The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-04-19
Immediately on His Return from
Washington He Issues Orders
to His Sergeants.
SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS MOVE
LIGHT ARTILLERY WILL PROBABLY
TAKE FIELD WITH SIX GUNS.
Outline of New Plan for Organizing
Army and MiIitia-Gen. Mckee's
Report Not Filed.

There was a portentous air OF mystery
lowering over and about the Light Artil-
lerys armory last night. Everybody wanted
to know what it was all about and nobody
could find out. Little knots of privates gath
cred about the rooms and guessed until
they guessed themselves out" Other knots
of officers gathered in other corners and ex-
ercised their convolutions of gray matter
TO the limit of exertion in their endeavors
TO unravel the tangle. Calm and serene i'll
his strength, confident in his superior
knowledge, smiling benignly on all who
asked, and answering them nothing, was
Capt. James B. Curtis, fresh from Wash
ington, with a large-sized secret concealed
about his person.
The fact that he had a secret was evil
denced by his issuing an order to his SER
geants TO recruit fifty more men for Bat
terry A, and then refusing to tell them what
he wanted with the men. Neither would he
tell reporter. He simply smiled and said,
I'VE need the men," The lieutenants were
in the dark also, but pronounced anything
the captain might do altogether lovely.
Captain Curtis refused to say as to wheth-
er his sudden desire for fifty new men was
an outcome of his Washington trip. The
same smile was the answer to every ques-
ton.
A SIX-GUN BATTERY.
The best military thought at the Armory
seems agreed that the new move is for the
purpose of recruiting the battery to the full
war footing of a sx-gun battery. They
agree also that Captain Curtis received or
ders while at Washington to increase the
roster of his company. Hitherto the battery
has been a four-gun battery and within
xI,o Ice four hoe tod
to the war limit of 1O3 men. The roster in
cludes even more than the required num-
Der, about twenty-five extra men having
who are expected to drop out. One hundred
and seventy-fve men is the war footing of
a six-gun battery, and the fifty new men
wanted by Captain Curtis will just about
bring the battery up to it's six-gun maxi
mum, if no allowance is made for men
dropping out. Captain Curtis was asked if
fifty men would be enough in case some of
the present members remained at home.
"Oh WELL" said he. I'VE have about twen-
ty applications of good men still on file"
Then he stopped. There is no doubt in the
minds of most of the artillerymen that. the
six-gun war footing solution is the answer
lin the back of the book and they are
glad of it, though some of them grumble
that their captain has not seen fit to take
them into his confidence. Most of Them
however, think his mouth has been sealed
by the powers at Washington, though they
can see no reason for exacting secrecy in
the matter.
Nearly one hundred of the boys were out
last night, partly because it was regular
drill night and partly because they expected
Cap back from Washington with some
news for them. Cap came but kept the
news for his own personal delectation. He
gave the boys nothing but the hardest drill
to which they have yet been subjected and
that is taken as another proof of the near
approach of war or. at least, the going into
camp in preparation for II. The men were
drilled out on the asphalt until the rain
came, and then they were driven into the
drill room and herded like a lot of sheep.
The room was too small but they made it
serve and trotted about for two good hours.
The sergeants are expected to get the fifty
additional men this week so that they may
be sworn in and ready. No trouble is ex
pected in the work of recruiting and none
but the best will be accepted