ABSTRACT
Arriving in the United States on May 30, Robert H. Searl told a story of harsh discipline, alleged that people had tried to convert him to communism, and said that many soldiers were in prison on suspicion of espionage. In subsequent months, more deserters made headlines with tales of hardships suffered in Spain and often with complaints of inhuman discipline and terrorism in the International Brigades. Abraham Sobel and Alvin I. Halpern were critical of the severe discipline in the International Brigades and went on to affirm that many Americans had faced firing squads either for trying to escape or for opposing Communist policies. Desertion, cruel discipline, Communist terrorism, concentration camps, and political executions cannot be taken lightly. While complaints about the length of enlistment may have been legitimate ones, those about severity of discipline in the XVth Brigade were unwarranted. Among the Americans, discipline was no more severe than in any army.
