Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1892-11-18
Changes in the Navy.

WASHINGTON, Nov. 14.-Although the
army and navy are supposed to be free
from. politics and are less affected by
changes in administration than anv
other branches of the government,
there Will be some new faces around
the two departments and number of
important changes throughout the line
! OF the two services after March next.
with the coming of the new sec
retaries there will doubtless be a
change of assistant secretaries. The
! secretaries offices were created with
expectation that comparisons would
be selected to fill them and that follow
ing them the practice of the State de-
| partment there would always be a per.
manent assistant secretary. There
would be one man thoroughly ac-
quainted with the details to carry the
another and relieve the new secretary
Of the necessity of trying to master all
! the technicalities and details during
, the single term.
When Mr.. Solely was appointed from
the navy to his present position as as
slstant secretary it was generally sup
posed that he would become Il fixture
in his present position. But the Dem
ocrats of Massachusetts, his native
State, have listened to some of his re-
cent Republican campaign speeches
and have him spotted They have
learned, too, that the position pays
Sd, 500 a year-a plum for them.
Mr.. Solely is already laying his plans
, to resume law practice after March 4.
One rumor has it that he will become a
member of the firm headed by Secre-
tary Tracy
Assistant Secretary Grant expects to
relinquish his office to some good
Democrat who will be satisfied with
81 500 year and is talking about re-
turning to Minnesota. Being an old
soldier, he has SO thoroughly mastered
the details of the department it would
not be surprising if he were held over
for some months after March d.
AS far as the heads of bureaus con-
cerned there will not be many changes
Immediately. Commodore Ramsay,
Capt Dewey and Commander Folger
are the only bureau chiefs whose four
year terms will expire during the first
yenr of the incoming administration.
In the War department., with the ex-
ception Of the ordnance and In
spector-General departments, it
will become Mr.. Ceveland's
privilege to appoint successors
to all the present heads of War-de-
partment bureaus and if he selects
from the seniors of the respective
departments he may make appoint
ments to the same Offices several times
over before 1897.
The first appointment will be that of
Surgeon General to succeed Gen.
Sutherland, who retires next month.
In November next Adjt. Gen. Williams
retires. Quartermaster-Gene Batch
elor retres in 1896: Paymaster-G General
Smith and Gen. Casey, Chief of En-
gineers, in 1895 and Judge Advocate
General Swavne e 1850.
Gen. DuBarrey of the subsistence de- |
partment retires next month, giving
President Harrison his last chance at |
lgadler-Genefal. The selection |
will doubtless be made from among
the five seniors, all of whom retire |
during the next four years, so that |
President Cleveland will have the |
Of Commissary- General |
In addition to the above, President |
Cleveland will appoint successors to |
Mai. Gems. Schofield and Howard and |
S. McCook and Carr. It
will also fall to his lot to place Gen.
Miles in command of the army, which
will happen Sept. 20, 1895, when Gen.
Schofeld will retire.
Where politics will figure most con-
spicuously with the personnel of the
army and navy is in the matter of de-
tails to command this duty particular
ly in Washington.
Within very few months after
March an entirely new set of faces will
be seen in the army and navy circles
here. The Secretary of the Navy,
however, will be denied the pleasure of
commanding officers to the