Faith, Honesty, and Manners to Lead Soldiers
Yukichi Fukuzawa (1835-1901), an extremely influential and notable, historical person of culture, introduced many Western works, such as "Declaration of Independence," to Japan which was then on its way to westernization in the 19th century.
He also introduced European and American jokes in his book published in Japan in 1893, such as follows:
"One day, parents wanted to see what their boy had an aptitude for. They handed to the boy the Bible, a hundred-dollar bill, and an apple. Then they went out for some time, leaving the boy alone. When they returned home, they thought, if the boy was reading the Bible, they would advise him to become a priest; if he was playing with the hundred-dollar bill, they would encourage him to become a banker; but if he was eating the apple, they would probably have to expect him to be a farmer or something like that. When they returned home, they found the boy with the bill inside a pocket, sitting on the Bible, and munching the apple. The parents then believed that they could make a politician of the boy."
* * *
Contemporary Americans may also like to test their children with the Bible, a hundred-dollar bill, and an apple, too.
America today, like 100 years ago, seems to be full of priests, financial sector workers, and apple-pie eaters in addition to real and virtual politicians.
* * *
No parents want their children to volunteer for military service unless it is the only way for them to be recognized as a patriot. On the other hand, the Defense Department or the War Department would not mind an aptitude of a boy for soldiers in wartime.
But the true issue is, as the joke could be regarded as implying, whether a politician has an aptitude for leading the people while he most probably lacks faith, honesty, and manners among the people.
I do not think highly of public estimation such as "a man of integrity."
* * *
In the half part of his life, Yukichi Fukuzawa was a samurai. In 1860, as a member of an envoy of the Tokugawa samurai regime, he visited the U.S. They were taken into a photo as presented in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fukuzawa_Yukichi.
It was said that Yukichi Fukuzawa had been the supreme master of swordplay, which could be felt in his picture as a samurai, though no reports on his fight with a sword. Today, he is remembered as a pioneering author as well as the founder of the Keio University.
A boy who might become a Fukuzawa would, when left alone in home, soon start to read his favorite book, such as a biography of George Washington, without paying much attention to other luxuries.
(No girl is expected to be left alone for any testing, of course.)
"BUT YOUR LIFE WILL BE SPARED"