374 THE NEW WORLD OF SCIENCE 



And from another officer: 



I am of the opinion that the psychological service is an excellent 

 thing. 



During the present war officers are thrown in contact with large 

 numbers of other officers and enlisted men, to whom they are com- 

 plete strangers. It is impossible to quickly form a knowledge of 

 any one's ability. Time, personal association or accident may show 

 that a certain officer or enlisted man is worthy of advancement. 

 We are constantly looking for intelligent men. The psychological 

 test gives us something to start on, and I have used these psycho- 

 logical ratings on many occasions in the absence of a knowledge 

 of the individual concerned. While I am firmly of the opinion 

 that the psychological rating is excellent among new men, it does 

 not take the place of the final judgment formed of an individual 

 by personal contact and observation under difficult conditions. I 

 would, therefore, consider it of the greatest importance for a.< just 

 test of new men to subject them first to the psychological test. 

 The final decision with reference to men who have passed such 

 test will depend upon the result of the judgment formed of the 

 individual after sufficient time had elapsed during which they 

 were under observation. From my experience in different camps, 

 I am of the opinion that enlisted men who rate below A and B 

 class should not be considered as candidates for the officers' train- 

 ing schools. 



The extent of the service of psychological examining and its 

 relation to military efficiency and expenditures have not thus 

 far been appreciated, chiefly because the public has been ignor- 

 ant of the facts. The following summary statements are taken 

 from the official report of the service : 



The work of mental examining was organized finally in 35 army 

 training camps. A grand total of 1,726,966 men had been given 

 psychological examination prior to January 31, 1919. Of this 

 number about 42,000 were commissioned officers. More than 

 83,500 of the enlisted men included in the total had been given 

 individual examination in addition to the group examination for 

 literates, for illiterates, or both. 



