Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-03-19
THE NATIONAL GUARD.
Recommendations Made by Gen. Hen.
derson's Committee.

Recommendations Made by Gen. Hem
derson's Committee.
Gen. Henderson of Iowa has made an inter-
esting report to the House from the committee
on militia in favor of his bill for the promotion
OF the efficiency Of the militia. The report
says:
Every nation maintains some form Of
militia as reserve to its standing army and
the smaller the standing army the greater the
necessity that the militia be thoroughly organ
lied and efficiently trained. Under our form
OF government the militia has two distinct
functions. For the states separately it is their
reserve police force for the preservation
of order, the support of civil authority and the
enforcement of law; for the states collectively
1t was intended by the Constitution to be a mil
ltary force trained to be reserve or support
to the regular army in sudden emergencies
and a school of instruction In which the youth
of the country should receive a sufficient
amount Of military instruction to enable the
country to raise efficient volunteer armies
when needed. These two distinct objects Of
the militia are skillfully provided for In the
Constitution, which delegates to Congress the
power to provide for organizing, arming and
disciplining the militia and reserves to the
states the appointment Of the officers and the
authority to train the militia, but this latter
reservation is carefully limited by the proviso
that they shall train them according to the
discipline prescribed by Congress-
The wisdom Of the men who founded our
government and the necessity of carrying out
their theories by maintaining an efficient
militia is clearly demonstrated by the condi-
ton of our country today. Rich, prosperous,
devoted to agriculture, manufactures and CON-
merce, we apparently have no danger threat
ening US. But in case Of threatened danger,
foreign or domestic, the small body Of regular
troops We could summon to our defense would
be wholly inadequate and the mass Of patriotic
citizens that might volunteer for defense would
simply become victims Of ignorant zeal, and
their lives and treasure be wasted 1t is wise,
and 1t Is necessary to the future security of
our country, that we maintain such an efficient
militia force that it will be counted as a ma
terlal element in our means of national defense
and thereby secure US against attack.
THE PRESENT MILITIA LAW.
"The present militia law was enacted in 1872,
and since its original enactment no material
change has been made in it In some of its
details it is the most onerous militia law in
the world, and would create CONSERVATION
among the people if attempted to be enforced
1t requires compulsory military duty from
every citizen between eighteen and forty
five years of age, and that he shall be
constantly provided with a good rifle, a quar-
ter of a pound of powder, and keep in hand
become obsolete and impracticable, and for
many years there has been no pretonse of re-
gardng them or attempting to enforce them
In fact the law was found to be impracticable
within year after its enactment and WASH
lngton and every succeeding President un-
ceasingly urged Congress to remedy its defects;
but in the multiplicity of plans suggested for
amending the law to carry out the purposes of
the Constitution no amendments were effected.
During the many years devoted to consider
fUty DIV for he 6afa .,F% ha L.,
militia system created by it gradually ceased to
be regarded, until finally it no longer exists
except on the statute book. Time, and the
rapid growth of the country, solved all the
questions that were involved, and volunteer
militia gradually took the place of the enrolled
militia provided for by law. Fostered and en-
couraged by the respective states the volunteer
system gradually extended, and the states
amended their laws to adapt them to it, until
today 1t is the accepted substitute for the en-
rolled militia and the compulsory military duty
provided for by the United States law, and
an acknowledged and important factor in the
economy of national defense.
THE PROPOSED MILITIA LAW.
"The proposed militia law, reported by the
committee, il primarily to recognize the
existing condition of the militia of the country
and to conform the general law to the changes
already made by the respective states under
the pressure OF necessity and common sense
The purposes and provisions of the bill may be
classified into three distinct propositions:
First To repeal or amend all provisions of
the law of 1892 that have become obsolete and
substitute provisions recognizing the existing
condition Of the militia and the laws of the
respective states.
Second. To increase the annual appropria-
ton for furnishing the states with arms and
equipments for the militia from $4,000 to
81, Co., 200.
Third. To provide for annually bringing
under instruction for thirty days limited and
select portion of the militia, as volunteers in
connection with the regular army"
THE ANNUAL ASSEMBLY.
In reference to the third purpose of the bill
named the report says: ''It is simply proposed
to authorize the raising of q small number of
volunteers for short time each year for the
purposes Of military instruction, and to make
their instruction effective it limits such volun-
teers to members of the active militia. Only
the select few who possess special enthusiasm
or adaptdbilIty would volunteer, and they
would receive instruction that they would dis
seminate through the whole body Of the active
militia and which would be OF incalculable
benefit to it. If the object of these sections ia
concurred in there should be no objection to
their enactment, inasmuch as they make no
appropriation of money, but leave it wholly in
the control of Congress to provide from year to
year for none or such number Of volunteers as
it may deem advisable"