Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1898-07-06

~ the hour. Since
there is boss to
every so or 100 men it is plain that
the sway of despotism is absolute.
| Speaking of the kind of men to WELD
this power in time Of war veteran Of
fioer of all round experience said: "Ev.
cry man at the head of military com.
mand from captain Of a company up to
general il chief should be boss all the
time Not that he need be bossing all
the time. But he should conceal ur iron
hand under the glove of COmplaCrl y
! and so stamp himself upon the miHds
of his subordinates that be would sway
them silent or giving orders, even when
absent as well as present
I" A man who gets there hg ugr .GcHt,
though, is not the boss for tho occasion
1t takes very much Of fellow 70 slrYd
as tyrant over q hundred thinking H..
men with b1vonets in their bands aGu
avoid makiES t@e tyranny irtG!crGGl'
The bosses over q hundred ana tl.-u.
sand are the ones who WELD the CALLING
lash of discipline in an army. Aud they
must do it inercilessly in 80 fur rs tho
mems feelings are concerned, yet retain
their respect and devotion. Without
these last the Ross is u failure when he
comes to put mis- men to the work for
which he WIS created boss--that is, to
fight. Again and again have seen some
soldier step up to captain inferior in
size and thank him for disciplinary
punishment that brought out the latent
manhood in him. 1t took some men
long time to come to that way Of think
ing and the whole army, too, for that
matter, much to its detriment, for we
had the rawest amateur ideas at the
start, and, in fact, with the exception
of the commands right in the heat of
campaigning all the time, amateurish
ways chung to us to the end.
1--WE never got away from the chance
of having accidents at the helm all
along the line Routine promotion held
sway and accidents gravitated to the
top only to fall down on the attempt to
act the boss. In the field where the
fighting was this evil had its cure be-
cause leader who couldn't fight his
command-and he couldn't if he was a
failure rs boss-was given dose of the
prevailing discipline and meroilessly
hustled out of the army. In this way
there were nearly 5000 failures in the
loss line disposed of in the Federal army
during the war. OF course these candi-
dates cost the government lot of money
and long stood in the way of better men
and kept the whole line on low foot
t.,g, l,al II.
jority of them never should have had
the chance to work evil in the forces
and blacken army records with the YER
diets on their dismissal. The way of se-
lecting officers began in blunder, and
after our good natured, democratic fash
ion we kept it up too long.
1--WE should have owned up at the
start that the army isn't democratic
institution and never can he and be
worth rap as an army. Army bosses
should get there by the memorable Sc.
quonce Of events, not by favoritism or
good fellowship. They should earn their
places and do it in way to show thair
fitness for them. This is no mere theory,
because we had examples enough to
show that it is practical and might pre-
vail.
Napoleon made it practical 1t was
no mere figure Of speech to say that
every private in the grand army %
France carried marshal's baton in his
knapsack. Napoleon promoted soldiers
on the spot for bravery, GOODNESS and
good sense. He could do il because he
was absolute master, with no political
oliques to conCiliate. But every win
ming army wins by the might of impe-
rialism, the sway of force that knows
no law. Patriotic generals yield their
rights and privileges of rank when
there is clash of authority that may
harm the cause. Some one must be boss,
and they all know that one bad general
is better than two good ones. When
Meade sent Hancock, the youngest of
the corps commanders, to the front at
Gettysburg, all the older heads yielded
full sway to him.
$50 in point CT fact military rule is
out and out despotism, the despotism
of necessity. And in a fighting army,
above all other places, the test should
be success. Every man of whatever
rank should be given immediate recog-
milton for any conspicuous act of valor.
It's all we'll enough to say that every
man should at all times do his duty
without hope of special reward. 1t is
devotion to duty that takes men into
the army and holds them there, but
the grandest thing among soldiers is es-
prit du corps, and this is fostered by
recognition of bravery and talent. A
company or regiment is proud of its