The following are knowledge that plebes were required to recite whenever asked. You will note in the last item on this link that some of the "traditional knowledge" items have been replaced to make them more meaningful in preparing cadets for their forthcoming role in the Army.

How are they all?
"They are all fickle but one, sir."

How many lights in Cullum Hall?
"340 lights, sir."

How many gallons in Lusk Reservoir?
"92.2 million gallons, sir, when the water is flowing over the spillway."
(Due to construction on Michie Stadium, 78 million gallons is the current answer.)

How many names on Battle Monument?
"2,240 names, sir."

How is the cow?
"Sir, she walks, she talks, she's full of chalk, the lacteal fluid extracted from the female of the bovine species is highly prolific to the nth degree."
(The nth degree refers to how many glasses of milk were left in the pitcher. Today, cadets are served individual containers of milk.)

What is the definition of leather?
"If the fresh skin of an animal, cleaned and divested of all hair, fat, and other extraneous matter, be immersed in a dilute solution of tannic acid, a chemical combination ensues; the gelatinous tissue of the skin is converted into a non-putrescible substance, impervious to and insoluble in water; this, sir, is leather."

What do plebes rank?
"Sir, the Superintendent's dog, the Commandant's cat, the waiters in the Mess Hall, the Hell Cats, the Generals in the Air Force, and all the Admirals in the whole damned Navy."

SCOTT'S FIXED OPINION.
"I give it as my fixed opinion, that but for our graduated cadets, the war between the United States and Mexico might, and probably would have lasted some four or five years, with, in its first half, more defeats than victories falling to our share; whereas, in less than two campaigns, we conquered a great country and a peace, without the loss of a single battle or skirmish." -- Winfield Scott

SCHOFIELD'S DEFINITION OF DISCIPLINE
The discipline which makes the soldiers of a free country reliable in battle is not to be gained by harsh or tyrannical treatment. On the contrary, such treatment is far more likely to destroy than make an army. It is possible to impart instruction and to give commands in such manner and such a tone of voice to inspire in the soldier no feeling but an intense desire to obey, while the opposite manner and tone of voice cannot fail to excite strong resentment and a desire to disobey. The one mode or the other of dealing with subordinates springs from a corresponding spirit in the breast of the commander. "He who feels the respect which is due to others cannot fail to inspire in them regard for himself, while he who feels, and hence manifests,disrespect toward others, especially his inferiors, cannot fail to inspire hatred against himself." -- Quoted by Major General John M. Schofield, in an address to the Corps of Cadets, August 11, 1887.

Plebes were also required to memorize the old Army "Five Paragraph Field Order" which was used in developing operational orders for combat. They were also required to memorize the old Army "Estimate of the Situation" which was an abbreviated version of the "Five Paragraph Field Order".

In E-mail discussions about plebe knowledge with a current plebe, she replied: "Yes, we do have plebe knowledge. This year, they took away the "traditional knowledge" such as how many gallons in Lusk Reservoir, Who do Plebes rank, how's the cow, and the definition of leather. I still memorized them because most of the upperclassmen didn't know that had been changed, so I didn't want to get hazed for it. They added more military stuff to stress the Superintendent's plan of making West Point more like the regular Army. The things we had to memorize were Schofield's, Scott's fixed opinion, Code of Conduct, and the Soldier's creed.."