Salt Lake evening Democrat. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1885-1887, 1886-04-01
THE VACANT BRIGADIER-GENER-
ALSHIPS.

Our dispatches state that the Senate
yesterday confirmed the nomination OF
Brigadier General o. o. Howard TO be
Major General, vice Pope, retired. This
disposes OF the vacancies in the list OF
Major Generals, and the question now
arises, who will get the appointments as
Brigadiers. 1t is expected that the nomi-
nations to the coveted stars will be made
in IL few days, and in the meantime the
Colonels are taking their turn on the
anxious seat
The selection of the two senior Briga-
ders for promotion has greatly raised the
hopes of the senior Colonels. The Prcsi-
dent, OF course, will not go below their
grade for his choice and it is improbable
that he will turn aside to the staff corps
where he has no fewer than forty line
Colonels to pick from. OF the latter,
however, good many have received
their present commissions within two or
three years, and hence are out OF the
race, while some have no war record OF
importance. 1t is almost certain that
both nominees will be taken from the
first twenty OF the Colones, in relative
rank.
The Washington correspondent OF the
New York Sun, who seems to have thor
oughlv canvassed the chances of the
several Colonels for promotion, thinks
that in the cavalry the choice will be
confined to the first four-Grierson of the
Tenth, Hatch of the Ninth, Sturgis OF
the Seventh, and Merritt of the Fifth.
In the artillery he says there is but one
conceivable candidate-Ayres of the Sec
ond. In the infantry are named Will
cox OF the Twelfth, Ruger OF the Eight
drews OF the Twenty-ffth, Potter OF the
Twenty-fourth, Kautz of the Eighth
and, the DEMOCRAT is pleased to add, our
own McCook of the Sixth. Thus the
twenty Colonels from whom conceiv-
able choice could be made, are reduced
in number nearly one-half. Says the Sun
correspondent:
If the principle shall prevail of giving the
first choice to those Colonels who, besides
being high in lineal rank will be soonest
retired for age, on the ground that they
have, as general rule, rendered the most
years of aggregate service, the prizes would
doubtless 90 in the cavalry to Colonel s. ID,
Sturgis, and in the infantry to Colonel j. II
Potter, who not only stand respectively sixth
and eighth on the total list of line Colonels
but are to be retired this very year, the
former June IL and the latter October -
But the failure tonominate General Newton
who is also, soon to be retired, for Poope's
vacancy, makes it unlikly that age will have
the advantage over seniority in grade.
Looking then, at line rank, we find nc
fewer than five Colonels having the same
date, July %, 1866, in their present commits
sions, namely, Wilcox, Ruger, Hatch, Grier
son and Smith, arranged on the official lis
of relative rank as here given. Colonel o. B
Wilcox not only leads the entire list o
Colonels, but is to be retired in about year
April 6, 1887; and this latter consideration
may help him when coupled with the othe
strong claim. Colonel L. H. Ruger retire!
ten years later, and is also prominent can
didate for Judge Advocate General, in Gen
eral Swaim's place; but should the Presiden
be thinking of somebody else for this office
Colonel Ruger's chances would be perhap
increased for the present one. The chance
of Hatch and Grierson. the latter of whom
retires five years before the former, ar
probably increased by the likelihood tha
the infantry would not receive more thai
one of the Brigadierships. But should tn
artillery receive an appointment, Colone
Ayres, who retires at the close of 1889
would unquestionably be the nominee
Finally, an abandonment of the principle o
seniority in selection would very probabl,
carry one of the prizes to Colonel Wesle,
Merritt, who is eleventh on the list of tht
line Colonels, received his Colonelcy te
years ago, in 1876, and retires in 1900.