Omaha daily bee., 1884-11-27
DEsERTIoN FROM THE ARMY.

According to the annual report of ad-
jutant general Drum, the average num-
Der of desertions from the army during
the last three years was 1864, or total
of 10,992. This is indeed serious mat
ter, and the causes leading to such whole
sale desertion should either be lessened
or entirely removed, as the nature and
extont of this crime certainly have a de-
moralizing influence upon the army.
Some of the causes are too much manual
labor, deficiency and lack of variety in
food. desire to obtain higher wages, I'M
healthiness of station, intemperance and
dissipation. The military authorities have
1t in their power to remove some
of these CAUSES. They can certainly
direct that soldiers shall not be required TO
perform mechanical and other work moi
necessary to the military service and
foreign to ths duties OF soldier, aud
thus abolish the too prevalent custom Of
forcing soldiers to perform labor cor
which they would be paid good wages
If not In the army. Gen. Crook rec.
omm ends the raising of tho character Of
tho service so as to overcome the low
estimate in which soldiers are held in
civil communities, and tho limitation OF
appointments in the army to grades oi
the academy and the ranks. "There ia
no reaHon," says Gen. Crook in his re-
port, "why low estimate should be
placed upon the soldier, and If citizens
regard him az an Inferior it is perhaps
largely attributable to c tticers of the army
themselves, many of whom place lower
estimate on the private soldier than
upon their horse or cow. There is wide
difference between necessary discipline
and unnecessary brutality, and if all
officers do not recognise this, all enlisted
men Go. It is true that the failure of
congress to make proper and sufficient
provisions compels the soldier too often
to perform labor that should not be per.
formed by him; cutting hay, wood, and
the like. But 1t is equally true that he
is compelled to do work for officers for
which there Is no justification, and the
performance of which is repugnant to his
feelings, and tends to humiliate him In
his own estimation as we'll as that of
others. There are certain classes of
work which soldier should never be
called upon to perform. To indicate
these classes, 1t is only necessary to say
that the uniform OF the American soldier
should not cover man who Is perform
ing the labor OF menial."
Among the remedies that congress
should apply to prevent desertion, and
which have boVn suggested by various
thoughtful and experienced officers, are
the following:
Reduction Of the torn Of enlistment
from fve to three years; settlement for
clothing isslled recruits at the end of first
year of service; increased pay for nom
commissioned officers; the establishment
ofllarge depotn, at each of which all the
companies of one regiment could be con-
solidated proper appropriations or sub
sistence shelter and transportation to
the end that scldisrs will not be CON-
verted into laborers; severe punishment
for deBertion, the second offence to be
followed by ignominious dismisaal. The
promotion OF temperance In the army
would undoubtedly reduce the number
of desertions and improve the morale of
the army.