Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1892-02-12

nOn-c0mmlsSlOncu OulceT, VIII Stil
greater increase of pay. Moreover, il he
is ambitious and has orgets fairly good
education, he is afforded every help
rather than hindered, as is popularity
supposed, from becoming a commits
stoned officer.
The army is to the enlisted man a
home, an insurance company, and
bank. The Government permits him to
draw interest on any sum Of money he
may deposit, and it is tolerably safe
institution. If he is injured or used up
through sickness, he is either nursed
back to health or pensioned for life. If
be grows old in the Government service
he is retired on pension precisely as an
officer is. And after all, the work Of a
soldier is not particularly hard. That it
is not a disagreeablc one is attestcd by
the fact that great majority OF the en-
listed men, and necessarily the better
ones, rc-eulist and practically spend
their whole liycl in the army.
The happiness and comfort Of the
soldier depend principally upon the COM
manding officer Of the company to which
he may be assigned. The company is
family, and good company commanders
so regard it. Tic average soldier is
child from his very training lie must
cat, sleep aad work at Il certain time
named by another, and he is well fed
and well clothed according to the ability
Of the captain or lieutenant who has
charge Of him. He cannot even buy a
handkerchief without the permission OF
such an officer.
fla man be drafted into q good COM
pany there is no reason in the world why
lie should not enjoy lie to the utmost.
He will be furnished an abundance of
coed clothes and will be taught 10 take
a pride in keeping them IN good con-
dition. lie will be furnished with food,
not only plentiful, but OF the best quality
and of sufficient variety. Out OF his
small pay an English soldier has to pay
for his vegetables and any extra meat he
may have. Our soldiers get more tia Il
they can eat Of everything that is fur
nished, and are permitted to trade the
surplus OFF for any dainties from the
commissary department that they may
wish at Government contract price.
Then, too, every company in the army
has a complny garden thai supplies it
with vegetables, aid again the garden is
a success according to the efforts Of the
company commander. Then there are
ways in which a company makes money
to supply its mess with still greater
dainties and its reading-room with
literature, and often with billiard and
pool tables.
Beyond keeping himself and his ac-
coutremeuts c,cau, attending drills, and
doing guard duty, the enlisted man has
to take his turn every three or four days
doing the work of laborer about the
post. This is the crying shame of the
army of to-day. The men are not en-
listed as artisans nor as laborers, and
they should not be expected to do such
work. 1t is worthy Of notice that they
do the work, nevertheless, very cheer
fully. Some day, when the officers
have agitated the matter enough, all this
will be changed, and the soldier will be
expected to do nothing but actual mill
tary duty.
The soldier on the frontier has even
more amusement than the officer. The
writer, once lieutenant of cavalry, has
manya time, when alone with a company
in the field wished that he could sit
down at the camp fire with the mea and
enjoy their jokes and share IN their cJn.
versation. They have the opportunity
Of playing all sorts OF games aud the
time to practise them, too. 1t is prob
able that they have more society at
Government post than they would have
at their homes, and they usually have
opportunities for sport in the way OF
hunting and fishing that would be
cnvied by many a rich New Yorker.
There are always post schools for the
education of the soldier, and there are
always post libraries that contain GER
tain number Of books to keep him busy
reading.
The writer scrvei in a company Of
cavalry in which three mea had saved
up considerably over $1,000, and almost
all the others sums less than that, down
to S25. Half the company were men
who were on their second, third, or
fourth enlistment. They had a billiard
table that was said to be the best one in
Arizona, garden that yielded profit,
from the sale Of vegetables, of over $50
month, besides furnishing the company