Omaha daily bee., 1897-01-11
High Officers of the Army Who Will Re-
tire During 1897.
MAJOR GENERAL RUGtR HEADS THE LIST
General John II. Brooke Likely to
Succeed to the Higher Rank
Militia TO Have New
Rifles.

tribute taking together staff and
line. In less than three months Major
General Ruger, the second highest officer
on the active list will complete his cath
year, and so be retired for age. Following
the precedent which of late years has given
the Department of the East to the officer
next in rank to the one commanding the
army 1t may be found that unless he pre-
fers some other, General Merritt will be
transferred to that department, with head
quarters at Governors Island, from his
present command, the Department of the
Missouri, with headquarters at Chicago.
But who will succeed General Ruger as
major general? The ranking officer is Gen
eral John II. Brooke, who not only has the
advantage Of being the senior in his grade,
but has a fine war record, having won
brevets during the civil war, while he and
Forsyth are the only two brigadier generals
on the active list who have received COM
missions for specific distinguished services,
those Of General Brooke being rendered at
the Old Wilderness and Spottsylvana
Next to General Brooke in rank stands
Brigadier General Frank Wheaton, who also
has a fine war record. and list of brevets
for service, but is handicapped by the fact
that his own retirement occurs on May
s next, or only about five weeks after that
Of General Ruger. 1t Is within the limits
of possibility that for this very reason he
might receive the double star, in order
to allow him to retire with the rank and
pay OF a major general But while pro-
motion for such a purpose has sometimes
occurred in the case of coonels, so that
they may become general officers, the case
may be regarded as different with officers
who already wear the star.
Following General Wheaton comes Gen
eral e. s. Otis, an accomplished officer
whose retirement, like General Brooke's
does not occur until the year 1902. Then
comes General Forsyth. well known as an
officer of sheridan's STAFF during the civil
war, who retires in August, 1898. while the
list is wound up by Generals u. r. Bliss
and j. II. Coppnger. The presumption is
that General Brooke will carry off the
prize.
CoLoNELS WILL GO UP.
Two colonels will receive promotions on
account of these retrements of Generals
OF forecasting a choice is greater The
senior is Colonel Shafter First infantry, who
has commanded that regiment nearly eight
cen years, but has been repeatedly passed
over in the awards of the star. He remains
on the active list until 1899. Following him
are Colonel II. c. Merriam Seventh infantry;
Colonel 7. NJ. Anderson. Fourteenth: Colonel
e. +. Townsend, Twelfth: Colonel r. Il. A.
Crofton Fifteenth then Colonel ]. +. Wade,
Fifth cavalry; Colonel G. e. Compton
Colonel C. G. Bartlett. Ninth infantry, and
Colonel NJ. A. Cochran, Sixth. OF these the
only officer retiring this year is Colonel
Townsend who leaves the active list July IA.
Turning to the staff the first high officer
to go Is General Morgan. the head of the
subsistence department who retlres on the
18th of this month. The ranking officer
under him is Colonel T. C. Sullivan, a West
Pointer, who served in the artillery from
1856 TO the civil war, and was then trans
far H.. .t,s.s... l..
only handicap in his case is his own retire
ment next November and this is thought
by his friends to be not likely to interfere
with him. Colonel w. II. Bell who follows
retres less than three months after Colonel
Sullivan. Next in rank are Lieutenant
Colonels S. 7. Gushing and W. A. Elderkih
both West Point graduates, and both re-
firing in 1903.
Later in the year come the retirements
of General w. p. Craighill, chief of en-
gineers. on July L. and Adjutant General G.
d. Ruggles on September II. The probabili-
ties as to their successors can better be de-
termined after the new president is inau-
gurated and a new secretary of war has
come into power.
In the navy three very distinguished flag
officers will be lost to the active list, Rear
Admirals Walker in March, Ramsay in
April and Brown in June. Commodore
Phythian will be retired In July and Commo-
dore Wallace still later in the year These
retirements Will cause a considerable shift
ing in active commands
SPRINGFIELD FORTY-FIVES.
The matter of supplying a first-class arm
to the militia of the country is likely to be
settled favorably by the present congress.
The house committee on military affairs has
reported favorably the bill of the senate
which was passed last March by that body,
authorizing the secretary of war to issue
Springfield rifles to the states and terri
ngn of tEn nuti rI
The infantry force of the organized militia
of the country is 1926 men. These are
armed with Springfield rifles of various mod
els, from 1873 to 1884, calibers so and As.
They have also Remingtons, Spencers. Win
chesters and other models. The larger pro-
portions of the arms, however, are Spring
fields, many OF which are in bad condition.
especially those of old models There has
been continuous demand from the states
for permission to turn in the old rifles and
receive in exchange therefor the modern
Springfield arm, caliber .45. While the ques-
tion OF a new magazine arm for the regu-
lar army was in suspense the War depart
ment was unwilling to issue these weapons
except so far as they were called for under
each states share of the annual appropria-
tion OF Si0O, 900. Now the new Krag- Jorgen-
sen magazine rifle is being furnished to the
regular army, which will be entirely sup
piled with this weapon shortly. This will
involve the return OF more than 20 900
Springfield rifles, nearly all In seryiceable
condition. AS a considerable proportion OF
the National Guard have serviceable Spring
fields II is estimated that not more than
50000 of that arm would be required to sup
ply the guard and that number could be
readily furnished by the government when
the regular army Is fully supplied with the
Krag-Jorgensen arm.
The Springfield rifle. callber AS Is a single
shot h-loader, has heavy bullet which
cannot take so fiat trajectory nor so long a
range as the new rifle OF caliber 80. but 1t
is very serviceable weapon, easily and
quickly loaded. and can be fired very rapidly.
The manufacture OF the Krag -Jorgensen
magazine rife will proceed as rapidly as the
appropriations will permit. In the mean
time 1t would be good policy that the super
seeded Springfield should be issued to the Ma
tional Guard In accordance with their wishes
and repeated requests. The National Guard
In most OF the states Is In excellent condi-
tion, and has reached a high state Of per-
feetion In drill and discipline. In case OF
emergency its ranks could be quickly re-
cruited from men who have had former con-
nectlon with II to a total OF 10000, and In
short time this force would approach a
uniform standard OF efficiency and power
sun Spot Visible 10 Naked Eye.
GENEVA. n. Y, Jan. lO-Prof. Brooks
announces observations or an enormous