The Emporia weekly news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1881-1889, 1889-05-16

time. ana as the British articles of war
have been. The enlisted men can be .
of deSpotism, against which there is no
remedy. / do not thus characterize all
the dealings between officers and men
in the army, for undoubtedly the great
majority of the officers are not only
gentlemen in the best sense of the
term, but sincerely DESTROYS of doing
what is for the best interests of the
men under their commands; but the
law authorizes an unquestioned and
despotic control which is sometimes,
no doubt. abused. For many years the
post and company funds, created as
the result of the saving of the rations
of the men. have been used for pur-
no part, as. for instance, the mainten-
ance of military bands. The use to |
which these savings have been put is |
not, however, the chief cause of |
complaint. The fact that they |
could be used at the discretion of the |
officers and in ways which contrIbu-
ted more to their delectation than
to that of the men from whose rations
they came has led to an almost unIver-
sal and totally unnecessary diminu-
ton of the food used by the men. For
years, until within the past few
| months, the American army has liter
| ally gone SupperlesS to bed. From the
ample rations offered by the govern
ment the men have been permitted to
have but two meals day-one in the
morning and one at or shortly after
midday-and, while it would be too
much to say that the officers have de-
liberately deprived the men of their
meal in order to make saving OF IA
/ tions for purposes in which the men
had no part, it is true, in my judgment
that the men have not had enough TO
oil urxH. &Haav -grA
sufficient for the purpose.
Outside the question, however, of
whether the men have had enough or
not is the question of the manner and
time in which it has been supplied to
them. To say arbitrarily that man
coming from guard or other duty
fatigued, and no matter how wet or
cold, should not have warm meal at
the usual supper hour because, in the
judgment of his commanding officer.
he has already had enough at some pre-
vious period in the day, is fitting him
to a procruStean bed which must
necessarily be distasteful to him, and
, which he is constantly under tempta-
ton to escape from. Considerable
portion of the assertions have occurred
within a short period after enlistment.
Those who enlist naturally have some
, little trouble in adjusting themselves
to the inevitable conditions, and while
, the friction ofsuch adjustment is on,
it is somewhat natural that men
| should seek to relieve themselves by
breaking their contract of enlistment.
| Many of those who have thus acted
would undoubtedly have surrendered
! if it had not been for the fact that the
l court before whom they must be tried
would inevitably be governed by the
idea that when the intent of the act OF
desertion was established all should be
J punished alike. Under the operation
d of this idea it has been as common fol
S a court-martial to award punishment
r of from three to five years sentence
. alike to the young recruit of one weel
OF one months service as to the
mature and trained soldier of from
!. three to fifteen years service.
There has thus been no induce
. ment for the recruit to return after h
' has had opportunity to consider TIT
y whether he returned that day or mex
: | year or during the next generation, TIT
q punishment would be exactly the same
and the punishment applied to the new
recruit, or even to a soldier seasoned
: in the service, is far too severe, ant
it has thus contributed, in my judgment
= to the extension of the evil it was de
,, signed to eradicate. In 1878 Presiden
= Grant thought the time had come for
IL general amnesty to all deSerterS. Thi
L, was manifested by the order which
? have already quoted. So far as hay
- | any knowledge, there was at that tim
70 no change in army management or COZ
10 ditions affecting the private sOldie
it which could have given an.
At hope that assertions would there
after be less than they had here
tofore been. The order seemed to hav
d been based upon the humanitarIa
N idea of relieving a class of deservin
in men from a severe penalty which the
:. had incurred by action presumabl
IL hasty, or at all events not the resul
ID of mature elaboration. This is not tn
9. condition now, because there have n
-e Gently been changes in military admir-
istration to the extent of placing tn
- military service on a very differer
tie basis from what it has been heretofore
le under the influence of which the arm
,e is, in my belief, getting away from til
g past and beginning new era. For il
u stance. monthly payments have recen
TO ly been authorized. The soldier oni
I'd recently commenced receiving the flu
m benefit of the ration issued to hin
which has not been the case since 1874
''As l have before expressed a
s. length, the withholding of his dali
o. ration has been pretext, at least, i
Within a short period of time til
Quartermaster' department. in tt
matter of clothing, increased space
quarters with improved sleeping a.
or commodations. etc., has great
a ameIiorated the soldiers condition
# Recent orders authorizing post ga
~ dens to be cultivated by the quarter
w masters department in place of CON
of pany gardens, cultivated under man
r. disadvantages by men of the company
,, hence making it impossible for the Ell
listed men to have vegetables at ever
~ post; authorizing cooperative club
called 'canteens,' at all posts for tt
amusement and refreshment of tt
ut enlisted men in an orderly and healtl
N. full manner, instead of as her
of tofore through the agency of
be post trader afford the soldier {
We the present and of the future many a
IL, vantages not heretofore enjoyed, u
y. der the operation of these improve
ny conditions, and others, have no douh
ull will follow. On account of the attentiC
al which has been recently given to tt
er- details of military administration
Ity affecting the private soldier, it may
n expected that assertions will becon
we less frequent. l therefore deem this
most fitting time for the issuance of q
order of amnesty applicable to all 81
dierS now IN deSertiOn, giving the Der
his fit also to some extent at least to tho
ect who are now serving out sentences
re the same offense. NV attention b
ny more especially been called to this ma
m ter recently by reason of the fact tn
ing several of those who have deserte
md and who are now living in the state
md Kansas, have applied to me to procu
ra- for them their discharge without bel
at subjected to trial.
m These men are, without exceptio
her good citizens, men of families, livil
err upon farms or engaged in other equa
He legitimate a7ocations, and the count
emit has far more interest in their use
son and honorable relations to society tn
it could possibly have in bringing the
to punishment In some of the cas-
ave mentioned the war department
the ordered the discharge of the soldier
the condition that he appear at the nei
1,iS oct hi