Virginia Military Institute - Bomb Yearbook (Lexington, VA)

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« • X An American to whom freedom owes an enduring debt of grati- tude, a soldier and statesman whose ability and character brook only one comparison in the history of the na- tion. James Bryant Conant ' ■:. i

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etting A Standard eorgeCatlett Marshall was born on December 31, 1880 in Uniontown, Pennsyl- ■ vania. He early on wanted to be a soldier and spent his boyhood near areas associated with George Washington ' s early military career. A graduate of the Virginia Military Institute in 1901, he learned military skills and of the exploits of Generals Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson. While at V.M.I, he proved not to be a typical cadet. Du ing his rat year he was forced to squat over a bayonet and he slipped and injured himself. While at the hospital recovering from his injury he was asked who the first classmen who did that to him were. He refused to give any names and was exempted from the ratline by the first class for his stoicism. During his third class year he was busted from the rank of corporal for inefficiency. He rose to the rank of cadet captain his first class year. After graduating he was commissioned, served twice in the Philippines, and was on General Pershing ' s staff during World War I. Between the wars he served in China and as assistant commandant of the Infantry School at Fort Benning where he trained many future World War II commanders including Bradley, Stilwell, and Clark. In 1938, at the begin- ning of World War 11, he was called to Washington and served as Chief of Staff. In September 1939 he was appointed head of the army. Prime Minister Chur- chill called him the architect of victory. His record of public ser- vice to his country, in addition to his Army service is legendary: Ambassador to China, 1945- 1945; a Secretary of State who faced down the Soviets in Greece and in the first Berlin airlift crisis, initiated the Marshall Plan and laid the groundwork for NATO, 1947-1949, President of the American Red Cross, 1949-1950; the only military officer ever named Secretary of Defense, dur- ing the first year of the Korean War, 1950-1951; and, again, the only career military officer ever to receive the Nobel Prize for Peace. When George C. Marshall died in 1959, there were those who wondered how one man could have done so much for his coun- try. There is no record of service to match it. Though what George Marshall did is overwhelming, how he did it is even more star- tling. He never dissembled; he never toadied to anyone. He was honest and forthright. He was sometimes wrong, and when that happened, he took full responsibility. As a result, he not only had the full confidence of his political leaders but the trust of Congress. He was a national hero who knew, better than most, all of our people, having lived and worked with them in their own sections of our land. He was given respect by leaders abroad accorded few Americans past or since. In sum he was the American public servant of the twentieth century. George C. Marshall served the United States as both a military commander and a civilian leader. He was introduced into the order of the Cincinnati and recieved numerous civilian and military awards. These awards included the Distinguished ' Service Medal with 1st Oak Leaf Cluster and the Nobel Peace Prize for 1953. A quote from James Bryant Conant, a former president of Harvard University, best sums up the accomplishments of General George C. Marshall. An American to whom freedom owes an enduring debt of gratitude, a soldier and statesman whose ability and character brook only one comparison in the history of the nation. (Information provided by the Marshall Foundation.)

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A Tradition Continues he primary- purpose of the Virginia Military Institute is to provide academic study of the highest possible quality conducted in, and facilitated by, a rigorous L. system of military discipline. The goal is to produce citizen-soldiers, young men prepared to assume leadership roles in society and prepared to defend the nation in times of national emergency. The words of Colonel John Thomas Lewis Preston best sum up this mission; The healthful and pleasant abode of a crowd of honorable youths pressing up the hill of science with nobel emulation: A gratifying spectacle: An honor to our country and our state: Objects of honest pride to their instructors and fair specimens of citizen soldiers: Attached to their native state, proud of her fame, and ready in every time of deepest peril to vindicate her honor or defend her rights. The military system is based on the systems of West Point and the prestigious Ecole Polytechnique in Paris, France. In this system all cadets live in the barracks, eat together in the mess hall, and wear the historic gray cadet uniform. A difference between the Institute and West, Point is that not all graduates accept commissions in the military and fewer yet pursue careers in the military. Historically only about 1 8 percent of the graduates J ' from VMI are career military of- i ' . ;,.- V ficers. The majority of graduates • I. w ' ,; work in the civilian world and are in a reserve component of the mil- ? ;• ■■ ! itary. The life in Barracks pre- pares the graduate to be leaders in both the military and civilian worlds. A cadet ' s daily life is reg- ulated by traditions and rules of the Institute, and his conduct and I activities are measured against high standards set by his fellow cadets and the cadets that have gone before him. Above all of this, in and out of the barracks and classroom, is the cadet Honor Code, to which all cadets sub- scribe. This code states that a ca- det will not Lie, Cheat, Steal nor Tolerate those who do. The Hon- or Code belongs to the cadets and is enforced by the cadets. A cadet who does not adhere to this code is not given a second chance. The only penalty for an honor viola- 1 tion is expulsion. This code is not a set of rules for the cadets, but a way of life. Another governing ' body within the Corps of Cadets is the class system. Cadets are awarded privileges according to their class standing. These privi- leges are carefully guarded by each class and a cadet who takes a privilege belonging to another cadet is punished by the General Committee. This is one means of teaching a cadet to be a follower as well as a leader. These systems have been with the corps since the founding of the Institute. They are prized possessions not to be compromised for the purpose of personal gain. All of these factors combine to produce the young men that will lead their nations in both the civilian and the military worlds. These cadets take pride in the past accomplishments of the Institute and the outstanding graduates it has produced. The charge of the corps at the Battle of New Market, the professor that stood like a stone wall, and the General of the Army that won the Nobel Prize for Peace are just a few of the lasting memories that the corps will utilize to set the standards. A phrase stated by General Stonewall Jackson over a century ago still stands true today and forever: The corps will be heard from today.