Evening star., 1898-06-06
AR { ON LEAV E
Status Of National Guard Officers at
the Front.
PLACES HELD FOR THEM
Recognizing the Brigade and Re.
cruiting Companies.
E O r RIFLE PRACTICE

The District of Columbia National Guard
Is rapidly being reorganized on the plans
| outlined by Brig. Gen. HarrieS before his
! departure for the front as colonel of the
1st Regiment of District Volunteers. Lieut.
! Col. Henry May, the ranking officer of
| the guard remaining in the city has as
sumed command of the guard and will act
| as brigadier general until the return of
| the commanding general from the war. 1t
Is not contemplated, the officers of the
| guard declare, and they add that It would
| be manifestly unjust, unfair, unmilitary
| ard demoralizing to appoint officers to
supersede those now in the service of the
| United States. Col. May will prove most
acceptable and capable commanding officer
| and under him the organization will -four
1sh and be in excellent shape when the
warriors return home.
According to present plans the comrnis-
stoned officers of the guard; who are 1T the
front, will have their offices held open for
them and will assume command of their
Old companies just as soon as the, war is
over and the victorious United States
troops return from Cuba and Porto Rico.
From Gen. Harries down to the lowest
ranking second lieutenant the officers of
the guard who volunteered are considered
on leave, and SO long as they are on leave
| their places can only be filled temporarily
Ihe commissioned officers remaining In
town have been divided between the differ
ent companies, while the non-commssioned
| officers have been assigned temporarily to
the higher positions in their comm ands.
In this way the guard is being reorganized
ana Will be recruited up to its full strength.
Plans Mapped Out.
l. Before Gen. Harries left the city he call
ed his officers III consultation. and, to-
get with
the conduct of the National Guard while
he was absent. These plans will be fully
carried out by Col. May, in command, and
the District Guard will continue the same
creditable military organization that it has
always been in the past. A majority of
Gen Harries' staff officers are left in the
city, each with his special functions and
duties to perform. H. fact the entire ma
cainery of the guard has been left in good
hands and will continue it's operations as
heretofore.
A meeting of forty or fifty of the Off
GERS was held at headquarters last week
when 1t was decided to carry out the plans
OF reorganization formulated by Gen. Har-
ries in detail. The assignments of officers
as already announced in The Star result
ed. Major Burton r. Ross has been plac-
ed in command of the 1st Regiment and
Capt. Benjamin II. Streeks in command of
the I'd regiment The lieutenantS remain
ing at hcme have been placed in command
OF pattalions and made the senior officers
of the companies. Recruiting will be con-
tinued in order to fill up the ranks.
Col. May was seen this afternoon by
reporter for The Star and declared that so
far as he knew, there was in contempla-
ton no movement to secure the appoint
ment of a new brigadier general or any
other officer of the guard TO fill the places
of those now absent from the city. All
the officers are on leave he said, and he
was now the commanding officer of the
District militia and would remain such un-
less sonnet hing unforeseen
Target Practice.
Major James E. Bell, one of the higher
officers of the militia remaining at Wash
ington, was also seen, and he also said that
the absent officers of the guard are to be
treated as ION leave and their places will
not be filed except temporarily. In the
absence of the commanding officer the Off
Ger next highest in rank takes command.
Major Bell spoke Interestingly of the steps
taken looking toward a reorganizatio of the
guard, saying that while the organization
was little short of uniforms since the de-
parture of the 1st Regiment of District Vol
unteers, there are plenty of guns and other
equipments on hand at the armory.
1T would be most demoralizing and I'M
Just TO appoint officers to supersede those
now in the field declared Major Bell. land
to make them feel that their absence is to
be taken advantage of would be awful
You cannot appoint man to fill another's
place in military organizations when the
absentee Is away on leave, as is --,e case
with the District officers now at the front"
Major Bell has arranged for the resump-
ton of target practice in the rifle gallery
at the armory for the purpose of complet-
ing the gallery scores of 1898, the shooting
having been interrupted by the removal
from the old armory on l. street to the
Center Market building. The schedule has
been made out and the men ordered to re-
port at the gallery as follows: Second Bat
talon, Thursdays, June 8, 16, 23 and 30;
4th Battalion, Tuesdays, June Z, IA, p and
2S; 9Th Battalion, Mondays, June 6, i3, 20
and q: 9th Battalion. Fridays, June 10. Il
and "a, and Wednesday, June %. The
practice will begin at o'clock sharp each
evening, and special effort will be made
to qualify as many men as possible from
the "stay-at-homes."
The 1st Battalion, the Washington Light
Infantry, and the 1st Separate Battalion,
colCred have rifle ranges at their own
armories. and not included in the as
signments. They have also completed their
rifle range later in the month is contem-
plated in order that the out-of-door scores
may also be completed. The men have not
been ordered to report in uniform, for il is
believed that brass buttons have no espa-
cial part in the development of a sharp
shooter. There is plenty of ammunition at
the command of the shooters, and no pains
will he spared to make the men proficient
at the targets.
Talk of "a summer camp for the guard is
beginning to be heard. 1t is said that the
appropriation is on hand and that the
militia will probably go into camp later on
in the summer, as heretofore, despite the
prevailing conditions.
o