The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1853-02-09


States, passed resolution November Is, I776,
In these words:
"That the rank of naval officers be to the rank
OF officers in the land service as follows: Admiral,
as General; Vice Admiral, as Lieutenant Gene
raj; Rear Admiral, as Mojor General; Commo
dore, as Bngadier General; Captain of a ship OF
~ gons and upwards, as a Colonel; Captain of
snip OF 20 to 40 gune, a Lieutenant Colonel;
captain OF ship of 10 to 20 guns, as Major;
Lieutenant in the navy, as Captain '*-( Jour.
nais Of Congress, VOL l, p. 549.)
Congress had before (June Is, l775) ere
solved that general be appointed to com
mand all the continental forces raised, or to be
raised. for the defence of American liberty. %
Journals of Congress, VOL |, page s3.
And on the 18th of the same month. Han
cock, President of Congress, signed Washing
toms commission. in which he is styled "pene-
raj and commander -in-chief Of" &c., Sc
(Sparks's Life and Writings Of Was hinptop.
vol. 8, p. 1927
/ Those resolutions show that Congress. in
which there were many members who had
served IN or Nth the British forces, well un-
derstood the difference between grades of rank
both in the army and navy.
An invasion of the United States by the
French Directory being apprehended, Congress,
May %, 1898, enacted:
"sec. S. And be it, &C., That, whenever the
PRESIDENT shall deem it expedient he is hereby
empowered to appoint, by and with the advice and
consent OF the Senate, commander of the army
which may be raised by virtue of this act. and
10. nyr,sco
may be authorized to command the armies of the
United States, and shall be entitled, &c.-(Het-
sel's Mil. Laws, p. 1877
That commission General Washington, con-
trary to expectation, accepted prospectiuelu. At
the next session, Congress, learning that he had
accepted, and mortified at what was deemed
degradation put upon him, was in haste TO en-
act March 8, 1899
the army of the United States be appointed and
commissioned by the style of general of the armies
o. me Cntted States, and the present office and
title OF lieutenant general shall thereafter be abol
ished .'-(Hetzeps Military Laws, p.9 2.)
Thus ex-President Washington was restored
to the rank he had borne throughout the revo-
lutionary war; and thus it is seen that Con,
gress, November Is, l776, in the foregoing
table OF relative rank, and again May %, 1898,
recognised the rank of lieutenant general. That
grade was abolished in 1899 Gas above) to re-
lieve President Adams from the neeessitv
which would otherwise have existed. of pro
noting the next in rank Hamilton to the
lieutenant generally. The quarrel between
Adams and Hamilton had then commenced.
The title or grade of lieutenant general is
also well known to the codes of several of orr
States, as in Connecticut, where we have-un-
der the head of general staf-his excellency
I. II. Seymour, captain general; his honor G.
II. Pond, lieutenant general
Illinois, also, has had a volunteer organjza-
ton, called legion, commanded by iieuten-
ant general, supported by two major generals,
SC. SC.
thus 1t is shown that the rank of kemenGnf
general (between General Washington's rank
and major general) is old among us, and not a
novelty, as many supposed; and that we have
had In our army and militia every grade of
rank, except field marshal, known to European
armies, In which cGftaul general is the highest,
In the same act, March 3, 1879, Quoted
above,) it is declared
''Sec. 8. And be it, &C. That in the ordinaryar
rangement of the army, two regiments of infantry
or cavalry shall constitute a brigade and shall be
commanded by brigader general; two brigades
a division, and shall be commanded by major
* etzel's Military Laws, p. 92.)
Following out this scale, and there is no
other enactment of Congress on the subject.
the general regulations for the army, approved
by Mr.. Secretary Calhoun, in the name of Pre-
sdent Monroe, March 1, 1926, } and the in
fantry tactics, approved by Mr.. Secretary
Cass, in the name of President jackson. April
10, 1850 make t,oo divisions constitute an
army corps, or corps d'arm,ee, command for
lieutenant general.
The army of the United States now consists
of fifteen regiments, two corps of engineers,
and the ordnance Department. than equal
to four divisions or two army corps; that is,
equal to commands for taoo lieutenant generals.
from the British regulations for the army and navy
but the old Congress left out as napplicabe to our
service, the first line of the British table viz: cad
miral Of the fleet, as field marshal"
IN SENATE.
February "a, 1S49, Hon. Mr.. Fitzgerald esasked
and obtained leave to bring in joint resolution TO
confer upon Major General Winfield Scott the
brevet rank OF lieutenant general, which was read
and passed to second readng''
motion to read the resolution third time
the same day being objected to by a single
Senator, the subject went over for the want.of
time, Congress being within week of dissou-
ton.
July 20. 1850. Hon. Mr.. Clemens submitted the
following:
"Rtsolved. That the Committee on Military AT
falrs be instructed to inquire into the expediency
of comforting by law the brevet rank of lieutenant
general on Major General Winfield Scott with
such additional pay and allowances as may be
deemed proper, in consideration of the distin.
guished services rendered to the Republic by that
ofhcer during the late war with Mexico.h
Eight days later that resolution was referred to
the Senate's Military Committee.
On the last day of the session, (September 80
1867 Hon. Jefferson Davis, chairman reported
the following resolution the same subject:
Resolved, That the President of the United
States be, and he is hereby requested to refer to
an army board of officers, 10 be designated by him.
the following questions, viz:
is it expedient or necessary to provide for ad-
ditional grades of commissioned officers in the
army OF the United States; and if So what grades,
in addition tothe present organization should be
created"
In pursuance of this request, the President of the
nlted States appointed board of oficers-Gene-
rails Jesup, (presdent,) Wool, Gibson, Totten,
Falcott, Hitchcock, and Colonel Crane-who re.
ported u,sanimOusty as follows:
'Under the first inquiry referred TO it, the board
OF opinion that it IS expedient to create By law
or the army the additional grade of lieutenant
general and that when, in the opinion of the
President and Senate, it shall be deemed properto
acknowledge eminent services of officers Of the
lrny, and In the mode already provided for in
grades ii is expedient and nroner that