The Daily Alaska Empire

OVERALLS AS AN AID TO PEACE

Gen. Johnson Hagood, who was one of the high
command during the World War, has incited no end
of criticism with his statement in a magazine article
that soldiers can fight just as well in overalls as they
can in trim khaki uniforms. There is consternation
in some of the military ranks, as they shudder at the
idea of fighting a war without being all dressed.
But General Hagood's theme is not to elevate the
overall or dungaree in military standing or discredit
the fighting qualities of the men in olive drab. Rather,
he very sensibly proposes to take some of the glamor
out of war. He wants to picture it the cruel, dis-
agreeable, tedious work that it is.

No better example of what the General is getting at
can be found than the present civil war in Spain.
There, troops of both sides, in all sorts of old clothes,
as pictures reveal, are killing and maiming them-
themselves just as effectively as if they were draped in
khaki or wearing gold braid. War is a cold-blooded
proposition. It is purely a matter of killing the other
chap before he kills you. There isn't anything glamor-
ous or heroic about it when one gets out in the mud
up to one's ears and starts dodging bullets. It is the
hardest kind of work and whether the soldier is wear-
ing a snappy uniform or a pair of overalls doesn't
make any difference. It is a tough job at best.

Regardless of the relative merits of khaki and
overalls, if General Hagood can take some of the
motion picture glory out of war and paint it the in-
glorious thing that it is he will be doing a real service
in the cause of peace.