The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1874-02-27
THE ARMY.
The Army Register Out-New FEATURE
Cmccrs OF Foreign NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
from the Ranks.

The Army Register Out-New FEATURE
Omccrs OF Foreign Birth-PromOtiOns
from the Ranks.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 25, 1874.
The ofilcial Army Register for January l, 1874,
with an addenda giving the changes that have
occurred from that date to the time the Register
went to press, Is at length ready Tor distribution,
and officers OF the army Will receive 1t forthwith.
1t was anticipated by the HERALD Register, pub.
lished on the 7th instant, which also included
changes subsequent TO the making up of the Official
document. The only
NEW FEATURE
Is that under the caption OF 'brevet and volunteer
commissioner the dates OF all commissions held
by officers, with tie dates OF muster out vacation
&C., are inserted. For example, the record of
Colonel Mccoy. ade-de-camp to General Sherman,
Is az fOllOws:-
Colonel, aide. de-camp, March 8. 1869; first lieu
tenant brevet, captain brevet, major brevet, and
lietenant colonel brevet. all March 2, 1867; first
lieutenant Fifty Ohio volunteers, October 81
1861 captain same regiment, March 10, 1868; cap
tain, aide-de-camp volunteers. July 10, 1868 ;maOr
cred ont September l. 1866; lieutenant colonel
aide-de-camp, August II, 1865; vacated March T.
1869, lieutenant colonel volunteers brevet. This
takes up thirteen lines OF the Register, and with
numerous other cases Of the same kind extends
the volume to 260 pages-abOut One-ffth more than
last year. The object OF this additional information
is to enable the accounting oficers OF the Treasury
Department to ascertain, without troubling the
Adjutant General, when officer becomes entitled
to the ten, twenty. thirty and 1Orty per
twenty years. service respectively. Innumerable
charges have been raised against officers
on the books of the Treasury Department.
on account OF overpayments caused by this per
centum, technically called "iOngevities," being
anticipated by errors on the part OF officers Ia
computing their length of service, many of them
counting from the date they were appointed in
stead OF the date they accepted their appointment.
This information should have been Included in last
years Register, nut the necessary data could not
be obtained In time. one Ofilcer has recently been
court martalled and dismissed for reporting that
he resigned from the Filth United States colored
regiment, whereas he was dishonorably dismissed
by Major General Butler The number OF
OFFICERS OF FOREIGN BIRTH
holding commissions IN the army Is 244, OF whom
Al are the STAFF departments, 50 In the cavalry,
not include one born IN ASIA one IN East India and
three who were born wnen their mothers happened
to be at The countries having the honor to sup
ply go many Officers for our army are Ireland 90;
Germany. As; England, 35; Canada, %; Scotland,
Is: France, 8; Sweden, 4; Switzerland. 3; South
Prince Edward Island, Austria, Malta Corfu, Ma
deira, Norway and the Netherlands l each.
One hundred and nnety-six OF our officers
ROSE FROM THE RANKS,
thus showing that II every corpOral's knapsack
does not contain marshafs baton good many
OF these Oflicers is worthy OF EXPERIMENTATION IN
asmuch as it proves that, contrary to the gene
rally received opinion the majority OF our officers
who entered the service as enlisted men are ma
tlves of the United States, and not .foreign mer-
cenaresn The United States Is credited with 1OS
promotions from the army Ireland Al; Germany.
%; England. Z; Scotland, q; Canada, 2; Switzer-
land, 2; Norway j; sweden, /: at sea, l.