The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1898-08-25
Thursday, August 25, 1898.
From War TO Peace.

protocol was signed, but the pre-
paratiors for reducing both the vol
unteer army and the auxiliary navy
are coming on apace. The task
must he agreeable, since it involves
cutting great slices from daily war
expenses. The discharge of naval
volunteer officers and naval reserves
has already begun. In the navy
the reductions to a peace status can
be the more rapid from the destruc-
ton of spain's fleets, which renders
her resumption Of operations at sea
hopeless in any contingency. The
army has the occupation Of Cuba
Porto Rico and the Philippine,
among its tasks, but it could drop a
hundred thousand menand still have
more than enough left for them.
AS the acquisition of vessels from
the merchant service was undertaken
by boardappointed for the purpose,
50 will it be with their return. But
while chartered vessels will go back
without exception, considerable
number OF the purchased vessels will,
we think, be retained rather than be
knocked down at auction for small
prices. After the civil war the
Government sold rapidly the ships
it had bought. These numbered
41S, and over a hundred of them
were not steamers. They were
sacrificed at less than half their cost,
but it is doubtful whether anything
was allowed to go that was worth
retaining.
In that war there were such re-
quirements for the enormous block
ade duties that the policy, as one
authority expressed it, was to "buy
everything ahoat that could bemade
of service" In addition to the
coast fleet we then had great
river hotilla, used largely in the
Mississippi valley. Many of
these vessels were obviously
useless for permanent naval
purposes, and many vessels showed
the effects of a service lasting from
one to four years. But the present
war continued less than four months
the proclamation being issued on
April %, and very little damage
has been done to our auxiliary
cruisers by the enemy's fire. These
vessels, too, picked very carefully
and skilfully by a board of naval
officers, include many of high value
for a permanent navy. Again, Con-
gress several times during the last
few years increased the enlisted force,
so that we can easilyman the auxil-
iary vessels kept, especially as most
Of them can be laid up in reserve,
where they will require only few
caretakers for each.
We can make use, for example,
of some of the fine colliers we have
bought, because hereattersuch vessels
cantake coaltothe manynew stations
we shall have, as well as directly,
in some cases, to squadrons on
foreign stations. We canuse trans
polt ships hereafter, for, with garri-
son in Cuba, Porto Rico, Hawaii the
the Ladrones and the Philippines,
there will be demands for the sea
transportation oftroops such as we
have never known in times ofpeace.
Then there are vessels which have
been fitted upat large cost for special
uses, such as the repair, hospital
distilling ships, of which the costly
appliances would be sacrificed by a
sale of the vessels, while they would
be very useful on the sudden out
break of another war. Taking a
single example, can there be any
doubt Of value to our permanent
navy of the Yankee, Dizie, Prairie
and Yosemite, whether regarded as
transports or cruisers?
On the other hand, the tugs, the
pleasure yachts, with their expensive
interior fittings, the numerous little
craft organized as coast defensive
flotilla and the auxiliary blockaders
can nearly all be dispensed with,
although we shall never forget the
glory acquired in battle by such