Washington High School Cadets - Adjutant Yearbook (Washington, DC)

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LIEUTENANT COLONEL WALLACE M. CRAIGIE, U. S. ARMY, RETIRED Professor of Military Science and Tactics

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A GOOD INSURANCE POLICY By DR. CHESTER W. HOLMES Assistant Superintendent of Public Schools T FIRST glance the two words Hmotivationv and insurance', seem to have little in commong but when we realize that membership in the High School Cadet Corps is just about the best kind of insurance a high school boy can have in these martial days, seeking or maintaining such membership indicates the finest kind of motivation one can hope for. There can be no doubt of the excellent preliminary training which the cadet corps gives to boys who are approaching the age which our Government is considering best for the creation of a young, strong, alert defense army-yet one which, upon occasion, may be obliged to take the offensive. Any boy who is ambitious and who desires to rise to a position of leadership and responsibility if summoned to become a part of such an army ought to want to get as much foundational training as possible before entering that army. But such training is not confined in its values to strictly military life and objec- tives. If ever America needed youth who are self-disciplined, it is now. We need young men and young women who, in their formative years, are willing to undergo the rigors of hard work and study in order that they may learn thoroughly the things they will need to know to forge ahead in the workaday world later. That involves some subordination of self for the moment for the greater goal to be achieved later. The Cadet Corps trains boys to stand on their own two feetf, to meet problems squarely, to assume responsibilities, and to learn by their mistakes as well as by their successes. They learn to give and take in a friendly way. They learn to carry them- selves with confidence and assurance. The High School Cadets, as a group, do more for the general good of our high schools-and thereby for themselves-than any other single group of students. The outstanding benefits which accrue to boys who become cadets recall a four-line word of caution once meted out by a philosopher, though I cannot recall it word for word, it goes somewhat like this: A man who knows not and knows not that he knows not is a fool-shun hi1n! A man who knows not and knows that he knows not is a learner-help him! A man who knows and knows not that he knows is a dullard-arouse him! A man who knows and knows that he knows is a wise man-cultivate him! Let us hope that an even larger number of boys next year will appreciate thc values of character training that are inherent in the Cadet Corps and decide to take advantage of the training it offers to prepare themselves better to meet the hard realities of life. Every cadet this year should take it upon himself to get a classmate not now in the corps to join next year. The year 1940-1941 has been a fine year for the corps, but let us make 1941-194-2 the greatest year in the history of the corps-the greatest in enrollment and in accomplishment. Authorized Distributors of WASHINGTON HIGH SCHOOL CADET UNIFORIVIS AND ACCESSORIES LIVINGSTON? CIVILIAN AND UNIFORM OUTFITTERS SINCE 1886 906-908 7th St., N. W. Washington, D. C. Eleven

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AN INTERVIEW LIEUT. COLONEL WALLACE M. CRAIGIE U. s. ARMY, RETIRED, PROFESSOR or MILITARY SCIENCE at TACTICS By CADET COLONEL DAVID A. RHODES, Brigade Commander, H. S. C. INCE there is so much interest in the increase of our military forces in the United States during 1940 and 1941, I was eager to find out just exactly what a cadet's chances were when he reached the proper age and decided to embark Oll a military career. Lieutenant Colonel Wallace M. Craigie, U. S. Army, Retired, was the man best qualified to satisfy my queries. Lieut. Colonel Craigie has seen active army life both in frozen Alaska and in the dense, hot jungles of the Philippines. One of the Army's Inen who was constantly on the jump, he has a highly commendable record of service earned in many parts of the world. Lieut. Colonel Craigie has faithfully served as Professor of Military Science and Tactics in the Washington High School Cadet Corps since 1921. After a little consideration the Colonel spoke. 1 am confident, he said, that the training received by a member of the High School Cadet Corps will stand him in good stead when he is eligible for the draft or elects to enlist in any of the U. S. services. Three years of training in the Cadet Corps is of incalculable benefit, teaching as it does many most desirable characteristics: leadership, proper obedience to con- stituted authority, ability to handle units of which he Inay be in command, and citizen- ship, with its obligations as well as its privileges. ln addition to the foregoing, from a military standpoint a cadet, particularly if he has reached commissioned or non- commissioned grades, will be in line for assignment in charge of certain military unitsf' At this point I questioned him concerning this military viewpoint in respect to a man entering the service with previous training. The Colonel answered, When a man joins a branch of the service and 'Falls in' for his first formation, the officer or non- com in charge of training units will undoubtedly say to the new men, 'All men who have had previous military training step two paces to the frontl' 'tMen with previous cadet training, the Colonel continued, are much more amenable to discipline. They have a Inilitary set-up and are generally desirable material. Next 1 wanted to know about the chances of a cadet who went on to college and joined an R. 0. T. C. unit there. It was only then that I learned that I had tapped a very valuable source for this information. In past years, before he started on his duties as P. M. S. and T. of the Washington Cadet Corps, Colonel Craigie had served in the same capacity at both the University of Missouri and Washington University at St. Louis, Missouri. The Colonel sat back and recalled, While serving at these universities, 1 came in contact with many young men entering college who had had military training and some who had not. 1 found a very definite advantage was held by those students who had had this training in their secondary schools. Because of my desire to recognize this training. I wrote to the R. O. T. C. section of the General Staff in the War De- partment, requesting information relative to credits for students having previous military training in secondary schools. 1 was informed that credits for such training, to be applied to those students in the R. O. T. C. of the University of Missouri, was left entirely to the discretion of the P. M. S. and T. 1 have observed from my own records and from information furnished me by other Professors of Military Science and Tactics of several universities that the usual credit for military training in secondary schools is one yearf' We appreciate this information very much, Colonel Craigie. And to you, for any advantages that may accrue from our training during our assignment with the corps. we, the officers and men of the Brigade, give our heartiest thanks. For the help and guidance you have given us throughout the year, altogether we salute you, Lieutenant Colonel Wallace M. Craigie, U. S. Army, Retired. Thirteen