The morning call., 1894-09-16

of wages, may bring about a condition of
affairs q this country similar 10 that of
Great Britain, and our soldiers and sailors
may not then desert in order to improve
their financial condition. Hitherto the
number of recruits for the army and navy
have Joined the service not from choice
Dut from dire necessity. 1t is not so
many years ago that convicted male
factors escaped being locked up
for a term of years on the con-
dition that they should enlist in the navy;
eX-cOnvicts were enlisted in the army and
in the marine corps, and these men-cOm-
paraively few as they may have been-suf-
feed to make an honorable service dis
credit to such as joined it for no other
object than 10 escape immediate want.
This stigma, no doubt, still attaches upon
soldiers, sailors and marines notwithstand-
ing the fact that for the last dozen years
no bad characters are knowingly accepted,
hundreds have deserted or been discharged
by cOurts-maTtial, and the result is that
the enlisted force Is, as whole, composed
of good class of men. Taking the record
of assertions and cOurtS-martial as a basis
for comparative standing of morale it ap-
pears that the army shows the greatest i'm
provement, and yet Congress has done
little or nothing toward bringing about
this result, while the navy mas received
many material benefits. notwithstanding
which, however, assertions and courts
martial show no diminutiOn. The moral
standard Of the marine corps, from
military view. shows no Improvement
since 1882.
The average number in the army, avy
and marine corps has been during the last
fourteen years %, 100. 800 and 1900 re-
spectively. DeseTLIOnS in the army have
averaged 10 per cent, ranging from 1873 in
1888 to 5.76 per cent in 1892. In the navy
the average assertions were about ID per
cent, being as high as IS per cent in 1888.
The marine corps averaged % per cent.
running as high as 81 in 1891, and in no
year less than 2G per cant. Official returns
of 1892 show that between January l, 1867,
and June 80, 1891, a period Of twenty-'hree
years and six months, there were 49, AIS
assertions from the army, involving a
money loss to thu Government of 500, DOB, :
500; unofficial, but closely approximate
figures for the navy and marine CORPS
places the desertinns at $4,000 and the
money loss at S166O0,000 for the same
period. Only a small percentage of the
deserters are arprehended, tried and puu-
ished, and during the last couple OF
years the authorities have wisely re-
Trained from a very active pursuit of
fugitives, as their ca pture only involves adj
ditional labor to officers on cOurts-martal
and additional expense to guard and feed
the prisoner during his term of confne.
meDt. Until within three years ago there
was no code of punt shment, and it was
apparently entirely left 10 the court
whether one or four years should be given
TO a convicted deserter, or for any other
offense. Individual opinion of officers diff
fered largely. Those who favored very Sc
we're punishment were generally officers
that were IN a great measure responsible
for the desertions; cruel. dissipatsd and
generally worthless officers were. and are,
the most vindictive against the poor devils
of enlisted men. ana experience has proved
u the military service, as 1t has IN civil
life, that ultra severe punishment IS do not
deter others from committing crimes and
ohenses. The Improvement in the army
dates from the time when graduated
scale OF punishments was established, and
Tue prisoner now knows what he may eX-
peet There IS not yet such system in
me navy, but the practice of late years has
been Tor the Secretary or acting Secretary
10 reduce the sentence imposed by the
court by one-half and in some fragrant
cases even more
Coming down to recent wears the per-
centage OF desertioD Is shown in the sub
Joined table. and includes officers of the
army, but not of the navy and marine
corps. The navy is sutdivided into Sailors
and apprentices, the latter's number being
about 100.
Percentage of desertions.