Chapter LXI: Introduction (5)

The language used in the law under which the present Board of Visitors are appointed--“for the purpose of _witnessing_ the examination of the several classes”--if taken literally, would certainly justify the practice adopted by this, and as far as they can learn, by previous Boards. At all events, the constitution of this and previous Boards, composed as it is of members a majority of whom have had no experience in school examinations--who have had no acquaintance with this institution before their present appointment--and who are together for but a short period of time, is very inadequate for any purpose of thorough personal examination. They must be satisfied in the main to receive statements on trust, and to receive and communicate only general impressions. All the duties devolving upon the Board of Visitors as at present organized, could be far more efficiently and successfully performed in connection with the other duties of the Council of Naval Education, here suggested.

VIII. With a programme of studies so extensive as that now laid down or as herein proposed, in which each study is, or should be arranged with reference to what has gone before, as well as to what is to follow, the professor of each department and the teacher of each branch and section, should be kept closely to his portion, each cadet should master thoroughly every step in the succession, no professor should encroach upon the time of another, no teacher should be allowed to pass his pupils indifferently prepared into the succeeding section or branch. Even if no change be made in the present programme this course is essential to the success of the school, and to secure this an Inspector of Studies should be appointed, who should report frequently to the Academic Board all and every infraction of the programme, so that it may be ascertained whether the cause of failure be in the programme, or the class, or the teacher; and the remedy at once applied. Both the special and general duties of the Commandant preclude the constant and minute inspection referred to, and to the professor of no one department can these duties be properly assigned. While there is a superior executive officer who has in charge the external administration of the affairs of the Academy, there is no corresponding officer, as in the opinion of the Visitors there should be, to preside over the vital matters of instruction and training.

IX. The appointment of professors and assistants is a subject from its importance at all times, and from its immediate bearing upon the welfare of the school, deserving of mature consideration. The efficiency and thoroughness of instruction, the spirit of diligent study and the enthusiastic love of it among the midshipmen, depend to a great degree, upon the fitness of the instructor for his post and the method and manner of teaching which he employs. Though there may be some reason for limiting their appointment to the graduates of the Academy, yet the present course of instruction has by no means in view the training of future teachers, nor has it yet reached its full development. The success and advancement of the institution would seem to require the employment of the best educational talent, and none other, to be obtained wherever it can be found. Whenever any vacancy is to be filled, or new appointments to be made, the Visitors recommend that due notice of the same be given, and that the credentials of all applicants be referred to a competent board, and the applicants themselves whose credentials are satisfactory, be subjected to an open, competitive examination.

X. In conclusion, the Visitors recommend that greater publicity be given to all the documents which set forth the object and operations of the Naval Academy, the mode and conditions of nominating midshipmen, the name of the person responsible for a nomination, the requisitions and results of each entrance as well as of all annual examinations, with specimens of the questions asked and answers given, so far as the same were written or printed. They would respectfully urge that the Official Register of the Academy, with the above and other information deemed necessary by the Department, be sent not only to every member of Congress, but to the libraries of all principal High Schools, public and private, and all institutions where candidates are prepared, that both teachers and pupils may know what the Department requires as preliminary to the special professional training provided in this Academy for any branch of the naval service of the country, and especially how deplorably deficient a large proportion of the candidates are found to be, on only a moderately strict but impartial examination. To this Register might be appended the official report of the Bureau charged with its supervision, or of any Board of Visitors, or Special Examiners, appointed by the Department.

With the best permanent accommodations and equipment of the Academy that can be made at Annapolis or elsewhere--with schools or courses of scientific and practical instruction for every branch of the service, and for every stage of promotion--with a teaching staff so numerous and so diversified as to secure the advantage of special attainment and qualifications to each branch of study--with entire control of the pupil’s time--with hospital accommodations and medical services for the sick--with chaplains for religious observances and the moral culture of all--with regular alternations of physical exercise and intellectual labor, and the stimulus of an honorable distinction before and after graduation--the Visitors think it not unreasonable to expect from an institution so provided for, the highest results, especially as the government has it in its power to select for admission, without regard to the social or political status of parents, from among the entire youth of the country, those who are best fitted by their physical and mental endowment and preliminary education, as well as by their aptitude for special studies and predilection for the naval service, for which those studies are a preparation.

All which is respectfully submitted.

JOHN MARSTON, _Commodore U.S. Navy, President_.
JAMES A. HAMILTON, _New York_.
JOHN RODGERS, _Commodore U.S. Navy_.
CHARLES D. ROBINSON, _Wisconsin_.
G. D. A. PARKS, _Illinois_.
C. W. PICKERING, _Capt. U.S. Navy_.
JOHN W. HARRIS, _Missouri_.
HENRY BARNARD, _Connecticut_.

The aggregate expense of the Military Academy at West Point, and the Naval Academy at Annapolis, to the country, is not represented by the specific sums which appear in the annual appropriation for the military and naval service, but is increased by the large sums paid to officers and men who are detailed to these posts for police, instructional, and other purposes of these institutions. The cost to the government of each cadet from his admission to his graduation in either Academy, exceeds $10,000.

NAVAL CONSTRUCTION AND ENGINEERING.

Under authority of an Act of Congress (July 4, 1864), the Secretary of the Navy, in 1865, made provision at Annapolis for a course of instruction for a class of Assistant-Engineers, composed of persons admitted on competitive examination, many of whom had secured a preliminary scientific training, and all of whom gave evidence of aptitude for such occupation and of having had experience in the fabrication of steam machinery. There was every indication of a special school for this department of the naval service, when the enterprise was suspended; but to be revived under the following Regulations, issued by Secretary Robeson, April 4, 1871:

REGULATIONS FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF CADET ENGINEERS.

I. In pursuance of the third and fourth sections of an act passed at the first session of the 38th Congress, approved July 4, 1864, “_To authorize the Secretary of the Navy to provide for the education of Naval Constructors and Engineers, and for other purposes_,” and of the second section of an act passed at the first session of the 39th Congress, approved March 2, 1867, entitled, “_An Act to amend certain acts in relation to the Navy_,” applications will be received by the Navy Department for the appointment of Cadet Engineers.

II. The application is to be addressed to the Secretary of the Navy, and can be made by the candidate, or by any person for him, and his name will be placed on the register. The registry of a name gives no assurance of an appointment, and no preference will be given in the selection to priority of application.

III. The number of Cadet Engineers is limited by law to fifty. The candidate must be not less than eighteen nor more than twenty-two years of age; he will be required to certify _on honor_ to his precise age, to the Academic Board, previous to his examination, and no one will be examined who is over or under the prescribed age. His application must be accompanied by satisfactory evidence of moral character and health, with information regarding date of birth and educational advantages hitherto enjoyed. Candidates who receive permission will present themselves to the Superintendent of the Naval Academy between the 15th and 25th of September for examination as to their qualifications.

IV. The course of study will comprise two academic years. All Cadets who graduate will be warranted as Assistant Engineers in the Navy. The pay of a Cadet Engineer is the same as that of a Cadet Midshipman.

V. The academic examination previous to appointment will be on the following subjects, namely: _Arithmetic_: the candidate will be examined in numeration and the addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division of whole numbers, and of vulgar and decimal fractions; in reduction; in proportion or rule of three, direct and inverse; extraction of square and cube roots. In _Algebra_, (Bourdon’s,) through equations of the first degree. In _Geometry_, (Davies’ Legendre,) through the plane figures. _Rudimentary Natural Philosophy. Reading_: he must read clearly and intelligibly from any English narrative work, as, for example, Bancroft’s History of the United States. In _Writing_ and _Spelling_: he must write from dictation, in a legible hand, and spell with correctness, both orally and in writing. In English _Grammar_ and English _Composition_ he will be examined as to the parts of speech, the rules connected therewith, and the elementary construction of sentences, and will be required to write such original paragraphs as will show that he has a proper knowledge of the subject. The candidate will also be required to exhibit a fair degree of proficiency in pencil-sketching, and to produce satisfactory evidence of mechanical aptitude. Candidates who possess greatest skill and experience in the practical knowledge of machinery, other qualifications being equal, shall have precedence for admission.

VI. Any of the following conditions will be sufficient to reject a
candidate.

Feeble constitution, permanently impaired general health, decided cachexia, all chronic diseases or injuries that permanently impair efficiency, viz:

1. Infectious disorders.

2. Weak or disordered intellect.

3. Unnatural curvature of spine.

4. Epilepsy, or other convulsion, within five years.

5. Chronic impaired vision, or chronic disease of the organs of
vision.

6. Great permanent hardness of hearing, or chronic disease of the
ears.

7. Loss or decay of teeth to such an extent as to interfere with
digestion and impair health.

8. Impediment of speech to such an extent as to impair efficiency in
the performance of duty.

9. Decided indications of liability to pulmonary disease.

10. Permanent inefficiency of either of the extremities.

11. Hernia.

12. Incurable sarcocele, hydrocele, fistula, stricture, or
hæmorrhoids.

13. Large varicose veins of lower limbs. Chronic ulcers.

14. Attention will also be paid to the stature of the candidate, and no one _manifestly_ undersized for his age will be received into the Academy. In case of doubt about the physical condition of the candidate any marked deviation from the usual standard of height will add materially to the consideration for rejection.

15. The Board will exercise a proper discretion in the application of the above conditions to each case, rejecting no candidate who is likely to be efficient in the service, and admitting no one who is likely to prove physically inefficient.

VII. If both these examinations result favorably, the candidate will receive an appointment as a Cadet Engineer, become an inmate of the Academy, and will be allowed his actual and necessary traveling expenses from his residence to the Naval Academy, and be required to sign articles by which he will bind himself to serve in the United States Navy six years, (including his term of probation at the Naval Academy,) unless sooner discharged. If, on the contrary, he shall not pass both of these examinations, he will receive neither an appointment nor his traveling expenses, nor can he have the privilege of another examination for admission _to the same class_ unless recommended by the Board.

VIII. When candidates shall have passed the required examinations, and been admitted as members of the Academy, they must immediately furnish themselves with the following articles, viz:

One navy-blue uniform suit,
One fatigue suit,
One navy-blue uniform cap,
One uniform overcoat,
Ten pairs of white pants,
Four white vests,
Six white shirts,
Six pairs of socks,
Four pairs of drawers,
Six pocket handkerchiefs,
One black silk handk’f or stock,
One mattress,
One pillow,
One pair of blankets,
One bed cover or spread,
Two pairs of sheets,
Four pillow cases,
Six towels,
Two pairs of shoes or boots,
One hair-brush,
One clothes-brush,
One coarse comb for the hair,
One fine comb for the hair,
One tumbler or mug, and
One thread and needle case.

Room-mates will jointly procure, for their common use, one looking-glass, one wash-basin, one water-pail, one slop-bucket, and one broom. These articles may be obtained from the store-keeper of good quality and at fair prices.

IX. Each Cadet Engineer must, on admission, deposit with the paymaster the sum of seventy-five dollars, for which he will be credited on the books of that officer, to be expended by direction of the Superintendent for the purchase of text-books and other authorized articles besides those above enumerated.

X. While at the Academy the Cadets will be examined, from time to time, according to the regulations prescribed by the Navy Department; and if found deficient at any examination, or dismissed for misconduct, they cannot, by law, be continued in the Academy or Naval service, except upon recommendation of the Academic Board.

XI. A Cadet Engineer who voluntarily resigns his appointment will be
required to refund the amount paid him for traveling expenses.

INSTRUCTION, TRAINING AND PROMOTION OF SEAMEN.