May 12, 1962 - Gen. Douglas MacArthur at West Point: "Duty, Honor, Country"

May 12, 1962 - General Douglas MacArthur received the Sylvanus Thayer Award “for outstanding service to the nation” in ceremonies today at the U.S. Academy at West Point. The 82-year-old general, still an imposing figure, inspected the Corps of Cadets in a Brigade Review on the historic ground known as The Plain. Gen. MacArthur; Maj. Gen. William C. Westmoreland, Superintendent of the Military Academy; and the Brigade Commander, Cadet James R. Ellis of Birmingham, Ala., mounted a jeep for the formal inspection. In accepting the award, Gen. MacArthur extolled the West Point motto — “Duty, Honor, Country” — as an enduring guide and paid tribute to those who had adhered to it. The hall was hushed for 40 minutes as Gen. MacArthur addressed the cadets in deep, dramatic tones. “The shadows are lengthening for me,” he told the cadets. “Today marks my final roll call with you. I bid you farewell.” Gen. MacArthur, who was graduated first in his West Point class in 1903, served as Superintendent of the Military Academy from 1919 to 1922. The Thayer Award cited his service as a division commander in World War I, the Pacific Army commander in chief in World War II, and the Supreme Commander of U.N. forces in Korea.

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