Evening star., 1942-09-03
Graduates Of Officer
Training Schools Win
Army's High Praise
Men Destined to Play
VituI Roles When War
Gets Toughest
BY WILLIAM r. BONI,
yJiJo World Military Editor

Wide World Military Editor.
WITH UNITED STATES ARMY
ON DESERT TRAINING MA
NEUVERS, Sept. 3.-From both
ends of the Army ladder, the en-
listed man and the commanding
general, you will hear little but
praise for the officer candidate
schools which are providing the
bulk of the line officers for our tre-
mendous citizen army and will
have to produce an even larger
proportion as the war goes on.
The enlisted man likes the OCS
graduate because the officer has
been an enlisted man himself,
usually a selectee, and therefore
has exceptional sympathy and un-
derstanding for those in the ranks.
The general, usually a veteran of
World War I, likes the OCS product
because he can, from personal recol-
lection, compare him favorably to
the "90-day wonders" of the last
war.
Army whether it be on maneuvers
in Carolina or California, or in
base camp at Fort Monmouth, N. j.,
or Camp Polk, La.
Ranked by Enlisted Men.
Among enlisted men, in fact,
there is an almost universally ac-
.cepted ranking system for.sstheir
Junior officers in which West Fpint-
ers come first indicating, perhaps,
that even Johnny Doughboy agrees
there should be proper amount of
discipline in the Army, the OCS
graduates second and the Reserve
and National Guard officers bring
up the rear.
The men who 60 to officer can
didate schools are hand-picked and
until recent months were chosen
usually after minimum of 10
months service in the ranks. With
constant expansion that no longer
can be true, and in the Armored
Force, for one example, men are
being picked for OCS out of the re-
placement centers where they get
their basic training.
There is no escaping the fact that
the second lieutenants turned out by
| these schools-and each branch OF
the service has its oWn-are going
to play vital role in our military
operations. To cite Maj. Gen. ia
cob L. Devers, chief of the Armored
Force:
This Army is made up of lot OF
young officers, and they're going to
win the war for us. They're coming
out of officer candidates schools in
growing numbers, and it's up to you
(field officers) to give them expert
ence and make them deliver"
Examined Closely.
While in some cases company
commanders will recommend men
under them for OCS, the customary
procedure is for a soldier to file an
application on his own initiative.
If it has the approval Of hi
commander, he then is called ur
before an examining board which
grades him on his physical fitness
his bearing, civilian schooling, rec
ord as an enlisted man, special
civilian training if any, etc. He
must get a rating of 10 per cent OF
better from this board before his
application can be forwarded on tt
the particular school for which ht
, has applied.
Taking the Armored Force school
as an example, here are some OF
| the things q candidate learns ano
, does during the 13-week course:
Gunnery, in which he is taught
to handle and fire all weapons usec
: by his branch, from the tommy gul
! to the 75-mm. and beyond.
Tactics, including map-reading
reconnaissance and the employment
of tanks in combat.
Command, learned by the prac
teal method of breaking up tn,
student body" into companies, will
student company commanders, jun
ior officers and NCO's right OF
down the line, on rotating basi
which gives each man a chance a
the various posts.
t Reaches All Branches.
= Tanks, their construction, opera
q ton and maintenance, and tn
same for wheeled vehicles.
Mess management, supply, com
pany administration. first aid an
hygiene and military law.
That is a skeleton outline of
course which keeps the men bus
= six days a week, for eight hours
: day of classroom or field instruc
IL ton and three hours night G
study.
:, Out of it, and correspondent
> courses at Fort Benning Gnfantry
). Fort Sill (fleld artillery, Fort Mon
9 mouth (Signal Corps and school,
g throughout the country, come tn
" men who will be up in the line whe
C our Army really swings into actio
. and the going gets toughest.