The Wilmington morning star., 1946-02-08
Fair Enough
Copyright, 1886 By king Features syndica
By WEsTBRoOK PEGLER

BY WESTBROOK PEGLER
Copyright, 1916, By king Features syndicate.)
| Many letters from rebellious American serv-
icemen protesting against nasty little impo-
sitions inflicted by young officers who would
seem to have been well-schooled in the priv
leges of rank but to have learned little about
the responsibilities. Several o cavalrymen
have saluted the late General George Patton
as one who in his junior days knew and en-
forced the rights OF the enlisted soldiers. BY
| contrast, the criticisms, most OF them I'M
fortunately general rather than specific, re-
port that many junior officers used their rank
to snatch up fountain-pens, watches and other
paltry luxuries which came in the PIX sup
plies and ieeps to attend parties exclusively
for officers They had better quarters and
food ana estranged themselves from the en-
listed people, being more interested in Ger
man women than in their obligations to their
own countrymen in the ranks.
The complaints against government COM
mitments and policy seem less valid because
neither the servicemen nor the civilians at
home know what these commitments are or
what the nation, through Congress, will under
take in the policing of enemy countries, the
manning of outposts and the salvage OF Aner1-
lean property.
Many Of the writers bitterly resent the i'm
position on veteran soldiers of juvenile
| SoO4 oSS LII SdluIu1g anu Lie pOIllpOSAty dAO
Indifference of high officers who are accused
| Of turning them out in bad weather for in
| spect1ons and reviews and keeping them wait
ing. The latter certainly is no novelty for
some generals, since long ago, have thought
1t somehow good for division OF soldiers to
await the royal pleasure of the boss who
might then stride by, or even ride by in a
car accompanied by high officers of some
Allied Army, and show off his troops like
4 well .di Scinlinad animals rO111S
have been such stupid, vain, and self-impor-
tant fools in the high ranks and such selfish
and petty squirts in the junior grades in the
American services in this war passes under
standing
General Marshall IL a Pershing man, to be
sure and Pershing was cold, inconsderate
commander. But Marshall, himself, is we'll
hammered, modest and not one to strut his
own importance for its own sake at the ex-
pense Of the comfort and self respect of the
enlisted soldier. Patton, also, was a Pershing
man but, notwithstanding the slapping Incl
dent had way with soldiers which begot
confidence and, with most Of them, respect.
Somewhere between the top and the ranks
there must have been slackness, inattention
and incompetence If these reports are true.
A man in General Eisenhowers position In
Germany would accuse himself Of serious
failure if such widespread selfindulgence and
neglect set In under his command and pro-
gressed, without correction from the top, un-
til it caused mutinous demonstrations. He and
General Macarthur had the power that every
general fears who Is lolling In luxury and
corroding the morale Of the soldiers by set
ting them unnecessarily to mental jobs and
basing lessons. No general wants to be sent
home tagged a failure at the climax of his
career, and the mere threat Of this usually
is sufficient to brighten a fat-head from his
splendid complacency and send the same i'm
pulse all the way down the line. And certainly
no high commander has right to say he
didn't know this sort Of dirty work was going
on, If it was, for with efficient staff work
such evils could not 60 unnoticed long.
! Meanwhile, however, as great a mystery,
if all these grievances are real, has been the
absolute failure OF the civilian correspondents
to report this rot. 1t seems to have set in
since the shooting stopped and therefore some
good reporter should have used his eyes and
| ears and his sense OF something stirring to
| get the truth. To say that censorship forbade
such repetitions is pathetic. Suppose a cor
respondent were fired and even discredited
for time. Meanwhile, he would have scared
the gold bricks and put the high generals on
warning that bad trouble was brewing. And,
if l know the newspaper business, not many
executives in the home office would have
thrown down a reporter whose past record
and personal character commanded their con-
fidence. Meanwhile, also, such corruption, so
dangerous to the nation and 50 detrimental
to the Army and Navy in the opinion Of the
whole people, would have been abated if not
cured 1t was not merely a risk worth rum
ming. 1t was the duty which a reporter as
sumes In compensation for the right of free
press.
At present, it would appear either that ex-
ceptional incidents have been magnified into
a general condition or that the civilian re-
porters, with their privileges and the great
power Of the press behind them, have Topped
on easy job. If these conditions are as bad
as they have been depicted, it should not
have been necessary for enlisted men to break
into mutinous disorders or for service publ
cations to expose the corruption.