, 1870-03-29
ARMY REDUCTION.
General sherman In OpposIrfon to
General LoSnn'A Btl1--Lctrcr to
Senator Wilson.

AAuSSAA'A 13A4-ACtxCX u
Senator Wilson.
...--- WASHINGTON, March ea
General Sherman has sent the following LET
ter to the Chairman Of the Senate aIiiitsr
Committee, before whom the bill! Of Gcue,s
Logan for reducing tho army is now pending
WAsH1sd1pE, March IL, 1s..1.e
" Hon. Htnry HI'son, Chairman Mi;itarv C5aG.is.
Ensleai Adtcs Settatt..
Dean SIN: l havo been repeatedly urge
by friends, md oyon hy members nf Congress
70 give to the country my views Of tho bil t.
ducing tho number Of officers III thu army,
which recently passed Tho House Of Rel. ;,,1,.
tatives. md Of the speech with Which General
hibited 10 officers Of the army 20 resort to the
press in official matters. but it is eminentIy
proper that you, who have requested it, should
know my opinion Of the matter. involved, anil
accordingly l submit them to You in the form
Of 4 letter.
The fi5st defect Of this bill is ono of oalis-
sion. The law Of 1866, fixing the peace estab-
lshmcnt, clearly described what tho pearo
establishment should lie. The Appropriation
bill Of March 3, 1869, bspke mp twenty rcsi-
lnents Of infantry, aud prohibited all future
promotions and appointments III the staff
corra till the prohibition should ba removed by
Congress. By the operation Of this enactment
to exist with the Eye3 Of the present iucum-
bents, aud very boou wo will have insufficient
Quaztermaatcrs, paymasterr, Surgeons, etc, to
provide for the absolute necessities Of the
troops in the field. Congress should now liz
come standard for these corps, aud lot us
work TO that standard. Tho assertion made hy
Genera! Logan that tho number of staff Off
GERS III our small army exceeded those OF Francs
nnd Russia, il 30 wide Of tie truth, that
it does not admit Of argument Our army Of
40 regiments would make two corps d'armee.
Elk iull divisions, or T. brigades. requiring for
actlal service General, Lieutenant Goucr-
ais. Maj ior Generals. and u 1irigadiers: :
erals, Major Generals, and 8 Drigxdiers. If
you will eeua to the Congress library for Harris
Army List for 1863, you will find in the Eng
hsh army. estimated at i30, GOO Een. the names
OF Field aIarshals. 80 Generals, 1i9
Lieutenant Generals, 416 Major Generals.
and 79l Colonies: The French army contained,
at latest dates. $50 MarslIals and Generals. Gil
Adjusant and Inspector Generals. 5s3 En-
gineerB, sl5 in tho Ordnance Corps, and
other officers performing dnties which
correspond with those of our stsir.
amounting with the above in the a9gre-
gate to 2,567 officers, exclusive al their sur
gcons and Assistant Surgeons. Thus the
have Of Generals and staff together, aud more
Engineer officers than We have in all our staff
cosrs put together. In like manner. the
North German lI1usaian) army has ~ Gen.
ornls, 81 Lieutenant Generals, and ~ Major
Generals, fl5 staff proper, 80 Adjutants. 333
teri, and other officers corresponding with on.
sttf, Including the above, amounting in the
aggregate to 3,181. cannot imagine xhure
General Logan got his figures, but, having
himself alluded to foreign armies, it is night
that thia correction should be made right
lutte discharge Of two Major Generals
and two D1isAier Generals. leaving in the
army three of tho former aud 4ix OF
TIC latter To compel thu President thus to
discharge fou1 Of Lis old Generals who have
served under him, md who hare fairly earned
tlleir commissions, viii lie the most ungracioas
tank that VA. ever iupo6e1 upou tbs Execu-
tive: mere especially, when he has jrht cx-
rrrssc.i til, opinion that their services arc
needed. and Are uot in e.ces$ OF tho army or
ganiza;ions. Our present heads Of bureaus
have uow the rank and pay Of Rrigadier Gen
erals, and this bill proposes to ,lsustcs them
out, or giVe them the hard option Of dropping
dicr can realize the cruelty Of this MEASURE,
and TO characterize such mcn as General
Meigs and General Eaton ~ inspectors Of
shoes and bean coup, On the aoor of Congress,
is = taunt unworthy. the p1ace for Congress-
itself has imposed on these very officers,
by name. administrative and judicial
functions that heretofore have been tho prov.
ince Of learned iudges- Claims involving hum
dreds Of millions Of dollarB, and tho most COM
plicated principles Of Law, haEe been adjusted
l,y them. SAVING uif1ions Of doIln1s to the M
tional Ttoaau1s, and elicitius the hearty ap-
4,rpyd Of the members Of Congress who have
witnessed shoir labor and fidelity. need not
constitute myself their advocate, for have
heard You bear testimony to the truth OF the
above statement II Congress cannot afford
to pay them the salary Of Gigadier Generals,
it should te 70 declared, aud not based on the
measure and importance Of their work. To re-
duce an officer from one grade 10 lower hts
hitherto been done only us the extreme penalty
Of the Law, On conviction By 3 court, for Bone
misdeucanor.
confess, when listening to the debate in tho
House Of Representatives On tho Army bill.
and when an amendment WIS proposed to per
nit retired officers to hold civil Office, was
seemed to thick it something very wrong. 4
lay already exists fo-biddinE the President
from putting ..t44vo officer on military dl!y
of any kind, end by the bill now under consul
Grafton, It is further proposed that they shall
not even be eligible to such petty civil Offices
near their homes n their neighbors might
choose to elect them to fill. Senator C1rp1n-
ter, day or two ago. applied 70 me for an Or
der 70 put on duty a retired officer OF his &C.
qu.intanee, aud I todd him 1t Was pro-
l;bited bJ Law Of the present Con-
Greas. He waS disposed to deuy the existence
Of such law, because be said it was .'aGainAt
humanity" and he would not believe it until
showed hin tho Law itself Now that these
veteran soldiers arc barred in one direction, it
il proposed to cut them OF in another ditec-
ton. The Senate has Just confirmed as snais-
ter to Spain, General Sicklcs, who is retired
and crippled officer. By this bill he will be
ousted, md al Of these officers will 10 de-
barred from increasing their small pensions By
earning the fees Of civil oficea, for which they
to3
would, it mas bo, c.,able them to support their
IND hs Il e. e Il ssa e u
kinds OF men. it j. proposed to deny them to
the very soldiers who sacrificed their G1aba and
their bodies to attain tll*, result
In England, and in other lands whic!, we
cal :" despotic," tho veteran officers and sol.
dere are eligible even to Parliament, ~ we'll
~ to all other civil Offices, and are universally
appointed to tho civil list, without limit OF
prohibition, and without losing their half par.
What reason is there that : retired officer,
duties. nay not be a Postmaster Of his village,
Marshal pf Sheriff Of his county, Judco or
magistrate, or hold some OF the hundred
thorsand civil Offices that necessarily exist
under cur General. state, county, aud nunici-
pal goEsrnment: When recall that in 1865
$500 bounty for sending soldiers, and sorae Of
or States, counties, and towns swe1led it to
81 900, and when our counhynen we're shout
ing aloud the praise Of our o1cers &ud men. I
little dreamed that to such as hsd the nisfos-
tune TO Re MANNED and crippled, would be de-
MED the nimple privilege OF enjoying the sails
ries Of cisa officers in sddition to such limited
pensions Il the government could Afford
Then, nothing was TOO good for the ga1lAn, Of
fictr and eoldier now. how changed General
Logan intimAtes thAt the Aggregate reduction
OF expenses By this blu viii be $4,000, ,001
Ah.A Sa
tion Of expense 1t all, for be himself says that
TINT the principle Of this Lill u to take from
higher and to give the loHez Er1lde OF officers,
and the tin touches no other items Of expense.
Death is alrcady doing his work among our
it being susceptible Of proof that the
daath-rate AMONG officers and soldiers Of the
W. aone cs
Of like age age and condition. who ss4yed 1t
home. The number Of officers left in axcess
Of tho Organization one year ago was 622; the
number in excess to-daF IL 455, showing dina-
mutton by death, de-, Of 1577. There are 107
vacancies in the grade Of Second Lentenants,
Two First Ieutenanta 70 \ company, and he
extra Captains, Il now for 1ndisn service, until
the aggregate cnmes dovn by ordinary casuai-
hes to the standard Of law. There are 66 "a
canciea in the stan corps OF the army, which
xould he hlied y promotion, and from this
list, II he LEGAL prohibition vera re-
Essssd Sesn % tas g. retired ID 1s D;Isn93 Is r.
in the Logan hill - well IS IL ii
othert, there will be places for 80 more Of
Ehese ofheers, Thus $50 Of the present surplus
I'LL be absorbed, md there viii rsmain in 81
I sess only 2a5 ct these. I an freo to confess
q ne army can spare 100 or more by roasm of
learins ths surplus only is5, ,.hiea i 1eH,thaa
fEn cssEStGes fer TIN 1r4t rfSf--eo-t4.akl thefa!