Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1890-08-28
MAINE MILITIA


| supplied the hriaade With field of5ces Of
| the day. Each regiment s,so sent six
| privxtes and non-cemnissiored ofdeer
| daily to brig ade headquarters fhe sentia-
| els we're on the alert, an: performed their
duty iatellisenily; they Gil tot rspeaE theit
orders with great readiuess, bu, showed a
wilhr guess TO Learn. owiag TO the short
stay in camp, i, was impossible - have
every man perform even eae tour OF guard
duty, though the nunher of posts sss
| large. Good attention was paid 70 ssla nag,
and at nizhi 9 eoaR'e rsixn wss rsed.
Wis ted the guard during the day Kni righ-
and assisted in IL instraeti,n. There hiss
| been 8 marked improvement in The per-
formsnee CT guard duty in the last i've
years in this Ssst. There si.o exists s
greater observance of military eourtss'es a,
all times. The men abou. camp seldom
tail d To salute officers, though l roticsd
| several who neglected 10 iise when ihcers
approached.
The police of the camp was excellent. A
little mere ate n;.on should have been PAID
:, the cleanliness of the kitchen floors
This might have been done if the supply of
water had been greater. There WAS suf-
fieient water and ice for other purposes.
The camp was quie: and orderly. Men
were sllosed TO visit the town but did SO il
a gentlemsnly maaI er. Thar behavior
in Portland was excellent and l failed 10
see any inioxlcaiion among them while they
were in Augusta or Portland.
The food supp led was excellent in quail
ity, abundant in quantity, and of sufficient
variety. Rztions were issued By the brit
gsde commisssry to the reg iments quarter
masters, and by them divided among the
several companies. The cooks were enlist
ed for the camp, and besides their pay from
the State as sold ers they received add
tional compensation from the companies.
Ia its militia, the State of Maine pos
sesses Jealous, earnest body of men that
with more time would become thoroughly
proficient in all that pertains to militsr,
duty. What they have done in the past lie
very praise ofthy when the difficulties tn
der which they labor is known. There
should be more time allotted to these an
nusl encampmen's; ten days of activr
camp work would be noEe too little. The
greater efficiency that would thus be Oh
| iained would more than commensurate with
the additional expense. IT the time would
be employed as faithfully as two days of
the last encampment were, there would be
4 very satisfactory Advancement achieved
II does not Gem desirable TO have so shor.
an encampmen. as this last one. The util
ity of the Portland trip is questionable.
the time could have been employed in
camp more aivantageousy.
Target practice is carried on with great
difficulty at the various towns where the
companies assemble. Not many of these
companies can obtain ranges of more thar
800 yards and the CONVENE nces on tn. So are
unsatisfactory. Money invested in go d
ranges for greater amount of company
practice would be well employed. The
competitions in craftsmanship were cen
Quoted a. such hours as not to interfere
with the other camp duties; they were al
under the direction of Colonel T. J. Cram
ard Major Z. L. Newcomb, inspectors OF
rifle practice. These gentlemen are excel
lent shots, and besides possessing great in
terest in this branch of military work them
selves, have the tact and skill necessary
for impair Jog their knowlede md enthus-
asm to others with whom they come in con
tsct. The competitions were at 200 and
800 yards, and the work done was c-edt
able. l noticed three patterns Of sights
Blunts Firing regulations are gensr rally
followed, though | noticed slight modica-
tons. The range at Augusta is a goo one
but practice cannot be held conveniently
hey ord 800 yards.
was cordially received by all Off ,ers,
and frequen'ly was asked c1ncl rning po nts
relating 20 the military service. The hos
pitalty of the mess at brigade headquarters
WAS extended to me, and every opportunity
was given TO see the troops under such con
lilions as the weather permitted. The sug
z stous that saw fit TO make from me to
tine were favorablg received and promptly
acted upon.
To g. n .rals Mitchell and Sprague | am
particularly indebted for the informatoH
furnished and for the facilities afforded for
making NV tour of duty at the camp agree
ALL. Very respectfully,
Your obe1isn NJ servant,
EDGAR w HOWE