Arizona citizen. [volume] (Tucson, Pima County, A.T. [i.e. Ariz.]) 1870-1880, 1876-06-03
Saturday. JUNE ), 1876.
The Army

.IEdSDll5 AOl l. IL I'll 49, GLNL
interest III the army. We represent
o. the people Of the frontier. These peo-
pie depend to an extent upon the army
for the protection of their lives and
property. The army is the armed
police Of. the frontier. THE CITIZENS
\ effort is to aid in showing where this
I. armed police becomes useless and
&c worse through fraud and ineficiency,
IS and to effect reform. We are sctuated
IS by no malice towards the army and
e no one but the fools and frauds in and
= connected with the army suppose so
;, for one moment. Is Is well known
n that we viii give and have given
+ more effective praise and commenda-
= ton TO any good we find in the army,
/ Individually or otherwise than any
4 other journal on this coast. But to
!. the lesson for the week. The Herald,
: in late number, takes up the subject
: of promotion from the ranks, and in
t the course of its article shows that
E the stringent and wise laws and
regulations on this feature of army
economy have been virtually treated
= as d dead letter The article runs
t thus:
, During the last fifteen years the
{ Herald has repeatedly called atten-
ton TO the subject of promotion from
: the ranks, and has published stats
tics showing that the laws and regula-
tions relative thereto have not been .
fully carried out. The matter has
at length gained the attention of
Congress, and has been forcibly and
practically presented to the war
authorities, first, by that provision in
the army bill now before the Senate,
which closes all avenues OF approach
70 commissions IN the line except
through West Point and the recruit
ing rendezvous; and second, by a L
resolution calling upon the Secretary
of War to inform the House whether (
the act Of August t, 1851, since incor-
porated III the Revised Statutes (sec- (
ton 1,2l4, has, according to the true
intent and meaning Of said act been
carried into effect 3" and if so. {
to state to what extent that provision
has operated to the promotion of non {
~ Il rbo2
any, has been the effect upon the |
service Of such promotion.
The resolution has not yet been re-
sponded to, but the records of the Ad- c
jutant Generals office show that while
620 enlisted men have been commits {
stoned since 1854, the law has been d
literally complied with in nineteen
instances only--viz, one III 1857, Il
three III 1859, one III 1860, one in 1862 >
and thirteen III 1868, literal COM L
pllance requiring nou-commissioned {
officers who have been examined and "
found qualified to be attached to regi-
ments as brevet second ieutenants, r
whether there are any vacancies or not :,
A reference to the files of the Herald, u
the general orders publishing ap- q
pointments and promotions and the u
official army registers for the last u
twenty-five years shows the limited D.
extent to which the laws and regula- II !
tons have operated. 81
In 1854 there were 9j2 officers in o
the army, Of whom twenty had been =.
promoted from the ranks. three for y.
services in the Florida war and seven "
.een for services in Mexico. OF those -;
.wenty veterans, seven are still in the .,
army, viz:-Two on the active list :.
Major james Belger, quartermaster II
appointed III 1885, and Major james -
VI. Robertson, Second artillery; and -
i've on the retired list-Colonel Sam'l -
4. Starr, Lieutenant Colonel Levi C. ~
3ootes. and Majors Thomas Hendrick- -
on lappointed in 1885 David II. h.
hastings and William B. Lane. OF y
he remainder two were killed in bat ;"
lie, one died of wounds received in -
action, seven died natural deaths, and \
me was dropped from the rolls for ~ ~
iesertiou. u
From January l, 1855, to January So
!, 1861, there were 224 vacancies in M
'avalry, artillery and infantry but nv
My one dozen promotions from tn. III
anks, vlz;-tive in 1855 lone of IN
whom was murdered by a soldier a IN
ew days after his promotion,l three TT
II 1891, three in 1859, one in 1850. tTf
nd none III 1886 and 1858. The small W,
lumber Of vacancies filled by the N
promotion of non-commissionedo officers 90,
Turing these years Is not surprising to no
my one familiar with "old army" Ar
matters, as there was an undisguised
hostility on the part of officers to the
promotion of enlisted men. The
equations of the War Department NJ
.lready quoted, left the matter entirely oft
Il the hands of captains and col r,
,nels. \ deserving sergeant had first =
o be nominated by his captain-no IL
'aSy matter TO begin with-then he Ia
lad to obtain the recommendation of of
ais colonel, who probably had never :.
seen him, and beyond having signed ~
his warrant as a non-commissioned 10
'rhcer had no knowledge of his ex- NJ
stence. Finally, he had to take his
chances OF being ordered before and
passed by probably inimical board %
- composed Cf four officers of rank" 90
That there was no lack of suitable &c
IL the ranks of the army A.
: shown by the fact that between ~
1850 and 1861 certain uon-commis- 40
loned officers We're publicly COM ~
nauda1 in General orders f,, -.