Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1880-11-18

but subsequent appropriation bills, by
| prOvisOa, have limited the expenditures

but subsequent appropriation bills, by
provisos, have limited the expenditures
to 25.WD enlisted men. Still tho legal
strength is 10000 enlisted men, and that
number is the least possible at which we
can maintain the prescn; organization,
forty regiments, in anything like order,
discipline and economy, and infer that
this end can be reached by simply omit
ting the provisos to the appropriation
blll. The prosperous times and easy
financial condition of the treasury may
now enable congress toprovde suitable
amounts for the forts, which guard the
chief harbors of the country.
Speaking of the Northern Pacific,
roads, Gen Sherman says: These rail
roads have completely revolutionixed our
country in the past years, and impose on
the military an entire change of policy
Hitherto we have been compelled to
maintain small posts nlong wagon
and stage routes of travel. These are
no longer needed, because no lonper
used, and settlements which grow up
speedily along new railroads afford the
security necessary and regular stations
built for storage ut convenient distances
| afford the necessary shelter for stores
and for men when operating in the
neighborhood. We should now abso-
lutely abandon many of the smaller
posts hitherto necessary, and concentrate
Mt strategic points generally near the
national frontier, or where railroads in.
terest, SO MS to send out detachments
promptly to districts where needed
Congress alone has the power to dispose
Of the property of the United, States.
and we the military, find ourselves
possessed OF lands and houses obtained
in early times, which demand occupation
for preservation, and earnestly recon-
mend that provisions be made by law
for the sale of such military posts and
outbuildings as is found to be necessary.
and with the right to apply the proceeds
OF the sale to other places and property
of the United States.
Gen. Sherman here specifies posts in
Kansas, New MEXICO and Arizona and
also Forts Keogh, Custer, Oh the Yellow
| stone, built only four years ago, and ex-
presses the opinion that in n very short
time they will become CONNER
cial towns rather than military posts,
and says:
In my judgement the time has now
come for the military authorities to Sc
lect suitable strategic points for perma-
nent occupation and improvement,
| whence detachments can be sent out
for special service. So long rs we pos
sess and must care for these small posts
it is impossible to abandon them to
waste, and we are forced to hold them.
But if congress will delegate to the pres
ldent, secretary of war and
board of officers the right
to sell these posts and appro-
pirate the proceeds of the sale to stra-
tegic points, am certain it will result
in great economy and enable us to main.
tain large garrisons with increased dis.
cipline and better service. For similar
reasons and because the commerce of the
world is carried on in ships of 10000 tons
and over. and because OF the heavy draft
of war vessels most of our sea coast de-
fenses are superhnous, We now have
5O,W0,0OO people, and the idea of any
hostile force landing ON our coast is pre-
posterous, yet our great commercial
ports should be made SO safe that even
an apprehension of danger would not
be felt. An annual appropriation of 81 !,
100000 would i'll ten years put these
ports in good order aud another million
a year would properly arm them, anC
the secretary of war and president
should have direction in the disburse
ment OF this money.
Referring to the reports of Gen. Scho
field and Col. Terry relative to West Poin
and the artillery school at Fortress Mon
roe, Gen. Sherman says:
In my judgement both these institu
tions are in as good order as possible
and both are an honor to the country
Education must always be the surest
basis of national security and honor. The
education and manly training impaired
to the young men at West Point has re-
paid the United States thousand time,
its cost, and has more than verified the
predictions of Gen. Washington.
The general then recommends that nj
the colored regiments should be officered
not exclusively by white men. but tina
all men should be enlisted who are quail
i6ed and assigned to regiments regard
less of color or previous condition.
i Education at Fortress Monroe, unde
the supervision of Col. Gets, is purely
professional, and limited chiefly to til
artillery arm of the service. This educa
ton cannot be found in another colleg
in America, and is valuable because til
use of artillery is limited to war on
large scale, and cannot be learned in on
Indian wars or in common life, Whel
the necessity arises for artillery officers
as in our Mexican wars andsalso,i in civi
war, it is sudden and immediate. Thi
school costs nothing but ordinary CARR
son expenses. L still desire to estnblis
similar school for infantry and cavalr
at Leavenworth as soon as the contlitlo
/ of Indian affairs will, admit of a sur
, release of some good infantry regimen
| from the distant frontier, which hor
. will occur within the next year.
In conclusion. 1 beg to state that I'll
), entire army is, in my opinion, as patrio
n ic, as patient and as willing to encount,
J. danger and hard service as Mt any formt
e period in our history. The rapid extel
n sion of railroads and mails have muc
r improved the general condition and the
IS simply suffer the usual fate of peace
=. slow promotion and apprehension
l. changes which never come. The countl
r is so large that regiment transfers ar
changes are costly, and the consequent
has been that many regiments have I
NAMED longer in remote quarters til,
seemed fair, but I have endeavored
IF make regimental changes rs fast as pc
I. sible consistent with the annual app