The idea of being a soldier will work itself out into action, imitating models which men make their ideals.

For militia officers it is especially essential to act on this principle. To the men, they are the models. They suggest, by examples, actions, feelings, and modes of viewing conduct, what a soldier should be. In the militia it is not as it is at West Point. There the whole environment is manipulated to produce the effect by indirect suggestion. The cadets imitate the copy set in the actions, temper, and emotions of the life around them, until, encased in the iron bands of habit, they lay a concrete foundation of character. By this method West Point has furnished the leaven that works for solidarity and efficiency in our little army.

In the militia we have no such environment. Like incubator chickens, we are introduced into military life with few leaders qualified to furnish us with enthusiasm, and serve as models. We have not the homogeneity necessary to develop the common opinions and sentiments which make collective acting efficient. Our officers and men have not a common purpose, the same ideas of the service, or knowledge of their place in it, or the appropriate sentiments which each should feel as members of the mass. Under such circumstances greater responsibility lies with the trained offi

cers. They must create the environment which works by suggestion. Somehow they must get across to their men the idea of being a soldier and the associated ideas of what a soldier should be, so that they will work out, not only in conduct, but also in emotional states, very much as the delusion that one is Alexander or Napoleon works itself out in the emotional states and behavior of an insane person.

The important feature is the development of an imperative idea of what a soldier should be. This involves instilling a correct notion of what a real soldier is, and also associating that idea with a punch which translates it into action. We put "pep" into ideas by appealing to reason, interest, or by linking them up with the play of instincts or with some of the desires which are inherent in the way the human mind is constituted. What we seek to obtain is the irresistible impulse urging the actor to jump into the game of soldiering and play his part hard and according to the rules.

IV

INTEREST

HE second phase in our process of character

building is the development of such an interest in military standards that they become valued as something to be striven for and attained as personal possessions. In this respect the School has an advantage over a place where military training is compulsory. You are here to put forth physical and mental effort because you enjoy the work and love the game.

In the time of Frederick the Great, owing to the short range of firearms, the shock of battle was quickly over. His success depended upon the drill and mobility of his army, which enabled him to launch an oblique attack against a flank of his opponent and to press the attack home with rapidity before his opponent could change front. The efficiency of Frederick's army depended entirely upon the driving force of his drill-sergeants and their ability to persuade men to sustain the shock of battle for the short time necessary to insure success. The whole performance took place un

der the eye and personal direction of the King. The less his officers and soldiers thought or reasoned, the better instruments they were for his purpose. With him, discipline was induced by a rigorous system of punishment. In instilling the habits necessary for success he relied almost entirely upon the potency of the big stick. It was often said that the Prussian soldier of his day was more afraid of the cane of the drill-sergeant than he was of the enemy's bullets. The old Prussian system is an example of driving men by a system of punishment. Their interest was not stimulated or even considered.

Some years ago, while commanding the Eighth Massachusetts Infantry, I took the officers and non-commissioned officers to West Point to take part in one of their practice marches and maneuvers. I was surprised to hear the Commandant of Cadets speak of our trip as an inspiration to the West Point Cadets. To distinguish us from the cadets during the maneuvers we acquired the name of "Boston soldiers." The Commandant afterwards explained his remarks to me by saying that the cadets did their work because they had to, but the Boston soldiers put physical and mental effort into the maneuvers for love of the game and because they enjoyed it. Their interest explained their efforts. I do not use the word interest, however, as synonymous with entertainment. After

attending a vaudeville show you may say you have been interested in the comedians or a performance of trained monkeys. You mean you were amused. You have no desire to reproduce their antics in your own experience. The performance has not been interesting in the sense that it makes you wish to be a comedian or a trained monkey.

The kind of interest which we seek to awaken in this School is the kind which the patent medicine man tries to arouse by his advertisements among would-be purchasers. The advertising appeal is directed to the needs of the purchaser, and is an attempt to make the victim accept the nostrum as something which will satisfy a long-felt want. In the same way we present a military standard for your acceptance. We desire to make you feel that we are offering something of value in your business of living which you ought to adopt and use. Our proposition is to awaken your interest in a type because it satisfies your needs and wants. It is no nostrum. It has stood the test of time, and has met the approval of every great captain. Its part in military training is an inheritance of the ages. It comes to you with the approval of all fighting men since history began. Military life finds its satisfaction either in the ends served, means adopted, or something associated with these ends or means. I heard General Wood describe a visit to Switzerland during a