Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1836-12-28
PTERN.aE gs9EJTEENTS.
REPORT
OF the Secretary Of Var, al tnser.m'
DEPARTMENT or WAR,

REPORT
OF the Secretary Of liar. al interim.
DEPARTMENT OK WAR,
December 3, 1896.
Gin. In compliance with your directions, nave l'e
honor to Law before you the usual annual reports OF e
several divisions If ibis department. ana 10 s"ot io
your consideration, summary o. tte eu'',. ., !
monuments orelhpr with such additional statements anu
SUGGESTIONS as seemed to to be required oy me pre-
sent condition AID necessities OF The puohc sefVce
l. THE ARMY.
l. Organization and force.lt appears from tne TePol
r Major Maconb and the tables annexed 10 II,
,b,, The REGULAR army of the United States, consist Of
G4S commissioned officers and 1,3lO commissioned
officers, musicians, artlilcers, ane priVaes' i'as a.
aggregate Of T.95S-o-ganzed as lo'lo~s' genera s
III viz one maior general commanding TWO et'B"'ne'
oenernls each commanding OF the two military us
irics into which the u. S. divided; acknowledgement
two inspectors general; one quarsermasef genera: aa
four ouatermasers and one commissary general OF SUI
sistence and two conmssares; pay department. L. VIZ
one general and II paymasters; medical de-
partment 76, viz: surgeon general; 10 surgeons
and go assistant surgeons; purchasing department. :"
viz: comnissafy general o. purchases: anu W.
military store keepers; corps OF engineers l"pogFa
phical engineers 10 ordnance department, (ncucing
2J4 noncommissionsd officers and enlisted men,? TWO
reuiments of dragons, each containing Ten companies
sixty pvates each: four regiments CT aFule!y' c1cn
coniaining nine companies OF 81 pvafes each; ana.
regments of infantry each containing II companies ct
az privates each. s
The present actual force Of the regular army accord
IN
from that return, that ai!r making the necessary 9e
auctioo for acness and other circumstances the aVaa-
bic force for service in the field at Tie latest d1tcs
2s2 The difference between tie actual inEce, o~e"
and the force allowed by law & 9jS) 90, and IS &C.
casoned by the ct that only 3O0 recruits have yet ocsh
obtained for the regiment OF dragons authorised
the act Of the last session. and by the vacancies caused
by expiration Of service and other casualties, IN the oeF
lSgtIients. .
= DistyiJe,ion and present position Of the trocrs.
The Eastern department. under the command OF ma
ior- General Scott includes thirty posts, from ~ OF when
the troops have been mostly withdrawn for service IN tile
Creek country and in Florida. The whole number OF
officers OF the line and al The several stations IN Inc
Eastern department. including ahsentees, IS therefore
now only l24 OF that number, Is are at OFT WI
npbaon La at Fort Brady los at Fort AlnckNac; li9
at For Howard: g. al Fort Dea!born 122 at Fort Ora
tio: all of which posts the North western IRON
tier or ip that vicinity; end the remainder at posts ana
in the Atlantic States. ,c,
The Western department, under the command OF MA
ior General Gaines now includes ~ posts and Tempo
Yary stations Several Of these posts have also oen
cuo,ed and The TROOPS ordered to Florida; so that the
whole number Of officers, OF the ilne ane nien now SUI
toned at them ncuding abseaiccs omorns only 70
245S or that number, 2;3 are at Fort Sne!tnT 10
at Fort Crawfrd 81 at Fort Leavenworh; i:2 al orr
Ghson los Fort rowson; IA at Fort Coffee; ooV At
Fort Jesup and l2l at station seventy miles from 'aI
Mace; l47 at Camp Sabine, and 42S at Camp Nacogdo-
ches: all which posts and stations are in the northwest
or on or near the western frontier; l3O at OFT itcal
Alabama; and 50 at Fu!t Cass, Tennessee 80
|"''-'''o
four regiments Of artillery. Eve companies excepted
eight panes of the fourth regiment OF infantry, one
Company OF Dragons, and battalion OF o%o iha'S'
making in the aggregate about 2ooo' accoFuS 20 .s
laes, returns received &; the Adulan General oce
After deducng the number reported SICK, ana a0sei.-
tees the efficient regular loce Tor field service IN fIoFl-
da, will not exceed 900.
For want q the necessary returns oil the Vo'-neefs
serving in that quacr the estimate OF lhat'au&lary
force at this time is less accurate" butt from the pest
data in the Adutan General office, 1t may be thus cpi'
puted: Tennessee volunteers about l2uo; AiaVaa w.
iunleers 3O0 Florida volunteers 2ou, ana washington
Cy volunteers 9-amouniing IN all 10 about 500, De-
sides $50 volunteer Creek l.dIans who have been hs'
tered in the service Of the United States, and are now
EMPLOYED with the army. The whole active o:ce, 'nrn'
regular volunteer and Indians now III Slofoa Ptooa
Div some VIVA: less than j ,UGp
Resides the volunteers above mentioned, there are Also
employed Of that description Of force, SOL IN tennessee
under the command Of Bfgader General WOOL; oS| IN
Arkansas, under the command OF brga0i"r i
bpckIe: and SO in Alabama: making, when aGde': 20
those serving in Floriai an aggregate u near gu"
q o.ements durin lie last gear, and noa0 Mprog'eSS
AT the date of the last anuuai report from tn:s Depart
ment several companies ind been paeeG IN fI,''C':
under the command Of Brigader-Cenerai cihcl io'
the purpose OF restraining any hosliie o' e
mart of the Seminole Indians, and OF enforcing inc exc
cuon of the treaty providing for their removal - was
then hoped That open rupture would De P1e'snteu-
and it was confidently believed that the eleven co"ia,
MES actually in Florida, amounting to o30 ohcers ANA
men, would be amply sufficient, with the
then under orde,s aud with such aid as might be derlF'
ed from the local militia and Volunteers 10 put down
any hostile attempt which might be MADE by the clst'
fected portion Of Tie tribe Both these expectations
were disappointed, and protrac;ed warfare ensuea.
which has not yet been terminated.
The most important military operations growing oul
of this state Of things mentioned i'll the accompany
inr report OF MAJOR. Genera! Maconb, which brings
down the narrative OF events II Frlca to the retire
mont Of the torGrs under Governor Call iromhe With
I,coochee in October last Authentic INTEL gence OF
that event reached the department ON the LIST ullimo,
through the medium Of letters received by some of the
bureaux and of officers direct from !orida' BY the
same channels information, 1t also sscertained
fb,, the health of Governor Gail had been SO much i'm
paired by sickness and fatigue, to make 1t aouo'u
whether he could renew The campaign with the ploMpi
tude and energy demanded by The crisis. On The Al
pmo no report having becH received from that oEccr
and il being necessary that the department should act
without further delay, the information then IN IT.
nnssesson dispatches were sent by express 10 Cover
nor Cali and 10 Major General Jcsup expressing to The
former the surprise and disappointment OF The President
a, the failure of his movement, and calling 1o an Xpla
nation and directing the latter to assume Tile command
General Jesup also Instructed TO eslaDAsh posi-:
ri or near The mouth Of the Witacoochee at Fort
and at Volusia and after taking the proper measure:
for securing through them the safely oil the lronler anl
for procuring sufficient and regular supplies, 10 concen
.rpte all his dsposahe forces and TO proceed without de
Law 10 possess himself Of the positions occupied by The
Indians and of the whole country between The Wi,hla
coochee and Tampa Bay Should the war thereafter be
Continued he was then directed take such advanced
nostons to the south Of Vosa, and to the east and
souh of Tampa Bay, as the nature of the country might
admit and 10 push IRON, them such further operations Us