The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-01-19
FOR ARMY REFORM.
The Three Battalion Formation
and More Men Gunners for
Coast Defence.

WASHINGTON. Jan. 10. 1a97.-Repre-
sentative Hull of Iowa, the Chairman OF
the House Committee on Military Affairs.
laid before the House today the report
of that committee on the bill to reor-
ganize the line of the army. It shows
that successive Generals of the army and
Secretaries of War for fifteen years have
recommended that a new organization
be adopted for the infantry so that each
regiment shall be composed OF twelve
companies, making three battalions of
four companies. each. General Sherman
before his retirement from active SER
vice pointed out that the National Guard
of the country would reorganize on the
same lines. and that we should then
have throughout the country these small,
handy battalions of four companies in
stead of the large, cumbersome regiments
Of ten companies-a bad tactical unit,
and in practice, always scattered.
The Secretary of Wars report for 1889
contains an earnest plea for an increased
force of the enlisted men as a result of
this proposed reorganization, his argu-
ment being that the strength of the army
should keep pace with that of population
battalion organization has been adopted
by every warlike power, the only excep-
tions being Persia, China and the United
States which adhere to the single bat
TALON system. The Secretarys report for
1880 shows that if this country was ever
met by a military contingency we should
then be forced to adopt such an organiza-
tion and that, too, without proper pre-
paration.
The report explains that since the
Preech-loading rifles came into general use
six shots can be fired a minute with ac-
curacy and aim carrying the deadly mis-
sile two thousand yards In the circum-
stances if the same tactical formation of
infantry was preserved probably fifteen
men would be killed where one was killed
with the old muzzle loading smooth-bore
musket.
Add to this the powerful machine guns
now used, such as the gatling and Hoteh-
kiss" the report continues, "and the rate
of death to the closed files of double rank
would be terribly increased. This it IS
that makes the present single battalion,
double rank formation a suicidal one and
that has. caused its abandonment in other
civilized nations. For q line to live under
these changed conditions means that it
spaces between the men who are to re-
ceive attack or make assault"
An interesting feature of the report is
ha oa ghfh " e Is ars4s qsyo 9 the shows bsSEsnba kat
when our system of coast defenses is
completed it will require a total of 29,-
all the guns and moItars. On peace
footing the seventy heavy batteries would
have u trifle over 1900 men, every one of
whom would be trained gunner. With
the maximum strength now Contemplated
their strength would be nearly zen thous-
and men.
enlisted strength of these batteries they
could provide between 1900 and 1S 600
men, and in either case the additional
n ons 9oSd beeon hf ancpa pa aned
The latter number would provide the
war garrsons first needed for the
there would be carefully trained body
of at least 1900 gunners with their officers
to be scattered among the various forti-
hcations for the training of volunteer
organizations in peace, and as a nucleus
fol. the garrisons in time of war The
ultimate economy resulting from suffi-
cient number of properly trained gun
ners will be apparent when it is consid-
cred that it costs fol. powder and pro
jectile alone $164 to fire one round from
an 8-inch rifle, 1922 to fire one round from
lO-inch rifle 1851 to fire one round from
12-inch rifle and $3.50 to fire one round
from 15-inch pneumatic gun. The cost
Of one round from a 12-inch mortar is
$219.
Under the proposed reorganization 4,S0O
men would be added to the army, giving
to the cavalry thirty squadrons at 5000
men; to the artillery, seventy sea coast
and fourteen light batteries of 5000 men;
to the infantry. seventy-five battalions of
$4,000 men. with one battalion consisting
of 800 engineers and a miscellaneous force
in addition, bringing the total strength
of the army up to 10000. Such a force
considered with reference to a territory
OF S,oco,Go0 square miles provides one sol
der to one hundred square miles. The
total expense to the government fer this
proposed increase would be s1,770,0 900 more
than is now expended annually for the
maintenance of the army.