The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1878-05-18
OUR VOLUNTEER seLDIERY.

A military force is an essential element
of State Government, both to enable q
State to contribute promptly her quota to
the army Of the Union in case of for
eign war, and to insure, under all circum-
stances. the faithful execution of her
own laws. There Is no more certain
guaranty of peace than known ability
to successfully repel an attack and pun
ish the assailant. 1t is well for a COM
munlty to be thoroughly prepared to
protect itself and "to beware OF entrance
to a quarrel, but being in, so bear 1t that
the opposer may beware of thee" II
government Is without military organ
iza!ion, it will almost certainly expert
ence the need of one; and with one 1t
will probably never be required to use it.
Thus it is always easier to prevent than to
remedy evils.
1t is difficult to divine exactly what In
duced our legislature to prohibit the en-
rOlment Of the militia -unless 1t was
that during the war, in which SO many Of
our citizens participated, the Legislators
were SUBJECTED with "the pomp- and cir
cumstances of glorious war" and could
not with complacency endure longer the
sight Of q uniform, or the sound of mar
tisl music, and therefore resolved never
again to look upon anything which would
be suggestive of their past hard experien-
COS. Their act, however, was the result OF
impulse rather than reason, and yet IL
may not have been wholly unwise. To
enroll, organize, equip and drill the
militia of the State would involve large
expense and would not then supply
the most efficient force. The absence Of
s. militia has no doubt stimulated the for
nation of volunteer companies, and it is
the emphatic opinion of such eminent
and experienced generals rs SHERMAN
and JOE JOHNSTON that the world has
never seen better soldiers than the
American volunteers. If, then, we can
secure volunteer force sufficiently large
we will have an organization much less
expensive aud much more efficient than
the militis. We now have IN the State
thirteen compsnies-sll organized within
the last eighteen months-more than half
this number thoroughly equipped and all
of them composed of the very best ma
terial.
These companies are composed Of
young men Of intelligence, character and
patriotism, who can be relied on in any
emergency, and whose military taste and
high sense Of duty to the State have in
duced them to become her soldiers.
Some encouragement from the State
should, and no doubt would, result in the
organization of st least one hundred such
mpanies-enough for eight or ten
lult reg LS-t4ilsA u ASASS atlA y
sufficient for our State. II is not to be
expected that these volunteers shsll fur
nish their own uniforms. 1t is
enough if they are willing
10 assume the duties of soldiers and de-
vote so much time to becoming discip-
lined and drilled Us will insure
their efficiency. The State can supply
them with arms, furnished to her by the
Federal government, and the Legislature
should mSke an appropriation sufficient
to uniform them and TO detrsy the eI-
penso (which would not be great OF an
annual encampment of fortnight or a
month. We suggest then that instead OF
attempting TO revive the ante JeLLum1
militia system we have a well considered
law for the enrolment and organization
Of q limited volunteer corps.