The morning call., 1891-01-12
MILITARY JOTTINGS.
Long Delayed Justice Promised
to NOn-COms.

favorable report to the House from the
Committee ON Military Affairs has been
made on an important bill affecting the
efficiency of the army, and designed to carry
out in part the suggestions made by the Sec
rotary Of War in relation to the pay of nom
commissioned officers. TIE bill provides
practically system Of selection of Sergeant
Majors and regimental Quartermaster Ser
geants OF the hon-commisSiOned staff and
the First SergeantS of the companies of the
line of the service. who are to receive the
same pay as SergeantS of Engineers, which
is about S32 month, with the usual in
crease for length of service. The Secretary
IN his report stated TIL while the pay of Il
Second Lieutenant is SIG a month, First
Sergeant receives only SO month. The
committee in report expressed the opinion
that good First Sergeant Is quite as
necessary to a company as a Second
Lieutenant, and his duties much
more onerous, believing also that the
beneficial effects of the proposed measure
would at once be felt throughout the army
and would result i'll an abatement of diScon-
tent and lisilessness, and that new esprit
de corps would take possession Of the nom
commissioned officers of the army which
would permeate the rank and fife.
There is some likelihood that the Six
teen til Infantry, Colonel Matthew NJ. Blunt
commanding, with headquarters and i've
companies stationed at Fort Douglas and
three at Fort Du Chesne. both in Utah. may
be ordered to take the posts at Angel Island,
Benca Barracks and the Preside in this
State recently vacated by the First Infantry,
which was ordered to Nebraska Talking
of the First, a correspondent of the Army
and Navy Register has this TO say:
Ten years ago last June the First Regiment of
Infantry passed Omaha en- route from Dakota TO
Texas. During Its stay in Texas the regiment
was a greater part Of the time doing field service
or waS on the move from station 10 station, set
Eppfn uN I'm ont fa hos
tilitles III Arizona IN the spllng Of 1882 was The
signal for another move. The regiment being or
deTed In that department, where # remained
until 1886, lie companies being continually on
the move, changing from one station TO another.
In July, 1886, the regiment was ordered TO
California, where, on Dec mDer 3D. an order was
received directing IL to proceed to Omaha, and on
arrival 10 be reported 10 General Miles in connec-
ton with the threatened Indian outbreak In Da-
kUla. Thus was the eli Gle completed. Query:
win lie regiment swng again, or Will II return
70 California 10 complete It's tour oil duty OIL the
jew, II must know no rest.
During the year the retrements in the
army viii be as follows, on the dates given:
Colonel II. NJ. Black, Twenty third Infan-
Try, January 18th; General S. V. Benet.
Ordnance Department, January 22d; Colo
mel Henry Douglass, Tenth Infantry. March
9th; Major Edmund Butler, Second Infan-
try, March 18th; General John Gibbon,
April Goth; Colonel i. L. Do lga, Eleventh.
Infantry, May 18th; Colonel II. Il. Miner,
Seventeenth Infantry, August LIST; Colonel
L. Il. Nullum, Medical Department., Sep
TENDER 18th; Captain Ii. j. Haypsworth,
Quartermaster's Department, October 18th,
and Colonel c. II. Smith, Nineteenth In
fantry, November LIST.
Doubts are expressed that the President
will ever be able to send to Congress the list
Of bTevetS for service in Indian wars. The
War Department has been unable TO COM
pile an authoritative list, the meager infor-
nation on file only furnishing material for a
list of l42 names, with the possibility of
seven additional should the brevets be sent
at this session to the Senate. y modification
OF the law is favored to permit OF the be-
stowal Of such breVets from date Of meritor-
ious service, but change Is needed, 1t is
urged, that many officers concerning whom
there is no record of special Indian service
may not lie omitted from the list.
A correspondent from Fort Assniboine
writes Of a bride who entered the military
lille under rather hard circumstances. Miss
Kate Watkins was married at Richmond,
Va, TO Lieutenant Charles GerhaTt, Twen-
tieth Infantry, on November l9th. Six days
after the bride arrived at the fort and
was left among the strangers three days
later by reason of her husbands departure
with his company TO the seat Of the trouble
with the Indians,
TIE mounted indian scouts enlisted in the
service oil the Department OF the Platte and
given the organization OF a troop OF cavalry
have been designated Troop A, United
States Indian Scouts" and will be Instructed
in the drill regulations OF that arm OF the
service. The limit of 100 prescribed as the
number of enlistments not TO be exceeded
has been removed.
The general court-martia, which has
been in session at the Preside for two
weeks, has finished its work, and of the
doZen cases considered by 1t sentences of
dishOnorable discharge were pronounced in
the cases of John Beekman, Company A,
First Infantry; Louis Bell, Troop Ii,
Tenth Cavalry, and Henry Henry, Com
pany a, First Infantry.
The number of deaths among army Off
GERS during the year 1890 was unusually
heavy. The total number was 81. classified
as follows: Major-Generals, 2; Brigadier-
Generals, 2; Colonies, \; Lieutenant-C cola
nes, 2; Majors, 8; Captains y, and LieU-
tenants, H.
The total number of marriages in the
army was 81, of whon 80 were LieutenantS
The 20 inlantrymen were closely pressed by
IS cavarymen. 1t was the second expert
ence in matrimony of 4 of the 81 ladies.
Captain William j. Wakeman. A. S., has
been relieved from the further operation of
orders transferring him from Fort Bidwell,
Cal, to Fort Huachuca, Arz., and has re-
turned from Reno, New, to Fort ,Bidwell.
Fort Thomas, Ariz., has been ordered dis
continued as an independent post. but will
be held as an outpost of Fort Grant, and
garrisoned until further orders BY troop Of
cavalry tneroirom.
Lieutenant +. II. Mills, Twenty-fourth In
fantry. who was recently examined in this
city for promotion, has been found disquaii-
hed by the board on account of ply steal dis
ability.
AS significant of the mutability of human
affairs, it is noted the late Surgeon General
Baxter wore his new uniform for the first
time-in his coffin