The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-06-09
NAVAL MILITIA
Ex-Assistant Secretary of
the Navy McAdoo Defends
the Reserves.
THEIR USEFULNESS DEMONSTRATED
Present Number Inadequate in
Time of War-Presldent
Taylor's Opinion.
THEIR USEFULNESS DEMONSTRATED

An interesting pamphlet has just been
issued by the United States Government
says the Newark Sunday Call"
and is now being circulated among the
officers of the Naval Reserves of the va
rfous States. It is entitled Letter from
the President of the Wa College upon
the Subject of the Naval Militia 1t
opens with a preface by ex-Assistant
Secretary McAdoo Of this State, written
near the close of his term, In April, in
which he says, among other things:-"I
ave often been asked since coming to
this Office what could be done with the
Naval Militia in case of war, and have
said in reply that really there were so
many fields for the Naval Militia in case
of war that the difficulty would be not
to find work for them, but to select
among many that where they could
serve the country best. 1t should al
ways be remembered that in case of war
the present personnel of the a both
officers and men, would be totally mad
equate in numbers to meet the emergen-
cy. Indeed, the present regular estab-
ishmen would not be much more than
a neucleus, around which would have to
be brought a force commensurate with
the needs of the occasion. A glance at
the number of men enlisted during our
war, and ar the number of reserves in
| England, France, Germany and Russia
will convince anyone hat the enlisted
and reserve force in this country is en-
tirely out of keeping with the national
wants. Our ships in commission are now
all more or less undermined, and We
aor1IS not nponorIv man all If in P0mm1
sion. Outside of the Naval Militia we
have no reserve at all. AS my last
official act let me again protest against
the national folly of not having on hand
for both army and navy, and militia on
land and sea, a proper supply OF reserve
rifles of uniform pattern and modern
make. The United States should have in
store at least one million such rifles and
ammunition in quantity to meet any de-
mand. In case of war today l do not
know where the rifles to arm the militia
| and volunteers would be gotten. h
| number on hand would be entirely in
| adequate and there is a limit to their be-
ing manufactured with great rapldlty.
Mr.. McAdoo concludes with a hearty
Endorsement of the plans set Iortn ny
letter. Among other things Captain Tay-
lor, President of the War College, says:
The wars for which We must plan, at
lC0SL " LIZ 1CAt 1SV NoAS 49, ~
fensiye or our part, and to be Waged
against enemies probably superior to US
on the sea. This throws upon us as a
principal role the defensive of our coast
and the S-upplementing of our small sea-
going navy by a formidable fotilla of
small craft, which, when thoroughly or.
channels, sounds and bays, and make
their comfortable occupation by hostile
fleets an impossibility.
1T is the differing of this Hotilla
which OccJIDi6S lis Ser1CIlSlV and 1T Will
be apparent that a class of men can do
this work who have not had the long
for our s~ea-going fleet we already have,
and a few captains and officers of our
American merchantmen can be appointed
from our larger coasting steamers and
the few sailing merchantmen that we
still nave in the foreign trade, but in the
wars for which we are to prepare in the
near future we shall not need to officer
many hundred of ~sea-going vessels
| which our coast ockad of the Civil
War rendered necessary. Our needs, are
| not, therefore, what they were then as to
turns. with considerable confidence to the
Naval Militia for the officers needed for
this fiotilla or mosquito fleet.
.sThe Naval Militia of the different
States contain in their organizations
many men who possess all the requisite
knowledge for this duty. There are sea-
faring men, mechanics of nearly all
trades, electricians, etc. They need only
to be instructed in a few details of the
WOfh anu III the local requirements TO
make a complete success of anything in
this line of defense that they might be
called upon to undertake. The coast is
| provided with a telegraph service along
the outer coast of Cape Cod, Nantucket
Island, Long Island, and from New York
to Cape Hatteras. = This field is
one that nobody Of military men other
than the Naval Militia seems ready to
supervise and control. = Upon the
demand being made, the Naval Militia of
the different States can readily discover
L the NaCSalS W1 nfa6 ar in6aod "a a lxT,o
keep track of them when they come with
in their States, and can take them to
their port of fitting out without delay.
Certain steam yachts would be wanted
which in summer may be in New London,
and in winter laid up at Hoboken. IN
summer the Connecticut Naval Militia
would take them to their ports of fitting
and in winter the New York or New Jer-
sey Militia would perform the duty.
President Taylor then outlines the work
Of the Naval Militia more distinctly. as
follows:-
Upon the declaration of war, and being
called by the department., the officers and
which are to be found any of these yes
sells which have been selected for the ser
vice, will at once requisition the vessels,
take possession of them and take them
to the port at which they are to be fitted
out (whether within the limits of their
own State or no9, to which the depart
After delivering the vessels at the port
OF hitting out, and upon being relieved
by one of those detailed for the vessel.
| they will return to the duty to which thew
have been assigned
The above means that If a steam yacht
the summer should be at New London al
the time war was declared, the Naval
Militia of Connecticut would have to
bring 1t here and then return home for
the duty awaiting it.
Each organization will form a torpedo
and mining squad Of seenposed
of those most conVersant I'M eleefTinitv.
and explosives. in numbers at least 20 Der