Engineer Memoirs
to its excellent status at the end of the 1980s.
In addition to Thurman, my replacement as commander of the Third Regiment was Colonel
Alexander Haig. The three colonels heading up the other regiments were also top notch. Of
course, the cadets ran the regiments. The officers were there to provide counsel, guidance,
military training and discipline, so to speak.
As deputy commandant, my responsibilities were basically overseeing the internal operation of
the corps of cadets, scheduling military training, et cetera. I was the point of contact for the
chairman of the Cadet Honor Committee. So it was an interesting job, and being close to the
cadets we became involved in many pl easant extracurricular activities . Cadets frequently came
to our home, and even more frequently their girlfriends stayed with us on weekends. Susan was
in her late teens and a student at the University of Connecticut in Storrs. She was home often and
increased the cadet traffic at our place.
In 1966, I was responsible for the corps of cadets during the Army-Navy game in Philadelphia.
Game day began with rain, which started to clear about 11:00 A.M. The Naval Academy officer
in charge and I agreed that all would wear raincoats during the march-in. The Middies appeared
with no raincoats. Their raincoats were very small, and when rolled could be put in their pocket.
Cadet raincoats were very heavy and you couldn't do that. The Chief of Staff of the Army, with
whom I happened to be standing when the Navy started to march in, was obviously concerned,
as was I. If the cadets marched in wearing raincoats, it wouldn't look too good for the Army.
The Secretary of the Army was there also. I hustled back to the cadets who were formed outside
the stadium and told my deputy, who was Lieutenant Colonel Bob Yerks [he also became a three-
star general], that I wanted every cadet to take off his raincoat and pass it to the man behind him
and then have the last rank fall out and walk around the stadium and come in the back ramps
while the rest of the corps, less one rank, marched into the stadium. The only problem was I'd
forgotten that the last rank were all first classmen, upperclassmen, and they certainly weren't
going to carry raincoats with all those plebes around, so there was a lot of shuffling in the r e a r
of the companies. It soon settled down.
We marched in without raincoats to the relief of the Secretary and the Chief of Staff of the Army.
It was an exciting and risky event. If we'd have planned it, I'm not sure it would have worked;
however, it was done spon taneo usly and came out okay.
Interestingly enough, the biggest problem was getting the raincoats back to their owners. For
about half the game, raincoats were flying through the air. I may have forgotten who won the
game, but I shall always remember the raincoat problem and the improbable solution.
Being involved with the cadets in activities such as chapel, athletics, academics, and their
personal, even social life made ours a full-time, seven-days-a-week task, especially for Gerry, but
she thrived on the life at the Academy. Having Susan enrolled in the University of Connecticut
and John in Valley Forge Military Academy, after one year at Highland Falls, helped her schedule
somewhat.
In the fall of 1966, I was selected to go to the University of Pittsburgh for a course in advanced
management which carried with it a two-year service obligation. After finishing the course, I
returned to my duties as deputy commandant. In the spring of 1967, General Scott was replaced
by Brigadier General Bernie Rogers, classmate and close friend. I was delighted to be working
with and for him. In early October 1967, I was very surprised to get the word I was being
transferred to Washington. Our three years would have been up in the summer of 1968.
Because of the early sudden move, I went to see General [Donald] Bennett, the superintendent.
I indicated I thought it was not the right time to move since my term wasn't up, et cetera. He said
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