The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-01-22

1 uuNse0 upon this CUBA proposition, and pass it.
they my bring even Governor Wise 70 terms,
but if the, finch or fail, we may as we'll to-day
as tomorrow give up al calculations of ma
tional reunion Of the broken fragments of The
democratic party.
PAY OF NAyAs. OFFIcERs.-We are inundated
with communications on the subject Of an in.
crease in the pay of our naval officers. The
object, we presume is to secure the passage o.
the Naval Pay bill at present before Congress.
Having given careful examination to a. sub
ject, we are compelled to admit that there is a
good deal of justice in the representations On
which that measure is founded
1t is now nearly quarter of century since
the present rates of pay were established for
most Of the grades Of the naval service. Since
then the increase Of the expenses of living both
at home and abroad, has effected material
dimnution in the relative value of those rates
bringing them down, we believe, to nearly one
half Whilst Congress- in the civil service, as
well as in the army and marine corps, has recog-
nized the necessity of rendering the pay ade-
quate to the changes which have taken place in
the rates of living it has overlooked in this mea
sure of justice body Of officers to whom, per-
haps more than any other, this country owes its
| present greatness.
| Whilst it has raised the pay of the army,
! whose services are rarely pushed beyond our
own frontiers, it has made little or no augmenta-
ton in that Of the navy, which is called upon
| to represent not only merely the power, but the
| dignity of the republic abroad. To place our
naval officers in the straits to which they are
| constantly reduced by the narrowness of their
| incomes and to expose them to the invidious
comparisons drawn between them and officers of
| the same rank in foreign services, is humiiat-
ing not only to the gallant men thus employed,
| but to the pride Of nation which claims to be
one of the first in the world
! In order to show the justice of the augmenta-
| tons embodied in the Naval Increase bill, we
will Just mention few facts to prove the dis
! parity which exists between the pay of our own
army and navy. Whilst major general in the
army gets as annual pay and emoluments, exclu-
sive of quarters and fuel, 1928, captain in
the navy, holding assimilated rank gets
as pay and rations in command of
squadron only s4,O9l 25. A brigadier
general gets $5,2l4; a captain in the navy,
over ten years. date of commission and COM
handing ship, only 1851 rs. A colonel in
the army gets S4,5S5; a captain in the navy,
over five years date Of commission and COM
handing q ship, only 1851 25. A lieutenant
colonel gets S4,l27; captain in the navy,
under five years date of commission and holding
the same assimilated rank, only 1881 25. A
major gets $3,249; commander in the navy
only 1851. captain in the army gets
S2,732; lieutenant in the navy, holding
corresponding rank. only 1851 %. And
throughout the different other grades of the SER
vice the same disproportion is observable
When we come to compare the pay of our
naval officers with that of other services the diff
ference is still more striking. Thus our senior
captains get only $4,000, when in the English
service an admiral of the fleet, corresponding in
rank, gets 1892. American captains of squad
rons get $4,000; British admrals $14,162.
American captains, full pay, $500; British vice
admirals, $l1, 391 IS. American commanders
full pay, $500; British commanders first class,
Sl0,62l. American lieutenants commanding,
$1,000; British captains of fleets, $3.50. And
so on down to the rank of purser
Seeing how much we already owe to our navy.
and how much of our future political importance
is dependent upon its efficiency, we think that
steps should at once be taken by Congress to re-
move the just causes of complaint to which the
above facts give rise. 1t is impossible that any
body of men can feel satisfaction in service in
which such inconsistent disparities exist and in
which they are exposed to the daily humiliation
of finding their pay inadequate to support their
families and the rank which they FILL The coun-
try has no right to expose its servants to such
degradation. The niggardly economies of a
great nation are the penny wise and pound fool
ish savings of short sighted financiers.
CHEvALIER BARNCM AND LOLA Monies ON
THEIR TRAvELs.-Our amiable transatlantic
cousins are enjoying rich treat, or, rather two
treats. They sent to us some time ago the
fascinating Lola Montcs ex-countess, ex-pol-
tician, ex-danseuse, exactressAin fact she had
all the eX's but none of the excellences of her
sex. We had good deal Of Lola--rather too
much, indeed; for little of that sort of thing
goes great way. There were no special re-
grets when the dear one took advantage of the
Galway line and left our shores. She carried
with her, on the same principle of Esquimaux
importations by arctic voyages, specimen of
American manufacture in the shape of Tam
many Hall politician, redolent of the Pewter
Mug and dusty with the debris of the Coal Hole
The happy youth and still happier maid are on
their travels through the United Kingdom. Lola
is giving to the curious Britons some informa
ton, such as it is, upon the social and political
peculiarities of our glorious republic The
agricultural population of Great Britain is no.
toriously gullible; but if they can take in all
that Lola, who is crinoline Munchauscn tells
them, Mr.. Bright may as well shut up his reform
chow, a. onco