The General

When General Charles P. Summerall took over the presidency of South Carolina's Military College (The Citadel) in 1932, there was not a soldier or cadet in the land who had not heard of him. Armed with his famed credo, the "artillery exists only to protect and support the infantry," he had commanded the Fifth Army Corps in World War I, later became chief of staff. The Citadel was honored to have such a man at its head--and the school was never to be quite the same again.

Over the years, the general boosted enrollments from 600 to more than 1,250, supervised every one of his cadets down to the last palmetto button. Each morning, dressed in his great blue cloak ("The Shadow," cadets secretly called him), he would tour his campus and deliver a blistering sermon to any delinquent he spotted. But in spite of his strictness, his cadets learned to love him. Once, when he bluntly announced his resignation because a state senator dared to question his budget, the entire corps signed a petition begging him to stay.

West Pointer Summerall was an oldfashioned soldier who preached "the full life under God and government." But last week, part of his own life came to an end: at 86, still ramrod straight, he told The Citadel that he was leaving. "I have," said he, "loved The Citadel as I have loved no other institution. What the future holds I do not know." Remarked one cadet, quoting from the plebes' traditional reply to upperclassmen: "May your classes be soirees and your sorrows negligible and on your leave may there be some beautiful femmes, some canoes, lots of skags, full moons, and plenty of Coca-Cola."

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