ARMED FORCES: Gone with the Eightballs

Back to the Army, again. Out o' the cold an' the rain . . .

—Rudyard Kipling

Out in the cold and the rain once more are From Here to Eternity civilian misfits who used to gravitate to the U.S. Army. Moving into an era of sophisticated weapons and scissored-down manpower allowances, the 900,000-man Army last summer decided to tighten requirements and improve the G.I.s. Enlistment and draft laws were toughened; minimum requirement in the Army General Qualification Test was boosted from a ten-point score out of 100 to 31. The tightening-up process extended to troops in service; e.g., 71,000 "eightballs"...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!