Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1954-04-05
Where Old Soldiers Just Fade Awov
By Soul PETIT

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SAN ANTONIO, Tex.-Yesterday he
was general. in command Of an army
of $4,000 men and great forces Of
planes and tanks and armored vehicles.
He made headlines and. In some cases,
history.
Today, suddenly. he Is retired. He
commands no one. His mobile force
is limited to the old family car and the
power mower He makes no headlines.
And, as for history, he may SAVIOR it
or regret it or wish for another crack
at it. But, in any case, he must now
watch it go by.
you're only human If you miss it."
said 1t. Gen. william H. Simpson,
whose 9th Army once stormed across
the Rhine. "You- train all your life to
command. Finally, you get an army.
You lead troops in battle. You have
a personal staff Of $50 or 200. You
make big decisions.
'And then suddenly, nothing. You're
on your own. You miss the troops most
Of ALL You miss the big staff. You miss
being top dog. You're relieved not to
have any more heavy responsibility.
but at the same time you miss the
big decisions.
you're glad to get out from under
all the damned regulations but you
find yourself missing the bugle calls.
You go to Fort Sam occasionally for re-
treat. It makes you feel kind Of funny.
You recall many things.
Captain, colonel or general, they all
have the same emotional bridge to
cross when they retire. It varies only in
degree, in the scope of the authority
now gone, in the size of the troops
missed-a company, division or army.
Here in San Antonio, home Of his
toric Fort Sam Houston, there are about
80 retired general officers, more than
in any other one spot in the country.
There are also about 400 retired colo
nels and hundreds of others from the
lower ranks.
The prominent names include Simp-
son, Gen. Courtney Hodges, whose LIST
Army chased the Germans from Nor
mandy to the Elbe, and Gen. Walter
Kruger, who led the 9Th Army in the
liberation of the Philippines. There
are others whose days Of glory ended
with the First World War.
At the bar in the Fort Sam officers
club, you can hear battles refought all
the way from San Juan Hill and the
Marine to the Bulge in the Ardennes
and "Old Badly" in Korea. Ages Of
the generals range from about so to
almost co.
Many still look At enough to take
another command tomorrow. Others
show up for retreat and various cere-
monies at Fort Sam with canes and
hearing aids. In difference to the
older old soldiers, the bingo game rules
at the officers club were changed re-
Gently. All the players used to stand.
Now they sit
Despite the great personal adjust
nlent, most Of the officers give at least
the outward appearance Of having re-
tired gracefully into civilian anonymity.
But some have grown crotchety and
complain, on occasion, to a hostess
about the seating arrangements at din
ner. Or they explode when clerk in
the PIX fails to recognize them and
insists on seeing their identity cards.
Most OF them try to keep in touch"
with the profession which consumed
their adult lives. They subscribe to
the Army and Navy Journal and the
Army and Navy Register. When Amer
lean troops are in combat, they chart
the progress Of the fighting with the
inevitable blue and red pins on maps
posted in their dens. A few like
Hodges, Simpson and Kruger are in
vited occasionally to 4th Army head
quarters at Fort Sam for briefings.
Some have taken jobs in private
business to supplement their Army
pensions, but mostly to have some
thing to do. The great majority, how
ever, are just retired.
They indulge in their hobbies-hunt-
ing. fishing, golf1ng. working around
the house or playing bridge. One group
of generals plays bridge every Thurs
day afternoon at the officers club, in
a room rigidly reserved for them. It is
known as 'the Arlington Room" after
Arlington National Cemetery. San
Antonio is sometimes referred to as
Boot Camp for Arlington"
Why do so many come to San
Antonio to retire?
The usual answer, offered with q wry
smile, is: Because there's a good golf
course here, good Army hospital and
a good national cemetery"
This is more than a local joke.
Many old soldiers do play golf. Many
take advantage of the free medical
care provided for them and their
families at Brooke General Hospital.
And in the quiet shade Of poplar trees,
there is Fort Sam Houston National
Cemetery, where some 20 generals al
ready are buried and where the firing
squads are always ready with salutes
for new arrivals.
And then there's Fort Sam itself. q
Kiplingesque reminder Of the Army in
less complicated days. Although they
live in their own homes of the post,
few retired generals ever stray far from
Fort Sam. It is their way Of clinging
to their own
In 1885. the Apache Chief Geronimo
was imprisoned in the stone quadrangle
at Fort Sam. In 1898, colonel named
Theodore Roosevelt came here to help
organize the Rough Riders. In 1915,
the fort had regimental supply officer
named Capt Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Here, too, in 1917, Brig. Gen. John ].