St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-09-04
A MILITARY GORDON.
Prof. Totten Says Our ChiefDan-
ger From Cholera Lies in the
Direction of Canada.
He Would Have the Boundary
Between the Two Countries
Patrolied by Military.

NEW HAVEN, Conn.,, Sept. SIN an
Interview today relative to the approach
of the pestilence, Prof. Totten re-
marked that the chief danger lay in the
direction of Canada, and that it was in
that region that our ''gates'; should be
must carefully shut and guarded. At
present they are not even shut. and
ewing to the intimate commercial rela-
tions existing between the two coun-
tries and the great length of the bound
try, he said there was but one way to
effect a stringent quarantine-that is,
70 establish Il military one, pure and
simple.
He would have a Gordon of military
T0StS established at once all along the
Iorder, and the intermediate spaces
watched and patrolled exactly as in the
Ease Of war. OF course, this would be a
nere peaceful demonstration. and one
fimed at cholera suspects only. He
t.Ointed out that a wise and liberal con-
:tructiOn of the constitution fully war
.antS the president Of the United States
20 "call out" and muster into the serv-
&c "Such portions of the national guard
Or volunteers as may be necessary to
provide for the public safety"
1--WE are now, said the lieutenant,
''facing a real emergency, and if action
Is to be taken on this suggestion it must
be at once. My proposition is that at
least SO, GOO volunteers be called for by
the president and duly apportiOned
throughout the Northern states. Then
throughout they must be mustered into
the regular service and placed in per-
manent camps along the whole border.
The term of enlistment should be for at
least four months, 5 o as to extend into
the season OF permanent frost.
"ThiS is al opportunity to kill two
birds with il stone. and should not be
lost. 1t is a splendid chance to learn a
grand lesson III military campaigning,
every feature of which would and should
be similar to war service. except the
presence of an armed enemy. In the
second place. it will insure the public
safety as no other course can. Of
course, the sole object of establishing
the Gordon will be recognized as a mere
protection against cholera. The armies
OF European nations are doing Just this
sort of duty. Austria and Germany. for
instance, are against Russia, and why
should not we? The fact is, we should,
and | r maintain that the president has
1ndisputable constitutional powers in
the premises, and that the exercise of
them to the fullest limit Of his judgment
will meet the approval of ali con-
cerned."
When asked if the number he recon-
mends to be called out, 50, GOO. was not
rather high, he replied: No, by no
means; rather the reverse. 1t were bet
ter to place even 800. 900 men upon such
Gordon duty for one whole year and at
any expense, than to have 800, 900 cases
of the epidemic Struggled across the
border through lack of efficient pro-
tective measures. This is a real emer-
gency, the scourge is knocking at the
Atlantic seaports, and we are fighting
1t there. but we must be ready for the
cases that will surely come in by the
byways and hedges by the score. The
tide of Russian-Jew emigration is now
heading Canada-way, and we should be
awake TO the situation. The regular
army Is 100 small to cope with this ques-
ton. Now is the time to concentrate it.
Let, therefore, the president i%naugurate
this practical autumn maneuver' at
once, and its resultant benefits will be
seen before a month has TRANSFERRED"