Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-04-24


through the cabin windows. as they say on
shipboard, and not through the hawse hole,
and some such men manage to get aboard
the National Guard through the aforo men,
toned stern windows Put rule they
do not make very good officers. and the
number is getting less and less Some reri-
ments. however, still officered largely
by men elected from civil life and still
Others choose their officers from enlisted
men of other regiments. This plan is bet
ter than the first but both plans are weak
In practice. The National Guard is not and
cannot be made like the regular army: IL
, requires more tact and skill to handle n
company in the National Guard than I'm the
army and just in this handling are the
ready-made officers likely to come to grief
AS rule they know nothing of the men
whom they are to command. and are lack
ing In knowledge of the traditions of their
new regiment; SO that positions already
elincult 10 oil are more difficult than ever.
ahc Things go wrong that with an officer
trained IN the regiment from a private
Mouiu nave gone right. Besides. il regi-
lleiit gets IN the way of choosing its off,
GERS from other regiments il will find great
uifnculty in getting good men into lis
ranks; Good men, who have the proper
aIlipitlon. won't enlist in regiment thar
makes point of going outside for IT'S of
GERS; and ii is safe TO say that &C a -
lhe men who leave one regiment 10 90 20
80, as oillcers are not Of the best ma
eeiial Oh me hrst regiment. There are ex-
been stated e 10 as mas
SO every man who wants to carry a
aNord should enlist as a private first: he
may lose a little time but when he gets bss
commission and his sword he win sns
thihss vastly easier than if he had come
III ready made. There are almost alu,ays
Well as in clothes ii' 40
ne captain should he the father or h,s
company. and though it is hard To he that
If NV sas' II IS doubly; perhaps trebly. hard
a rea6v- ~ "A do
10 the Sun. 'Of course. the difficnItS
grows less as the length of seryice ~,
creases, SO that man who has began as
a ready-made officer becomes In ti,,a as
II he had started as an enlisted man 81
20" tse-Iheht BUT at first the newnoss
Oh things makes them difficult.
Duties of "a Captain.
ne duties Of captain are laid down
in regulations at some length. He has his
place in drill, sometimes as instructor
sometimes as instructed. After drill he
has certain reports to sign certain reouisi
lions to make; his work, as laid down i'm
the pook' will take about two hours a
week But II is tie work not laid down
In the book that takes time and requires
patience and tact. At least ore evening
week other than the drill night should
DE spent by the captain at the armory and
the most successful captains spend proba-
bly, three evenings at least at the armory
doing the work that requires no report and
is not in the book. but counts in the morals
OF the company and shows there too. A
captain can't do his work by telephone
or letter. He's got to prowl around Ike
a roaring devil, only without roaring.
The captain has to Set the example TO
his men and give the tone to his company.
Every successful company in regiment
has some hobby which the captain m
courages. 1t must be a military hobby,
too. No company ever achieved greatness
by its dances or its auction theater par-
ties by Its beautiful company room, or
even by its silent drill. The hobby must
be shooting, or athletics or bicycling, or
sonnet hing of that sort, and the captain
must direct it, coax 1t when necessary and
see that 1t doesn't run away with things
for a runaway hobby may be as bad the
famous cannon in Victor Hugo's Ninety
Eight, that got loose on ship in gale.
Notes.
Candidate Sergeant James c. Sergeant
Company A, 9th Battalion, has been APP
pointed quartermaster sergeant of the 9th
Battalion.
A squad from Company A, 9Th Battalion.
under command of First Lieut.. William III.
Mellach, recently went in quest of a suit
able site for the bivouac of the company
when it INDUCES in its practice march in
the near future. A spot was selected.
The following enlisted men of Company
ID, 9Th Battalion appeared before the bat
talon board of examination at recent
meeting and passed with high percentage
and credit to themselves and their oreani-
cation: Corporal Charles ii. Kerper for
sergeant and Privates Koskar R. hurry.
F. Penrose Smith and Samuel Shreve for
corporals.
The troops of the District National Guard
will be in camp at Fort Washington, Nd,
from June 10 to June 10.
The annual banquet of the Officers Asso-
citation, I'd Regiment. will occur Thursday
evening next. Capt. James L. Mock, a6-
jutans of the ID Regiment, is arranging the
details of the affair.
All hope OF having service medals In
readiness for presentation while at camp In
June has disappeared, Gen. Ordway having
Informed the committee In charge of the
matter that II is now impossible 10 state
when the medals win be provided, certainly
not before camp
At rife practice at 600 yards the MEM
bers Of Company A, LIST Separate Battalion,
scored as follows: Private Lucas. ~: Glib
son. AZ; Capt. Brooks. Al: Sergt. Wells. Al:
Thomas, Al; Snowden, Al: White. Al: Sed-
den, 81; 6. Gibson, 80: Shields. 81: Corp.
Jones. 81: H. L. Gibson. 30: Hogan. 30.