The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1885-12-25
OUR solosERs.


Oome Intsrsating Fssts Aboat tAo Army .
the Uaitsa States.
There are little over 5000 men IN
the United States army. This number
docs not include officers and cadets at
the West Point Military Academy. The
highest officer in the army is Lieutenant
General Phil Sheridan. He is the com.
mander-in-general There are three
Major-Generals and six Brigadier-Gen-
erals in the army. which consists Of ten
regiments Of cavalry. five Of artillery
and twenty-five regiments Of infantry.
They are located at the different posts
throughout the country, most of them
being beyond the Mississippi. The De.
partment of the East and the only bulk
Of soldiers located in the
East are on Governors Island.
New York, with Major-General Win
field 8. Hancock in command. Only
the troops located ON the frontier see
any service nowadays. and but q small
proportion see any active service at all,
however, they must be located some
whore, and are distributed at points con.
venient for call in the event there should
be need for them. The army is cut up
at all times into departments. There
are ten of these dcpartments-the De-
partment of the East, with headquarters
at Governors Island, N. Y; the Depart
ment of the Platte, with headquarters
at Omaha, Neb.; the Department of
Dakota, with headquarters ut Fort
Smelling, Minn.; the Department Of the
Missouri, with headquarters at Fort
Leavcnworth, Kan; the Department Of
Texas. with headquarters Mt San Anto-
MO; the Department of California, head
quarters at San Francisco; the Depart
ment Of Arizona, headquarters ut Whip
pie Barracks, A. T.; the Department Of
the Columbia, headquarters at VancOu-
yer Barracks, w. T. Each of these de-
partments are cut up into forts. There
are about eight or ten forts in each de-
Partmcnt, and they are commanded by
Col0nels, Lieutenant Colonies, Majors
or Captains. Esch department is COM
manded by q Brigadier or Major-Gen-
Grail
1t is a mistaken idea generally enter.
tanned by people not wellinformed upon
the details of army matters, that all the
officers in the standing armies are grad,
mates of West Point. There are less
than half of the high officers Of the
army, l am told. who are West
Pointers. Lieutenantcies and most Of
the Captaincies are filled BY grad
yates Of the United States Military
Academy. but the higher officers. in
very many instances. are men who
came up from the ranks, and who won
their spurs in the late war. There is no
prejudice against man because he s
not u graduate of the Military Academy.
except among those who are graduates.
In time. of course. the Military Acad-
envy will have supplanted about all tho
officers of the army. because there ara
few men who enter the army now from
civil life who aspire to become officers.
There are armories, arsenals and ord
nance depOts for supplying the army
with everything needed while it il pass
ing from one part Of the country to tho
other. This is to save the trouble Of
transportation. and to have whatever is
needed on hands ut almost any point
where an emergency may arise.
The pay Of the General Of the army is
@1S, 500 a year. or 81. l25 q month. The
salary Of the Lieutenant General il ~.
600 year; Major-General. N, 500; Brig
adier-General, %, 800; Colonel. b, SOD
Lieutenant-C Colonel, %, 900; Major, a.
800; Captain. mounted. $1,000; Captain,
not mounted. 81. 800; rcgimental Adju-
tant and regilnental Quartsrmastsr.
81 800 each; First Lieutenant, mounted.
81. 900; First Lieutenant, not mounted.
~. 400; Chaplain, $500. All officers
OF the rsnk Of Colonel. and below. re-
ceive ten per cent. increase above their
salaries here mentioned after five ye~rs
OF service, twenty per cent after ten
years of service and forty par cent. af-
ter twenty years of service. The officers
are allowed mileage when travelling
on official business and Communication
of quarters as follows: Gem
eral, 1925 per month; lieutenant
general, 500 per month, etc.
Privates receive on first enlistment e1S
per month: third year, $14; fourth year,
$l5. and fifth year. SIG a month. On
first re-enlistment they receive SlS per
month, and as they re-enlist for other
periods of five years they receive in.
creased pay in proportion. Musicians
receive from S22 to $50 month; veter-
mary surgeons from S75 to 500; cor.
porals, sergeants, saddlers and mo
chanics receive from 10 to 25 per cent.
above the salaries paid privatcs. Wass.
iagton Cor. indianapolis Journal.
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SUPPLYING MOURNERS.
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