The sun., 1889-11-20
srnaEons ZOE TEE xhEE.
Government Omees which &c s-BerGins
noE Suitable Ineunbents.


WAsHrNaToN, Nov. 19.-In circular which
accompanies one OF the navy REORGANIZATION
bills prepared for presentation to Congress al
the coming session Its author mas this TO say
of the medical officers:
gin BE naval career With The rank s,e lil,
SiF SsaaTs T. TO- fhf m ns EnSss
sn."two % trades higher ibsn the one in which medic
ofcsrS nov enter the United States nsyysnd q
gStss sSn army my the se @ssa osar sntss win
Llrst Lieutenant mounted, two grades higher In pay
than EnsiRns
The argument from assimllated rank is not
always a safe one. The grade OF Captain In the
navy, for example, is by no means equivalent
to that OF Captain in the army. but to one con-
siderably higher; and the same is true OF the
grade OF Lieutenant But 1t remains true that
either from tho insufficient rank and pay Of
fored. or from that and other causes combined
instead OF their being rush TO fill vacancies
In the grade OF Assistant Surgeon In the navy,
the greatest difficulty is experienced in pro-
curing candidates who are ablo to pass the
Board OF Examination.
Last summer Secretary Tracy convened a
Board at Brooklyn for examinations. and after
being months Ia session it had not, UP TO q re-
cent date, secured u single satisfactory candi-
date for the nino vacancies In the grade OF
Assistant Surgeon. similar Board has becn
for long time in session at San Francisco,
aud has been only little more successful.
having obtained up to Nov. 1 only one officer
for the medical corps. The contrast in this
respect between the army and navy is marked.
since In the latter service the appiiesHons IRE n
there were. up to Nov. l. only four candidates
for nine vacancies. and two OF these were re-
jected for physical and the other two for pro-
fessional shortcomings. But the Surgeon.
General In his recent annual report expressed
the hone that within short time the vacan-
cies would be filled Last year the Surgeon
General called attention to the eleven yacan;
cies then existing in the medical corps; and and
status OF Assistant Surgeons had been intro
duced into Congress-, but had not received due
consideration. That Is the condition OF the
Under the existing rules the. vacancies are
d By SD the al
that he has received H good general and Pre-, Pre-,
follows is both written and oral. and is de-
signed to test the candidate 3 general tnforma::
aSpmnf sHemnsd S by Srastca sS sRrS
cal operations at some hospital. A candidate
who passes has already high Testimonial to
esprit de corps OF the medical officers OF the
navy is strong. and 1t is source OF pride in tho
competent and promising aspirant to come
among their number In fact. even q rejection
may 6e not at all discreditable to the candi-
date, but may simply show that there is @
shortcoming on his part, in the Boards opin-
ion. in some OF the many particulars insisted
upon for this special branch OF professional
service
It must be owned that the Government does
not offer to the applicants very great induce
ments in return Tor their high qualifications.
shore duty. They have the relative rank Of
Ensign, and the first step IN promotion is to
relative rank OF Junior Lieutenant, Rising to
the upper half of this grade the relative rank
promotion may in time carry the officer to the
grade Of Medical Director. while at ths top is
with the relative rank OF Commodore On his
fret promotion the young officer finds very
strict examination. and at best, as will bo seen,
there is no bewilderinRly glittering prize held
out to him. Meanwhile. II the lowest grade.
fact which has been complained OF from time
to time In the Surgeon. Generals reports. It
is not improbable that Congress will exert it.
self at the coming session to mako the lowest
grade Of the medical service OF the navy some-
what more attractive to able young men than
II is now.