The Good Soldier
E<lu in Forbis Glenn's colorful career
— arouml I lie world and at home.
It,, KATHERINE S. MELVIN
His nickname at the United States
Military Academy at West Point was
"Mohawk," given him because of his
swarthy complexion. The time was the
middle I870's. His visage, however,
belied his Southern ancestry and up¬
bringing. for Edwin Forbis Glenn was
staunchly Scotch-Irish. His father was
Dr. Robert Washington Glenn, of
Greensboro. His mother was the for¬
mer Julia Gilmer, of a well-known
North Carolina family. Dr. Glenn had
been a surgeon in the Guilford com¬
pany of Home Ciuards during the Civil
War and had served with honor and un¬
tiring devotion. At Spring Friend’s
church, near Snow Camp, were buried
young Glenn's Quaker grandparents,
William and Jane Glenn. Through the
marriage of his uncle Anderson T.
Glenn. Edwin was related to the large
Lindley family of Guilford County.
Doubtless the young military cadet
knew little or cared less about his
family heritage. Rather, with his West
Point classmates, he entered blithely
into such fun and friendships as the
Academy provided. His intense enjoy¬
ment of life won him friends . . . but
also demerits. This, rather than aca¬
demic failure, placed him in the Infan¬
try. which branch of the service was to
become his life work. Remembering his
own Academy days. General Glenn
later adopted the policy of asking for
the "goat" of each graduating class,
knowing that here was humble material
upon which to build. The general took
delight in advancing one who was
aware of his short-comings and anxious
to prove himself in his commanding
officer’s eyes.
Edwin Forbis Glenn was born near
Greensboro in 1857. His schooling was
at the Lenoir School for Boys in Cald¬
well County, and at Dr. Simmons
Preparatory School at Sing Sing, New
York, previous to his appointment to
the United States Military Academy.
He graduated from West Point in the
class Of 1877.
Coed Military Drill
Young Glenn's subsequent rise
through the ranks reads like an Horatio
Alger story. As a lieutenant with the
25th Infantry he saw service in several
mid-western or western states. This
lasted until 1888 when he was appoint¬
ed Professor of Military Science and
Tactics and Assistant Professor of
Mathematics at the University of
Minnesota. At that early date Woman's
Lib was beginning to stir and demand
its rights. The young women at the
University requested military drill and
it was duly accorded them. However,
this famous "Company G" did not last
long. Likely, female fickleness having
won its point, soon tired of the regimen
of military practice.
Mofor General Edwin F. Glenn, commanding 83rd
Division. Probably token in LeMons, Fronce, 1918.
Butt of Gencrol Glenn by C. S. Pietro. It is a
splendid likeness.
Meanwhile, the young professor had
taken time off to marry a Miss Louise
Smythc of St. Paul. In the intervening
years their family came to consist of
four daughters: Margaret, l^uisc, Ed-
wina and Elizabeth. All except the
eldest are still living and have children
and grand-children of their own. None,
though, live in North Carolina.
On the side, along with his teaching,
Edwin Glenn was also engaged in the
study of law at the University of
Minnesota. He received his LLB de¬
gree in 1890 and was admitted to the
bar. He took a year's leave of absence
from the army to practice law in St.
Paul with the firm of Stephens, O'Brien
and Glenn, of which he was a partner.
He became an authority on Interna¬
tional Law. so much so that in 1895
he published Glenn's International
Law. Later, in 1914, under War De¬
partment orders, he prepared the
Rules of Land Warfare.
Alaskan Explorations
To choose a few highlights from
General Glenn’s lifetime of service is
not easy, but mention should certainly
be made of the two expeditions for ex¬
ploration and relief to the territory of
Alaska which he headed. These ex¬
plorations. made in 1898 and 1899
were recognized by the National
Geographic Society, of which he be¬
came a member. They were made at
the orders of the United States govern¬
ment.
It was no easy-going adventure for
Glenn and his party on either of these
expeditions. Two times their boat ran
THE STATE. March 1975
9