The Wilmington morning star., 1946-11-05
As Pegler Sees 1t
BY WEsTBROOK PEGLER

6AS Ao
NEW YORK. Nov. 1.-The New York Times
presents a message to all troops" IN the
Philippines, signed by three generals, Chris
Hansen, commanding in the Western FacLlc,
and Eubank and Carroll, of the Air Forces,
which is a piece of self-serving political can't
more likely to impair further than 10 repair
the discipline and reputation of these Amerl-
can soldiers and their relations with the Fill
pinos.
A Times reporter had written that the Fill
pinos thought of the American troops as
''brash, ill-mannered, slovenly and contemp-
tuous children and supported this opinion,
attributed to the resident people, by descrlp-
tive matter which reflected as much on the
responsible generals as on the soldiers, them
selves, who were, he said, untidy, indifferent
to laws and ordinances governing the clVlllans
and on the whole, no credit to their country
or their uniform. There are reasons to be-
lieve that the reporter was right. Green SOL
diers are spiritually aimless KIDS these days
who disappear into an army demorallzed by
the sudden absence of an enemy by the
slackness of officers who were only killing
time until they should be paid off and by the
PROPAGANDA against discipline and the %"officer
caste" The parents Of boys OF appropriate
age are justified in fears that clean, ambl-
tious sons may become cynlcs and loaters.
'"The commanding generals feel that we
must tell you, our soldiers, that we belleVe
this condemnation is unwarranted by the Facts
of our behavior and we resent this attack on
you" the message to all troops says.
recognize that you are not trained soldiers
since it takes considerably more training than
our country has been able to give you to
make trained soldiers"
The first sentence here is a transparent
attempt by the three generals to put them
selves in the position of bold defenders OF
troops who, they then admit, are unsoldlerly,
taking occasion to blame ''our country for
their faults. The original criticism reflected
as much on the generals who signed the
''message'' as on the individual CTS, because
it is their duty, always, to do their best with
the men and the materials given them and
excuses, obviously addressed to the public, by
way Of the troops, are unseemly. 1t these SOL
diers SLOUGH through the streets out of uni
form, unshaved and uncombed, and with their
clothing dirty, if they dash through traffic
lights in Army vehicles while the Filiplnos hop
for their lives and the civilian police look on
helplessly, those faults call for command, not
apple-shining by the generals. This brave
show of resentment against the 'attack on
YOU is reminiscent Of the propaganda OF
some of the AT. of L. unions which converted
into an attack on labor every disclosure
of racketeering and organized time killing.
Whether he knows it or not, a decent young
man in the Army is better of under good
discipline and efficient officers, even though
it means that he must look and act the part of
a soldier. But even a stupid recruit Will be
deceived by an appeal to his sympathy by
men who owe him a better job of manage
ment, although he may be disguised. Troops
cant make their own morale i the officers
have permitted slackpess to set in.
A few individuals bnay preserve their self
respect and observe9 decorum but only by a
special effort and life in a bum outfit, COM
manded by a lazy, inept Or just Indifferent
officer is much less pleasant than service
in a Well-run unit. Several Marines, who
served under Brig. Gen. Evans Carlson, were
so appreciative of his ~soldierly efficiency and
discipline, his consideration, fairness and firm
ness, that they took occasion recently to re-
sent comment on his ~left-wing political activ-
ity. They seemed not to know what they
were talking about on this subject but, waiv-
ing his postwar civilian politics at this time,
the Fact is that Carlson won not merely their
respect but their affection and not by running
a loose-jointed gang OF drugstore cowboys.
He insisted on high standards in them and IN
his own conduct as a commander. And, still
waving his politics, Carlson or some Army
man with the proper character and conpe-
tence never would have had to issue this
va lIS ~ 411SSSoS tS
criticized by the reporter would not have ex-
listed.
What sort of American Army is this, any
way, whose soldiers must De followed abroad
their wives and babies and who must
dispossess the miserable families of a beaten
German nation from the few quarters left
among the wreckage. and flaunt their luxury
in the eyes of a beaten people in a show OF
selfishness worse than the descent of the
carpetbaggers? Single men in barracks don't
grow into plaster saints, but temptation is
an occupational risk of soldering and good
command and training can abate the casual
ties of sin. What sort of American soldiers
are those licentious buns whose nasty con-
duct has been officially condoned to the ex-
tent that the wives of other American soldiers
must wear brassards to distinguish them from
German women, the meaning of this insignia
being, in plain words, Don't rape me. l am
officially exempt, but help yourselves to the
German women?
General Ben Lear anticipated this sort of
thing early in the draft when he called back
a group of soldiers from their camp beyond
Memphis and made them march home be-
cause they had howled at a group Of Ameri-
can women on a golf course. If American
women weren't safe from the insults OF Amer
lean soldiers that early in the game they
would have been fair prey after a few years
of this. The wolf CALI of the G.. I. has been
treated as an amiable salute of the lonesome