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I ALUMNI 1I edition 1ImfflpiHlllWlllllHIIIIIIIIIIIIUIUI®mocis®I GRADS IN SI SERVICE I►:*imiiwiiioimmminmifiiiiiiiaiiiilt;Volume XXVALTON, ILLINOIS, DECEMBER 17, 1942Number 13Western Is BusierThan Ever BeforeDuring This WarSchool Has Full EnrollmentAnd Cadets Are SeriousAbout Trainingii*Alumni always are interested in how the old school is ‘getting along. As it was to be expected, the value of military training and the splendid record of graduates in this war focused more attention upon Western. The school has a capacity enrollment of 300 cadets. Every room is occupied, and seventy-five applicants had to be refused during the summer. •Col. R. L. Jackson is well pleasedvi th the corps of cadets. The school was able to he selective* in its enrollment, and, as the result, Western has 300 very earnest, superior, and ambitious cadets. They are fully aware of the part they may soon play as members of the U. S. armed forces, and they are determined to make the most of their training. They feel, too, that Western alumni have set a glorious example in this war and they desire to uphold the splendid traditions.War Causes Changes The present world conflict has caused some changes in school life. Theimilitary program has been intensified.1Lieut. Col. Charles II. Moore of the U. S. Army, Class of ’21, is Professor of Military Science and Tactics, and lie puts the cadets through their paces. He is assisted by two sergeants of the U, S. Army and a tactical staff of reserve officers.Cadets no longer are able to wear the dress uniform with its swinging coat tails and gleaming brass buttons. Dress uniforms are “out” for the duration, but fatigue greys, study jackets, sweaters, grey shirts, and cadet overcoats are still obtainable. The War Department called in all of the Springfield rifles, 190;.} model, and issued■ «victory rifles” instead. These dummy guns serve the purpose for drill and the manual of arms surprisingly well. They look just like the Springfields but are made of wood, except for a metal trigger guard, bolt, and butt plate. They even have canvas slings, and cadets can do inspection arms” with the bolts. The “victory rifle” weighs about half as much ar the regular rifle.Build Obstacle CourseThe military department has enoughC a rand rifles to use in .instructing■cadets how to handle them, and also machine guns and automatic rifles. An “obstacle course” has been constructed on the campus, just like thelt;ir*s in army camps, and cadets aretoughened physically by going over this course. Such training has largely supplanted the old physical drill, or calesthenics. Of course, military theory classes are greatly emphasized, along with close and extended order drill and military field problems. Yes, cadets of 1942-43 are being trained.the war is felt in other places of Western life. Some items of food arescarce in the mess hall, but everyone m well fed. No longer do school busses take cadets to St. Louis for Sunday leaves. If they go, they use the train m* interurban. Some athletic trips have been curtailed, though the Western bus still manages to take most of the teams around for their games. With the rationing of gas, not as many parents as in the past can drive t° the campus in cars.High Scholastic Aim In other respects, however, Western aetivities are as busy as ever. Schol-(Continued on Page 2)fnIfes®MlmmMBm■■miisSiiiiiiiftSSSSSsij*amBpJpi|,mm.•V-At*X-.VA5v-\» A'1 -XAv*£V-'-V'\r.I A.lOii iliiiMi, I. tomszil u V. . .no VBrigadier GeneralCarl Gray, 1907, IsLoyal Western G radHeads Military Railway ServiceAnd Keeps Wheels Rolling For Government!BRIG. GEN. CARL GRAY, ’07 Keeps Wheels RollingF ather Says Capt.Howard HumphreysDi d Not SurrenderRumors State That He EscapedWith Native Troops ToTiny IslandIt was known that Capt. Howard Humphreys of Bloomington, 111., Class ’36, was in command of native troops in the Philippines when Corregidor fell. He has been reported “missing.” However, his father, Mr. Rogers Humphreys, also a former cadet, who came to Illinois from the Virgin Islands this fall, had an interesting story to tell about his son.He said, “Capt. Howard Humphreys is not now and has not been a prisoner of the Japs. He is not missing, either.He did not surrender to the YellowMen when they swept over Bataan. He may be found, if you can get there, in the hills of Leyte, a small island 100 miles northeast of Sabu, another island of the Philippines. There he and his faithful natives are holed up in the hills, awaiting developments.” Mr. Humphreys continued, as reported by a Bloomington paper, “They can’t get messages out, but I have talked with men who have seen him.Another Western graduate is now• «a Brigadier General, the third to attain that rank or better. He is Brig. Gen. Carl R. Gray, Jr., Class ’07, and he is now General Manager ini jcharge of Military Railway Service.This is an important job, for Gen. Gray must keep the wheels rolling and freight and troops moving for the government. He has many units in this country and some beyond the borders. His headquarters are at 615Commerce Bldg*., St. Paul, Minn.Gen. Gray has had a wide experience in railroading. After finishing at Western, he received his A. B. degree from the University of Illinois. He then served with the Frisco System, the Oregon Electric Railway Co., the Spokane, Portland, and Seattle R,1•i . iR. Co., and the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy R. R. He was then made executive vice-president of the Chicago, St. Paul, Minneapolis, and OmahaWhen the war clouds gathered, he was called from his executive position to take charge of the military railway service. He has advanced rapidly to his present rank. General Gray was a Captain in World War I, acting as Transportation Officer, Southeastern Division.LT. COL. FRED M. DEAN, ’34 Cited Twice In ActionLt. J. J. Strause, ’21,He is getting along fine. They are doing some guerilla fighting, I sup-yjof Capt. Hum-know that thepose.Former comrades phreys at Western “never-surrender” spirit is characteristic of him. He proved that as catcher on the baseball team, center on the grid team, and as a diver with national rating on the swimming team. After graduation, he was on the tactical staff at Western for two years before going directly into foreign service.It may be that Capt. Humphreys and his men are having* unusual experiences such as one could not find in the most fantastic novel.Is Reported MissingIn Atlantic Ba ttleLieut, J. Jacque Strause, Class ’21, of Peoria, 111., was reported missing after a naval engagement in the Atlantic three months ago. He received his commission in April in the Navy and attended the Great Lakes Naval Training School. It is said that•ihe was in command of a gun crew on a merchant vessel, which, it is assumed, was sunk in the Atlantic while in convoy. The War Department reported him missing.Lieut. Strause, after leaving W. M. A., attended the University of Illinois. His wife, Mrs. Selma Strause, lives in Peoria.In his last letter to Col. Jackson, Lieut. Strause said, “Make those boys train hard and realize the seriousness of the position our country is in today. The cadets there have an opportunity the majority of fellows would give their right arms for these days. Help them to takeadvantage of that opportunity.”C:c!JN-Cccoklt;cctcccccV wc!cccvrtc-w A3Best Wishes for ChristmasandaVictorious New YearSmall wonder that we depart from the traditional Christmas greetings. Theroutine of our lives is upset.To the men and boys who constitute the alumni and student body of the«. i 1 * —«Western Military Academy, I extend the best of Christmas wishes.' For some it may_ ■_ m -m -m . t *J W ' — —be a merry Christmas, but this greeting goes deeper and, includes those seriousthoughts of unselfishness and service which are the real Christmas spirit. Happiness? Yes! Happiness in health and strength, happiness; in service, and, above all, let there be happiness for each one who is playing his part, be it large or small, inthe great march toward victory.k rcWherever this reaches you, you will know that we remember, and that we appreciate, and that we are proud of you for what you are and for what you are doing. Your brothers are in there fighting for the same cause on the seven seas, on the six continents, or on the home front. This Christmas of 1942 finds us united innational service. We know as never before the real meaning of Western’s spirit.R. L. JACKSON (1906)::lt;5mmSeveral Old Gr adsCited For HeroicAction In ServiceFormer Cadets Do Bang-Up JobNo Matter Where TheyAre StationedReports from fronts all over the world reveal that Western men, whether privates or officers, ai*e doing* their duties well. The measure of their service does not lie in the decorations or citations which they re-«eeive, for many an old grad in someobscure corner of the globe, who has«never smashed the newspaper headlines, has rendered faithful and heroic service.On the other hand, many alumni have been faced with situations and have so conducted themselves that the spotlight of the nation’s applause has been focused upon them. Western is proud of the distinguished service rendered by so many former cadets, who used to wear the gray uniforms and hop to the bugle notes on this campus.First Was O’HareBelow is a list of some, of the “old grads” who have received special notice for heroic service.Lieut. Commander Edward H.oO’Hare, ’32, was the first. His story is well known to all. Last spring he became the country’s first ace by bringing down single-handed six Jap planes in the Pacific. He was decorated by President Roosevelt, advanced in rank, and honored, by the whole nation. , Commander O’Hare attended Western five years. His home was in St. Louis and he graduated from Annapolis and the Pensacola Navy Air School.Then there was Lieut, (j. g*.) Lanson Ditto, ’38, of Paducah, Ky. He was on the aircraft tender, “Langley” when it was sunk by the Japs. He transferred to the “Pecos” and manned a machine gun during a four-hour fight, being* severely wounded and burned. When the Pecos went down, he received national notice for cheering* the survivors for seven hours as they awaited rescue. Lieut. Ditto, a star swimmer at W. M. A., swam in the water, played with a dead flying fish, and by his antics kept up the spiritsof the men.Dean Cited Twice* Lieut. Col. Fred Murray Dean, ’34, (Murray Dean Pope of East St. Louis when he was at Western) received public notice twice recently. He was decorated in England for leading four separate air squadrons in one day in raids upon Dieppe, one more than any other man led. Recently “Time” magazine credited him with destroying five French tanks in Algeria during* the invasion of Africa. He graduated from West Point and is with General James Doolittle’s flyers.Col. Paul W. Tibbetts, Jr., Class ’33, of Miami, Fla., received the Order of the Purple Heart for being wounded in action in air raids over Europe.Lieut. A. E. Hoffman, ’32, was decorated for bravery by General Mac-Arthur for heroic action in the Battle of Macassar Straits. His home was in East St. Louis.Lieut. Norman Willey, ’36, formerly of Chicago, was decorated by General MacArthur in Australia for rescuing a comrade from a crashed and burning plane. Willey was a star football end and track man at Western and later an outstanding grid player a1 Purdue.Capt. W. E. Dorris, Jr., ’29, was dec* orated for. extreme bravery under fire in the Bataan campaign.
Newspaper Details
Alton Western Military Academy Shrapnel
Alton, Illinois, US
Thu, Dec 17, 1942
Page 2
Full Page
Clipped by
Charles J.
IL, 20 Jul 2022
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