The record-union., 1893-01-16
SOLDIERS ON WHEELS.
General Miles Humorous Speech On
Military Cycling.
What May be Accomplished by Mount
ing the Cavalryman Upon Two
Wheeled, TireIess Steed-

The following speech by General Mel
son A. Miles, q. S. A.. was delivered at a
banquet given to Colonel Charles i. Bur-
dette, President of the League of Ameri-
can Wheelmen, held at Chicago:
1f1. PIeside35t and Gentlemen: The
question of the use of the bicycle for mill
tary purposes is one that would naturally
attract the attention of military men. AS
/ the art Of war is one of the oldest in the
history of mankind, it is natural to sup
pose that the military man would adopt
any invention, any Improvement, any
thing that is new, that is useful for man
kind in times of peace which can be util-
lied in time Of war. The battle-aXe, the
short sword, and the pike have given
place to the automatic magazlne-ritie, the
steel cannon and the dynamite gun; the
war canoe, the galley, and llne-ot-battle
ship have given place to the submarine
torpedo boats; the armored ships and the
telegraph have been utilized for purposes
of war.
FACTS.
In country like this, OF sixty millions
OF intelligent people, it is useless to give
an opinion about a fact; it is useless to
argue and discuss a subject that requires
no discussion. The Intelligent people
care nothing about my opinion or yours.
| The people of this country all nave their
own opinions, and they are willing to eX-
press them on any and all occasions. We
all know that in military matters one of
the principal arts of war is rapidity of
movements, the power to move troops
and munitions of war rapidly from one
part of the country 10 the other. Hanni-
bal, the master of the esmilitary art, was
enabled to place an inferior force in the
Roman territory and keep it there for fif-
teen years, regardless of the powerful
armies that were brought against him.
! And yet he was finally overcome by the
rapidity of movement of neof the corps
against a portion of his army. Alexan-
der, Hannibal and Cicero used horses,
and Napoleon coaches, in moving rapidly
portions of their troops from one part of
the country to another. Every one IA
miliar with modern history knows that
| the steamship and locomotive have been
utilized for moving rapidly bodies Of
troops from one section Of the country to
another, and we all know the superiority
of cavalry over infantry.
USE OF THE WHEEL IN WAR.
General sherman told me at one time
he was about Atlanta. his line of commu-
nication extending long distance, near
ly 300 miles, that it took nearly $4,000
men to keep Forrest, with 5000 men. off
HIS liIt6 VI COMMUNICATION ana away
from his depots of supplies. Forrest
would ride from one part of the
country to another. He was perhaps the
greatest cavalry leader that this country
has ever known, and it is said that he
wore down eleven mounts in a year. The
reason of that is that to guard against
heavy raiding commands that will destroy
communications and depots of supply.
which are so important TO an army, some
means must be used
Now the question is whether the Amer
lean forces or European forces, mounted
as you men are on the wheel, can do as
much on foot as you can, or as you could
were you mounted on horses. 1t is fact
SO plain that it does not need the opinion
of any military man. Every boy, Is or
20 years OF age, every young man can
make up his mind for himself.
SUPERIORITY OVER THE HORSE.
1t is true that a man mounted on q
wheel can move over the ordinary roads
with greater rapidity and make greater
distances than he could possibly move
on foot or mounted upon horses 1t is
true that if you wish to send a dispatch
and you station race horses a short dis
tance apart, that they might possibly
make better time than the wheelman
could over the same road. But it is a
question with the Improvements that Won
are making whether you cannot in time
/ pass even the race horse. When Won mon
are able to make, as they have already
made, twenty-four miles within one
hour, or have Travelled at the rate of a
mile in two minutes, quarter OF mile
in thirty seconds, it is about as fast
| as the ordinary horse can run, and vou
men can keep it up longer than a sinrle
man can upon a single horse Every
young man knows that it will be possible,
III case OF war, to organize a corps of men
that would excel any body OF infantry or
cavalry. The President has told us that
| your ieagae numbers 10000 men, Sup-
pose that you organize corps Of fifteen
or twenty thousand young, intelligent
men and mount them upon wheels and
| equip them as they should be. 1t wouId
be one Of the most effective corps ever
organized. 1t is estimated that there are
in this country quarter of a million Of
men who are accustomed to ride the BIZ
cycle. Ii out Of that number $4,000 men
were organized it would make one of The
most effective army corps that was ever
marshaled IN any country or any time.
A TRIAL TRIP.
Recently dispatch was sent from this
city to Sew York. If you were to select
a time you would perhaps have to wait
twenty years before you would find the
country so thoroughly saturated with
water as at the time that dispatch left
Chicago for New York. 1t would be al
most impossible to ind the country in
such condition To start with, and the
riders met every kind of storm. rain.
sleet and darkness, for nearly the whole
distance; only nine hours without being
drenched with water during a ride Of
/ about thousand miles. Yet that has
! demonstrated what can be done under
/ the most uniavorable circumstances. The
! only way to demonstrate what can he
4 done under favorable circumstances
/ would be to send a dispatch over the
/ same route. taking time when the roads
were hard and when the men could 90
| through in fair weather, and when tbey
would not encounter at night the denSe
! black darkness through which they were
! obliged to grope their way For instance
/ start that dispatch when we have good
roads, good weather and moonlight
1 nights, the distance would undoubtedIv
/ be made in less than half the Tina IL &