Engineer Memoirs
Major General John W. Morris and his son, First Lieutenant John Morris, in Ponca City, Oklahoma,
on the day in late May, 1976, when General Morris learned that he had been nominated to be the
next Chief of Engineers.
castles by General MacArthur with the instructions that they should be given to some worthy
engineer and not put in a museum someplace. So they were given to General Gribble while
he was Chief. The leadership of the command changed when General Gribble pinned the
MacArthur Castles on me. That transfer started a tradition-permanently, I hope.
I pretty much knew what wanted to do as Chief of Engineers. I'd been in OCE by this time
for four years and knew the staff and OCE operations. In addition, many years in the field
in several districts and divisions meant that I didn't have to spend a lot of time learning how
the Corps worked or what I needed to do. So I was able, within two weeks, to announce four
goals that I wanted to achieve during my term. They were all interrelated.
Stay in Business. That meant getting the Corps in gear with the environmental
program while remaining active in the traditional engineering field. I did not want
the Corps to be pushed aside because of our historical achievements. This goal
became much more significant later when President Carter was elected.
Support the Total Army. Total Army, meaning Active, National Guard, and the
Reserves. That was important because the Army's program emphasized these
elements. Furthermore, the Army didn't always understand the public works program
and felt it diverted some of the engineer support that the Army needed. The best way
126
Previous Page
