J. A. c.