p97  Appendix I

(Letter dated September 28, 1933, from the Librarian U. S. M. A. Library, West Point, N. Y.)

Office of the Librarian
United States Military Academy
West Point, New York
September 28, 1933.

Lieut. Wm. F. H. Godson, Jr., Ret'd.,
101 Sylvan Ave.,
Norwood, Pa.

My Dear Godson:

We are sending you under separate cover a copy of Boynton . . .

. . . you will discover that it (the West Point educational system) has kept very closely to the system laid down by Colonel Thayer . . . near a century and a quarter ago.

If I may make a suggestion I think it would be well worth while to bring out what to my mind is a unique feature of West Point. Namely it (and Annapolis, which is largely copied from it) is the only educational institution in this country where duty to the government is emphasized instead of, as in other educational institutions, making a success in life, which usually means money.

. . . when there is a job to be done for the government . . . difficult to handle . . . where reputation is more likely to be lost than gained . . . neither the professional nor would‑be diplomat wants the job . . . they call upon Army men such as General Pershing and Frank McCoy.

If there is anything I can do to assist you, let me know.

Sincerely,

(signed) E. E. Farman, Lt. Col. U. S. A.

Librarian.

 p98  Appendix J

(Reminiscences of West Point, by Miss A. B. Berard, 1886. Ac. No. 167289, U. S. M. A. Library.)

Pages 1‑40. Interesting personal narrative of early days at West Point.
Page 41. Roster of Graduates, classes 1802‑1886.

Number of graduates:

 p99  Appendix K

(Educational Methods at West Point. An article in the November 1892 Educational Review, Edited by N. M. Butler, Prof. Columbia University. Vol. 4 No. 19. By P. S. Michie.)

Notes

Page 350, on:

"method of instruction which has now, for more than 70 years, so success­fully accomplished its purpose . . ."

Curriculum:

1st year (Fourth Class): Mathematics, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, surveying, analytical geometry;

Modern Languages, French and English;

History, Geography and Ethics.

Drill,

Gymnastics.

2d year (Third Class): Mathematics, analytical and descriptive geometry, calculus, perspective and least squares;

Modern Language: French.

Drawing,

Drill.

3d year (Second Class): Natural and Experimental Philosophy, Chemistry, Mineralogy, and Geology.

Drawing,

Drill,

Practical Military Engineering.

4th year (First Class): Civil and Military Engineering,

Science of War,

Modern Language, Spanish,

Law,

History, Geography and Ethics.

The classes were small (10 to 12).
Students recited daily: daily preparation was made.

Professor Michie wondered if in other colleges, where great interest is often developed in the classroom, was there the same interest and effort in preparing for the classes.

 p100  Appendix L

(The Union College Practical Lectures. Vol. I. F. T. Neely, Publisher, N. Y., 1895.)

West Point: its purpose, its training and its results; by Gen. P. S. Michie, Dean of the Faculty, West Point.

Quotations:

(Page 37) "Every new class admitted to the Academy contains some men who have never been trained to a high sense of honor and a due regard for exactness of statement. They are soon instructed by the older cadets that their word must be held sacred; that they cannot lie nor prevaricate, nor in any way tamper with the truth; neither in studies nor in explanations of delinquencies submitted either in writing or by word of mouth to any official superior. The 'honor of the Corps' is jealously guarded by the upperclassmen and if no heed be paid to kindly admonition a trial by court-martial will follow the offense, to which publicity will then be given. . . . the general practice is never to question the word of a cadet."

(Page 38) ". . . the true object of education . . . the concurrent and co‑ordinated development of the physical, the intellectual and the moral natures of youth . . ."

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