Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1880-12-08

oohto"o Tu'lnent TO the maintenance of the
service Ahe constant demand for small de.
tachments, each of which conld he com, 49, $500 1t
by commissioned officer and the va,io11o do.
ttliS Oh olilcelS for necessary service awav from
tlelI commands, occasions a scarcity in tbe
nuihper required for company duties. With 3
view 10 loSsenlng this drain to some extent il is
teconalle e that the law authorizing the de-
''si Vi oncers from the active list as professors
OF tacucS ana military science at certain col.
le8es ana universities be SO amended as tC
prtoViue tnat all such details be made from the
retired list of the army. CIV
THE MILITIA.
ATTENTION IS asked to the necessity of nro.
yidlng pT legislation for organizing almipg and
dlSclphhmg the active militia of the conntrv
ana lperal appropriations are recommended il,
THIS penaH. The reports of the adutant gen
eral oI tne army and chief Of ordnance touching
THIS SUBJECT fully set forth it's importance. The
report OF the officer in charge of the education
OF the army shows that there are sayentv-eigbt
schools now In operation in the army with an
| aggregate attendance of 1850 enlisted men and
childreL. The secretary recommends the en-
llstnent OF LOU schOolmasters with the rank and
pay OF commissary sergeants An appropria-
ton is needed to supply the Judge advocates of
the army with suitable libraries and the secre-
taIy recommends that the corps of Judge advo-
Gates De placed upen the same footing as TO
promotion with the other staff CORDS of the
army. Under existing laws the bureau of mill
ta,y Justice consists of one officer, the judge
advocate general and the CORPS of
judge advocates of eight officers of
equal rank. provision that the limit of
the corps shall remain at four when reduced by
casualty or resignation to that number the con-
sOlidation of the bureau of military Justice and
the corps of judge advocates upon the same
basis with the other staff corps of tie army
would remove an unj Just discrimination against
deserving Otticnrs md no hoe f,,+,,
ests OF the service. Especial attention is asked
TO the report Of the chief of engineers upon the
condition Of our national defences. From o
personal inspection ofmany of the Notifications
referred to, the secretary is able to emphasize
the recommendations made and to state that
Their incomplete and defeDseless condition is
dlscredItable to the country. While the
other nations have been increasing
their means for carrying on offensive warfare
and attacking maritime cities we have been dor
mant III preparation for defense. Nothing of
importance has been done towards strengthen
ing and finishing our casemated works since
our late cinll war, during which the great guns
OF modern warfare and the heavy arnor of
modern Notifications and ships came into use
among the nations and our earthworks. left bv
q sudden failure of appropriations some years
since In all stages of incompletlon are now be-
ing rapidly destroyed by the clements.
RNnn IMPROVEMENTS.
The two great rivers of the North American
continent. the Mississippi and the Columbia,
have their navigable waters wholly within the
limits of the United States. and are of vast i'm
portance to our internal and foreign commerce.
the permauency of the important work on the
south pass of the Mississippi river seems now to
be assured, There has been no failure whatey-
er in the maintenance of the maximum channel
during the six months ended August 9Th last.
This experiment has opened broad deep high
way to the ocean, and is an improvement upon
the permanent success of which congratula-
lions may be exchanged among people abroad
and at home, and especially among the COM
munlties of the Mississippi valley, whose COM
merclal exchanges float in an unobstructed
channel safely to and from the sea. A compre-
hensive improvement Of the Mississippi and its
tributaries is matter Of transcendent import
| ance. These great water ways comprise sys-
TEN OF inland transportation spread like net
work over large portion Of the United States,
Manageable to the extent of many thousands of
mules. Producers and consumers alike
have q commanding interest in such
| unequaled facilities for cheap trans
portation Geographically, commercially
and politically they are strongest tie between
the various sections of the country. These
! channels Of communication and interchange are
| the property of the nation. Its jurisdiction is
paramount over the waters, and the plainest
principle OF public interest requires an intelli-
! gent and careful supervision with view to theil
| protection, Improvement and the enhancement
| of their usefulness. The channel of the Co
lumbia liver for distance Of about 100 miles
from ITS mouth is obstructed by o succession OF
! bars which occasion serious delays IN nayiga,
ton and heavy expense for lighterape and tow.
age. A depth of at least twenty feet at low
| tide should be scored and maintained to meet
! the requirements of the extensive and growing
inland and ocean commerce it subserves The
most urgent need, however, for this great water
way is q permanent improvement Of the channe,
at the mouth of the river. From Columbis
river to San Francisco, a distance of over COG
miles, there Is not na1bor on our Pacific coast
which can be approached during stormy weather
An appropriation of S150,000 was made by
the forty-tifth congress for the commencement
of q breakwater and harbor Of refuge to be
| located at some point between the Straits OF
Fuca ard San Francisco at which the necess
| ties by commerce, local and general, will BIZ
best accommodated. The amount appropriated
is thought to be quite inadequate for the pur.
pose intended. The cost of the work when fin
lshed Will be very great, owing to the want OF
natural advantages at any point on the coast
between the designated limits, and as it has net
been thought to be advisable to undertake the
work without large appropriation, I commend
the matter to the attention of congress.
PUBLIC BUILDINGS.
The completion of the new building for the
Inmates for continuing its construction are es-
pecially recommended. The collection of
books, specimens and records constituting the
army medical museum and library are of ma
tional Importance. The library now contains
about 81, 500 volumes and $1,000 pamphlets re-
lating to medicine, surgery and allied topics.
The contents of the army medical musuem
consists of $4,000 specimens. and are unique III
the comp ements with which both military sur
gerry and the diseases of armies are Illustrated.
Their destruction would be an nreparable loss,
| not only to the United States, but TO the world.
There are fled in the record and pension divis>
ion over $4,000 bound volumes of hospital
records, together with a great quantity Of
papers, embracing the original records
of the hospital of our armies daring
/ the civil war. Aside from their histori
cad value, these records are daily searched fol-
evidence needed in the settlement of large
numbers of pension and other claims for the
protection of the government against attempted
frauds as well as for the benefit Of honest
claimants. These valued collections are now il
a building which is peculiarly in danger of de
struction by fire. 1t is therefore earnestly
recommended that an application for new firt
proof building, adequate for the present need
and reasonable future expansion of thes,
valuable collections. Such a building should