Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1855-06-12
Ear he Enquirer.
Tar TIE EHTUHT'
THE prv1v,1 AND IMPROVEMENT OF OUR
A'11 Vow DEAD MILITIA SYSTEM.

TIE REVIVAL AND IMPROVEMENT OF otA
$500 NOW DEAD MILITIA SYSTEM.
ou- ss,o,ors and Delegates in the next Legislature
~, m rscr.ant to their obligations, and dead to every
;mls. of Southern patriotism, II they 'ni 10 re'c
md improve our now dead militia system; On! "uu'
. "nu minv ts downfall was produced by men too
uroud TO muster beside the swcaty soldier ana 10"
stnuy 10 pay muster fines. One rpaulcio u'u n''
suffice for them" but if they could wear tw"' nu
dubbed rs Colvuc or General, they might P"s''p',
hold 10 their commissions Tor sno' ..'?, ~
never or rarely after their MIeS becnne ialh'I'" ="
th.;r acuuaintances. Such men ought not TO RUE u.
destir,ics for they hazardins our peace unu '"
w. Suppose mob or nsurrcctlon "ere'" rP''"s ~
how could our Governor and civil autn"rit.es n
n.nd force 10 Gue,l III 1t may be said that me W.
imnts.r compunics would aG.i;ce. But tho iact i,
that very large majority of the Counties ~ liie
h.we no volunteer companies, and the ie~ WIZ nu''
Them are uuarmeG and they had as wei w '''o""N
20 ,,o,,o, that orr Public Ar,nory had its origin
r,,I.r VIM. REIGN o. .crror of the Elder Adans "nen
nnfer his Alien and sst:i:i,p Jaws, Caiehder' ''e
tor. and Others were impr!hoEof' y n"'. n
worse prospect just before us than any ~h'.' n"u
under The Alien and Scdiiion laws. L""h y" u:si
cbu.atts, We have the Fugitive slave tw hulihed,
rJ ,h. yulnutecr companies which AIDED the ieuera
authorities il, q=elling negro moo VINO rose ~ arhs
and committed murder, II: resisting mo e"etu''on
tho law: We have seen fho'f enIIW'iilcs "so"nu''
h,consr some of them commanded u i,htura-
ized G,r.irners What may expect next but th2
r.r.al of that law by Congress nnd the aD"li'ioh VI
slavery in the District Of Columbia! ..u..
We have fiier.s ct the North who would h'','.uny
defend our rights, if we vo:d prepare 10 %
ours,lves Bat 30 long az we cUniart ourselves WIN
VOWS 10 rcsist at all hazards and 10 the ie'! te
nitv" end then back out when rho pihcii S'iel' ~
ronder our.eves ridiculous and contemptihio ahu our
Northern rierds caLEct he expected 10 ''u'' US
rely upon our paper vo%s. ,.,.;. :; rov, g,.
Take the case of Kansas A strrs.is y NOW 90
La.I .hn
holders in part O. BY rank nn;i-slavery men e1clu
.iyriy II men would prepare 10 sustain ihI 81
holding interest in thu. Siute ii..!'oi' anu i"u
n,J nrrl,aps another Northern Siato % tW9' "oiia
back U.s. IT they Woud "o'' 'Ao"'"
zrns wGud. 49, g.
NAV bc dubbed again, Is hove b"cn' u? " "',.
.,,sr md disunionst; but am u" sh"h l''"s' u
,yns ono Of General Washington mat'hs, in Hea'e
prepare for war;. rigid CONFORMITY 10 t,' ""r
ri srur. oar peace The iaetis unicni"ie ,iHt our
Nvr,rrn brethren nro wa:rnS against lis, ana shcrr
inn ut our ycws to resist az 'a!l HAZARDS ana ~ INC
la,t extremity" ..rd well they may. when we are
rection. We have made ourse,cp laughing s'och
for our assailants. Let lis awake, GGd let u" AWAKEN
nnr Inv -nnlsers to sonse OF our helpless lEd de-
icEceGss gitltntinn ,., :. A., IT,
In a few y,i.i,u,d articles, published in the En-,
ouirer last summer, stated tho fact that although
never held Il military corrngsioh higher than thht oi
Captain yet, 1 had been cngeSed III thr >hiI!''a
service from my early boyhood TO ripe marronh'
cnim some acquaintance, from experience, WIN 'ie
.ubiec, upon which | mn writing. 1 Proh"unccd
that those who oppose my views. rely ufnI false
s1peri,nce when they contend that training LIE ili
in time of peace does good-alId that militia NO
trained when they enter the service III hno OF W.T.
ara as snoraat .! military tactics d. raw troops
This know To be false. Those who luke this posi-
tiop ses,n ignorant of the fact, tat from the days Oh
the reycIuuop, until the declaration OF war asanst
Great Britain in lst2, TIC militia were drilled oy Tue
system OF Baron Stcubrn AnG pun Country captains
and even seryeants could drill their ien euIest e:lral
TO regulars Butabout the time the war commenced
the system of tacics changed ana tht! 81 Duahs
alcotud for time. This was all F"eHch to our MI
litia men. 10 wonder, them that orr trained soldiers
should have been "a bard, sysn harder 10 learn 'he
new systepl t,auaraw troopa, \ ell, after while, II
was fund that Duanes system WA 30 iutl Y errors
TINT il would not do. Then almost every BrItGIc
Inspector had his own system ni tnctlrs' ana tncre
WAS nothing like uniformity, until the adoption OF inc
sya,rln chulked out by board OF lni'ca states ON
But this system meyer did get into the hands oil our
,niltia officers generally; for before II could gel mo
vogue, our wtse and patridttc la". makers, haa
made the discovery that truImnG tee u'''tS NJ
hOme' in time OF peace %as nU Ns c"mnnny
musters were reduced to two year, although
the battalion mnsters were dispensed "Iih' ann
although We had no uniform system o; t"cue"' !e'
every captain and subalteru officer, Who nas com
mand.d plr;oou at regmcnta parade, could ds'iI,
gni.h the companies drilled by faithful officers and
those commanded by captains who con'enied 'hefn-
selves by simply calling the roll r3d men Crying
.rivh, face lett face! right about ince: disuiiss
Whereas the militia men, drilled by iahhiui captains
when they heard the word OF command IRON tneF
platoon officer would march To- their places; me
companies not so drilled we're obliged TO be puilsa
and ,ugged to their paces by their collars OF co"t
tails. Iii. know to be true, from erpsrlenro.
Lc. our Legislature do their bounden duty rrsasal-
tate And improve upon our mlit" system-keep the
armory always ready to supply citizen '"ldlery
with good arns-iucrease the number OF company
muster. to least every othsr month, from Arrl
TO NoveInber-rsvive the battalion musers go back
10 tho old plan Of progression, by increasing the nns
when mon fail ar refuse TO muster without eXcuse
then will militia companies. instead of being spurned,
be .npery sought and chung To; for young FASH
ionacs will prefer TO epnuletts and be III COM
mnnd ra,hcr than muster shoulder To shoulder with the
,wcay soldier. Let militia Officers become M
copyersant with SCOTS system, IN they were with
S,.ubeu's about the time of the embargo and nom
pcta and shall spike the guns aud 81
lrnce the tongues Of those who contend that 1t IL no
use tv drill the militia 1t hone i'll time of pence My
life upon it, that if this coGrse be adopted by our
erisature, our Military institute u Lexington nnd
West Point will become what the University Of Sr.
ginia 10 to the primary schools aud academies, ~
furnishing the militia with competent teachers. Ny
III. upou il, too that military school. Will became the
order Of the day. MiLil1A CAr AIN
june 3, 1855.
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