United States Military Academy West Point - Howitzer Yearbook (West Point, NY)

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i I THE CONSTITUTION: A HOPE America has an instinct for hope - and a her- itage for it. It has a history - in the face of defeat • of audacious, irrepressible faith. Valley Forge was proof. At Valley Forge men were freezing. We can imagine the air hollow, the lively sound of a bird breaking unreal stillness, the echo of its song al- ternately irritating and heartbreaking to the re- maining few men who weren ' t sure if they wanted to live or die. But they refused NOT to believe. Sorrow is a leveler; it strips us of our pre- sumptions, and exposes us as mere men, but dust. A national sorrow united us in startling recognition of our common bonds of humanity of need and loss and suffering - and it unites us in hope. It challenges us to a bolstered, deter- mined faith. Valley Forge was this leveler, this catalyst for hope, for faith. We staked our country ' s be- ginnings out of that defeat. You don ' t forget starvation shared: frostbite leaves its scar, ne- glect its mark. Pretensions are irrelevant when tomorrow is questionable: poses are mere mad- ness. You either give up, or you strike out, im- powered by faith - to win. In that hard winter of 1777-78, the 11,000 men of the American Revolutionary Army un- der George Washington were suffering starva- tion, sickness and cold. The soldiers were bitter with betrayal and defeat. Outbreaks of mutiny and desertion were not uncommon. Supplies did not come. But they did NOT give up. The power supposed by the Articles of Con- federation was blatantly impotent. Washington and his young lieutenant, John Marshall, who later became a Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and one of the leading spokesman of the ratification of the Constitution, watched the ragged army in despair. They knew first hand, that the Articles had no power. There had been no binding authority to secure even the basic needs in food, clothing and supplies for the na- tion ' s army. If there had been doubts before. Valley Forge was dramatic evidence no one could question. This must never happen again. A UNITED states was imperative. In the penetrating cold, the disgrace of this failed commitment from the states to send sup- plies hurt as much as the frostbite on their hands and feet. Deserted: the cruelty demanded justice in the frailest heart. It gave fight to their will to live. This must never happen again. America must hold together - as one people. Years later, a meeting of thirteen states, mi- nus Rhode Island, would take place on Septem- ber 17, 1 787, in Philadelphia, not far from these humiliations of Valley Forge. The Articles had been ineffective as both domestic and interna- tional policy. Radical change was necessary. A whole new law. a written constitution, was form- ed - an experimental hypothesis that gave the people the right to govern themselves. Colonial interests of the past would be put aside. The pa- rochial attitudes, which had produced a start- ling ambiguity of loyalties, had rendered the states inbred in their interests, and had weak- ened all hope of creating a strong union. The outcry for change resulted in the Con- stitutional Convention. Forty-two of the fifty- five delegates, in a country of barely three mil- lion people, met for four, hot summer months to produce an experiment in government - the United States Constitution - that is only rivaled in historical significance by the Ten Command- ments and the Magna Carta. The Constitution is the oldest, still-govern- ing written instrument of government in the world. In its 200th year, its staying power has been predicted on its history of uncompromis- ing support of human rights, enforced for the first time in history by an unprecedented code of governing, enforceable laws. It was axiomatic to the American constitution that the creation of a nation, though of central importance, was second to God, and to the divinely ordained rights of all mankind. An egalitarian respect for the dignity of ALL people was the centerpiece to the founders ' philosophy. On September 17, 1 787, the United States Constitution was signed. On June 21. 1788, the Constitution was ratified. It was the first politi- cal system with power from wethepeople, un- leashing an unparalleled creative energy. No coun try has ever had a grea ter degree of well-be- ing. George Washington said of the Constitution that it is sacredly obligatory to us all, and that its existence constitutes (us) as one peo- ple. He knew that preserving this document of freedom demanded our dedicated support, and our profound understanding. As George Washington knew, standing iso- lated at Valley Forge, and later said, ■ ' Government is not mere advice: it is authority, with power to enforce its la ws. America would hold together, one people, ... one nation, un- der God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all 1 6-ADMINlS TRA TION

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ADMINISTRATION STAFF V 1 PRESIDENT 18 VICE PRESIDENT 20 DEFENSE SECRETARY 22 ARMY SECRETARY 22 CHAIRMAN JOINT CHIEFS 23 ARMY CHIEF OF STAFF 23 SUPERINTENDENT 24 COMMANDANT 26 DEAN 28 DIRECTOR ODIA 30 SUPERINTENDENTS STAFF 32 COMMANDANTS STAFF 32 DEAN ' S STAFF 33 ACADEMIC BOARD 33 ODIA STAFF 34 CAC SJA 35 FIRST REGIMENT TACS 36 SECOND REGIMENT TACS 37 THIRD REGIMENT TACS 38 FOURTH REGIMENT TACS 3 9 BS L 40 CHEMISTRY 41 ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING 42 ENGINEERING 43 ENGLISH 44 FOREIGN LANGUAGES 45 G CS 46 HISTORY 47 LAW 48 MATHEMATICS 49 MECHANICS 50 MILITARY INSTRUCTION 51 PHYSICAL EDUCATION 52 PHYSICS 53 SOCIAL SCIENCES 54 USMA BAND 55 DOIM RESEARCH LAB 56 KELLAR ARMY HOSPITAL 57 DCA 58 CHAPLAINS 59 LIBRARY PAO 60 CADET BARBER SHOP 61 DENTAC 62 CADET HOSTESS 63 1 % • 4 I mi TABLE OF CONTENTS ADMINIS TRA TION- 1 7