Evening star., 1897-04-28
MILITARY DYNAMITE
General 0rdway Shakes Up the Dis
trict National Guard.
TROOP "a 10 BE DISBANDED
Two BattaIons Wiped Out, While
the Battery Goes Afoot..
RADICAL REORGANIZATION


Columbia is undergoing that healthful *
perience known spring cleaning An
uncomfortable sort of experience perhaps
for some people, but remarkably good
thing on the whole. During the past year
the condition of Cen Ordways health has
prevented the general from taking that
close personal interest in the organization
TO which he has given so much of his time
energy and cash. AS a natural result there
nave been aCcumulations of dead wood and
many symptoms of distressing letnargy.
Here and there efforts have been made TO
keep portions of the brigade up to stand
dard. but such efforts have been so few
as to be conspicuously remarkable.
As soon Gen. Ordway returned from
EUrope-which was during the early part
OF this mnnth-he at once saw the entire
situation 1t has always been one of the
ger erals characteristics to think and act
almost simultaneously. SO. as soon as some
of his more pressing business affairs Were
cared for, he proceeded 10 plan such reor-
ganization as he believed to be essential
to the welfare of the guard. The reorgan-
izatior is now well under way, and will
be completed within two or three weeks.
Reconatructed staff.
First to be reconstructed was the general
staff. and that has been done along the
lines that were suggested by the developed
fitness of the officers who have exchanged
places. Hitherto Maj. W. Cranch McIn-
tire has been commissary general: here
after he will be quartermaster general. Two
changes result from this-Major E. H. Neu-
meyer. who has been chief of ordnance
becomes cOmmissary general while Major
NJ " Tierney, who has been quarter
master general, becomes chief of ordnance.
In this way each of the officers named has
assigned to him duties which will be en-
tirely congenial. The staff loses a good
and remarkably efficient officer in Major
Winthrop Alexander. inspector general but
his departure tnerefrom is going to be for
the benefit of the 1st Regiment. whose
colonel he becomes Col Moore having de-
ctded to resign his command. The place
vacated by Maj. Alexander is to be filled
by the promotion of Capt. Charles H. Ou-
rand. who is now an aid, and one of the
best of staff officers. Maj f. L. Smith
meyer. chief Of engineers, resigns. and so
does Capt. Thomas Singleton, who is an
aid This leaves one vacancy among the
stan majors and two vacancies among the
aids; which will be filed almost immedi-
ateiy by the commanding general
Will Disbnnd the Cavalry.
To great many people, inside the guard
and out. the statement that Troop A-ofn-
cially designated as the 1st Separate Com
pany-is TO be disbanded, will come as a
bombsheIl, but whether anybody is sur
prised or not. the disbandment is eoing TO
be fact For this change there are at
least two reasons. One of them is the COM
paratiye uselessness Of volunteer cavalry
in such time of trouble es a National
Guard force is likely TO see, and the other
is based upon the cost of maintaining
mounted troops.
A cavalrymaai is man and horse and
ii takes just as long to train the human
hall OF the cavalrynan as it does to train
his mount: two years Of constant drilling
may be regarded as necessary to the pro-
duction of a finished cavalryman. As to
the cost-and that must necessarily be con-
sidered where the appropriation is as
meager as Il is In the District of Column
more need be said than about
of the BRIGADE has swal-
lowed UP quite. one-fourth of the avail
able funds. Whenever the brigade has had
10 go into camp or has been ordered to
parade it Is the horses for the enlisted men
that have cost out of all fair proportion
A Dismounted battery.
For reasons almost precisely similar TO
thoae which have brought about the dis
banding of the troop. the battery-Light
Battery Ais to be dismounted In time
OF riot the battery would have the same
sort OF trouble as that which would affiict
the cavalry. Mounted, as a rule on hired
horses. the men would be scurrying around
livery stables for an hour or two after the
infantry had been at work: to be ready for
duty with full equipment and d sufficiency
of forage. both the battery and troop would
probably be too late to render auy y.ry
valuable service. and should they succeed
In getting there soon enough nobody knows
Whdt time troopers and gunners would
nave with The amateur horses brought up
TO peaceful pursuite and altogether unac-
customed TO firearms and brickbats and
the like
ms action as u the troop ard battery,
Whlle S, II may be the subject of some local
discussion, is nevertheless in line with
the most approved military practice and
mas the solid support of the h. ST military
authorltles IN the world 1t will be some
thlhg OF novelty for the artiiierymen Of
the National Guard TO parade as walk
soldiers. bit tn revolution is not likely
10 work to the disadvantage of the battery
mere are undoubtedly a great mary young
men IN this city VINO would like to enlist
IN IN" battery, because the artilierist is
every where regarded as being the INTEL
!rctudi soldier. but who have refrained
from enliSting because they did not care
Tor the equestrian features of battery
Work; these young men will appear in such
numbers as to much more than offset the
departure of the few who are likely to re-
quest their discharges. Under the new con-
dl'ions the battery will have as armament
TWO Hotchk IS two-pOunder rap!d-fre puas
and two gatlings. remounted on carriages
similar TO those used by the Hotchkiss 1t
VIII thus be possible for the battery to
IetcH any tIOuD.OuS Scei.e Just quickly
as infantry could get there, and IL is in
the ability 10 get there that the yalue
of the National Guard Hes. Foot batteries
OF artillery are quite common in the Eng
lish volunteer service. and they are, as a
Iu1e. very effective.
No More Separate Companies,
The LIST Separate Company and the bat
terry having been disposed of. Gen. Ord
way then turned his attention to the I'd
Separate Company. which is a company of
cyclists Hereafter. this company will be
known as Company u Of the Engineer Bat
TALON. and will be assigned to signal duty
In the broadest sense of the term for il
Will be required 10 make itself thoroughly
conversant with all means cf military
communication.
Next in order the Sd Separate Cam
pany. reserve company composed wholly
of veterans Of the late war The members
Of this company had some time ago for
warded to headquarters a request for dig
handment. ard this request the general has
complied with. So all the separate COM
panies will soon be out of existence
Four Engineer Companies.
This shake-up is going to give the Engi-
reer Battalion better status than it has
ever enjoyed. Heretofore the engineer off,
GERS have been simply acting officers, -
the only one Of all their number holding a