Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-01-09

not the reglmental omcers be able TO obtain
as good and acceptable recruits when work.
ing for their own regiment as when working
under bureau? The good results already
attained show that better are possible At
sIoo per man the expense of the present sys-
tenn OF recruiting runs well over 81 900, 900.
ana deserves the closest attention. As COM
pared with the previous year. the percent
age OF the accepted recruits TO the total APP
pncations for enlistment is over two per
cent greater, and this year the percentage
OF native born to foreign born recruits is
nIty-Iour per cent greater. Apparently the
army is becoming not undesirable field Of
occupation TO- Americans"
Reference is made to the number of SOL
| diers and sailors Who died in the Mexican
war who were inferred at Tampico, Buena
vista, the Island of Sacrificios and perhaps
other places in Mexico. Gen. Breckinridge
recommends that. so far as possible the
ashes OF these men should be collected pre-
Ieraply In the national cemetary in the city
OF Mexico, and their graves suitably mark
ed. We had deserving soldiers during and
before our civil war" he says, land IL is be-
neved that our revolutionary and other sol
diers are entitled to consideration, and their
bones should lie in a national cemetery"
The Detached Service.
The Secretary's attention is directed to the
nearly 800 officers who are absent from
their troops. The salaries alone of detached
ofhcers in the year amount to considerably
more than sl,0O0O00 and their Communication
OF quarters to nearly 10000. On this SUBJ
Ject he says: The detaching of officers has
grown to such an extent that Il is now al
most the exception for a company to have
its full complement of officers though many
| companies are still disbanded For a compa-
ny to have but a single officer on duty with
| II should be a very exceptional occurrence
out IL is hardly unprecedented for a conn
| pany to be left without any officer of its
own. Last June all the officers of five COM
panles OF the eleventh infantry were absent
on leave or on detached duty Many conn
panles were in charge Of second lieutenants
OF limited experience as commanding off,
Gers. BESIDES the question of the cost OF
detached duty and its effect on the efficiency
| ana discipline OF the service. the amount OF
extra routine and paper work that falls 10
the lot OF the officers remaining on duty
should not be lost SIGHT Of. While Il may
| be admitted that occa sional detached service
| Is sometimes instructive and beneficial the
complaint against II has become so marked
tnat possibly II has become excessive"
The Soldiers Home.
In chapter devoted to the Soldiers
home at Washington Gen. Breckenridge
says:
The Soldiers Home near this city wss
inspected under the laws imposing that
duty upon the inspector general Of the army.
| The outside appearance has alyays
been excellent and recently a marked i'm
provement inside is apparent in the general
condition Of the buildings, and also in the
| condition Of the bedding. especially in the
| matter OF Cleanliness; and this at last ex-
tends to the facilities provided the inmates
TO enjoy the same virtue. u Is hopei that
with the increased water supply. THIS very
| important matter will be completely PRO-
| vided for. The lack or lir,:'eI use os @le-
| vators, where so many feeble men are as
sembled, the incomplete supply Of wire-wov-
| en- beds and dry foot paths, and the quar-
| tiers Of the married men, AMI OF some who
| siept below the level Of the ground were
| noled.
while many minor impro. .ncnts have
been added TO the mess service, and better
| rare Is now given Tor less money tnan
| formerly, still the old methods of purchas-
| ing supplies from certain selected dealers
| continue. 1t an olea Tue st,on whether
the best results in the interests of the in
| mates are thus obtained. As the commits
| sary general Of subsistence is ON the board
| OF managers, comparison between the
| prices paid here and IN the army is easily
4 made. The trend Of legislation is in The di-
| rection OF public ADVERTISEMENT and con-
| tracts awarded upon puolc competition.
| And ii is believed that these expenditures
| should be subjected - th. sam eful
scrutiny by the Treasury pepaTtp.l all
| other public disbursements from e., .cfn-
| ment repositories, and like the cssl.Uise-
ments for the Home for Disabled Nolun-
| teers are now scrutinized. This may re-
| Quire legislation. Whichever is the best
| system should be the Uniform system 10th
| for purchasing and for, complete administra-
| tive supervision. The recent decided inn
provement in the management. excellence
| or cost of the mess and hospital indicate
some irregularity may be possible in OBJ
| tanning the best results occasionally.
1 The means provided for the innocent d.
version and recreation of these old and dis
| abled veterans are somewhat lacking. The
establishment of an exchange dry. IL pre-
/ ferred, with an amusement room similar to
/ those at all military posts, would prove q
| beneficial attraction to the men, and have a
| tendency not only to restrain recklessness
xx.l %, lx..n
| contented. The profits realized from the
exchange would materially help TO sustain
| a band that would AFFORD them an additional
pleasure and attraction. The home ought
| to keep pace with. or keep ahead of. the
benefits and improvements given active
young soldiers at the military posts.
Homfng Pigeon Service.
On the subject Of homing pigeons. the in
spector general says:
| Much has been said and a great deal
| written about the speed. endurance and re-
liability Of the homing pigeon as a carrier
of messages, both for business and pleasure;
and more than once this bird has practi-
cally demonstrated its usefulness as a valu-
, able adjunct in military operations. Their
| use for the rapid transmission of dispatches
during the naval review of the past spring
was widely published: but their most i'm
portant achievement was I'm 1917. when they
kept the outside world In touch with Paris.
| though all other means Of sending COM
| munications TO the city were cut OF or
| destroyed. Since then neither balloons nor
homing birds have been ignored by any
| progressive military nation, and all the
great European powers have organized and
perfected a pigeon service for the speedy
conveyance of important intelligence In
such matter of simple preparation for
| exigencies no one nation can control. This
I government might well initiate the military
example set by the foremost nations rather
than lag too far behind; especially as it is
possible to establish a successful organiza-
ton here capable of rendering effective
service at a minimum outlay.
There are In nearly every large city of
the union. from the Atlantic to the Pacific,
and from the lakes to the gulf, a number
of pigeon fanciers, formed into clubs, who
now fly their birds for the sport ana amuse-
ment IL gives them. They not only are will
ing to lend their help I'm the establishment
D OF national pigeon service but have shown
commendable enthusiasm and are eager
that the flying of their birds be conducted
under the fostering care of the government
Under such favorable auspices the govern
| ment could easily create a network of inter-
communication between the more important
points Ter the purpose Of meeting possible
emergencies in case of need. especially for
International frontier service IL would only
be necessary to designate the points be-
tween which IL is desired TO fly the birds
OF course would moi he ohlir~a tory for th.