:

UNITED STATES SOLDIERS' HOME COMMISSION.
Lieutenant-General Nelson A. Miles, president; Adjutant-General Henry C. Corbin,
Quartermaster-General M. I. Ludington, Commissary-General John F. Weston, Surgeon-
General George M. Sternberg, Judge Advocate-General G. B. Davis, Brigadier-General
George D. Ruggles. Officers of the United States Soldiers' Home, Washington-Briga-
dier-General George D. Ruggles, governor; Brevet Brigadier-General R. F. Bernard,
deputy governor; Captain C. W. Taylor, secretary and treasurer; Major Louis A. La
Garde, attending surgeon.

UNITED STATES MILITARY ACADEMY.

Each The United States Military Academy at West Point was founded in 1902. Congressional district and territory, alsc the District of Columbia, is entitled to have one cadet at the Academy. Each State is also entitled to have two cadets at the Academy from the State at large. Thirty are also appointed from the United States at large. The appointments (except those from the United States at large and from the District of Columbia) are made by the Secretary of War at the request of the Senator, Representative or delegate in Congress: and the person appointed must be an actual resident of the State, District or Territory from which the appointment is made. The appointments from the United States at large and from the District of Columbia The number of students is thus limited to 481. are specially conferred by the President. Appointments are usually required to be made one year in advance of date of admission, and may be made either after competitive examination or given direct, at the option of the Representative. The Representative, should he desire, may nominate two alternates, who will be examined with the regular nominee, and one of whom may be admitted in the event of the latter's failure to pass to pass the prescribed preliminary examinations. Appointees to the Military Academy must be between seventeen and twentytwo years of age at dale of admission, at least five feet three inches in height, free from any infectious or moral disorder, and, generally, from any deformity, disease or infirmity; must be must be well versed in well versed in reading, in writing, including orthography, in arithmetic, and have a knowledge of the elements of English grammar, of descriptive geography (particularly of the United States), and of the history of the United States. The course of instruction, which is quite thorough, requires four years, and is largely mathematical mathematics, and The principal subjects taught professional. The French, drawing, tactics of all arms of the service, natural and experimental philosophy, chemistry, mineralogy, geology and electricity, history, international, constitutional and military law, Spanish, and civil and military engineering and science of Examinawar. Academic duties commence September 1 and continue until June 1. tions are held in each January and June, and cadets found proficient in studies and correct in conduct are given the particular standing in their class to which their merits entitle them, while those cadets deficient in either conduct or studies are discharged. From about the middle of June to the end of August cadets live in camp, engaged only Cadets are allowed but in military duties and receiving practical military instruction.

are

one leave of absence during the four years' course, and, as a rule, it is granted at the
expiration of the first two years. The pay of a cadet is $540 a year, and with proper
Upon graduating cadets are commissioned as sec-
economy is sufficient for his support.
The whole number of graduates from 1802

ond lieutenants in the United States Army.
to 1900 has been 3,993.
MANNER OF APPLICATION.-Applications can be made at any time, by letter,
to
to the Secretary of War, to have the applicant's name registered for submission
The application must exhibit the
the proper Representative when a vacancy occurs.
full name, date of birth and permanent abode of applicant, with the number of the
Immediately after his admission.
Congress district in which his residence is situated.
and before receiving his warrant of appointment, the cadet must sign the following
engagement for service, in the presence of the Superintendent or some officer deputed
aged
of the State (or Territory) of
years
by him: I.
months, do hereby engage (with the consent of my parent or guardian) that, from the
date of my admission as a cadet of the United States Military Academy, I will serve
in the Army of the United States for eight years, unless sooner discharged by compe-
The candidate must then take
tent authority. In the presence
do solemnly swear that I will sup-
port the Constitution of the United States, and bear true allegiance to the National
Government; that I will maintain and defend the sovereignty of the United States
paramount to any and all allegiance, sovereignty or fealty I may owe to any State or
country whatsoever, and that I will at all times obey the legal orders of my superior
officers, and the rules and articles governing the armies of the United States.

the following oath or affirmation: I,