The evening times., 1898-09-17
FRAMING A new ARMY BILL
Views of Chairman Hull of the
Military Affairs Committee.
MORE REGULARS NEEDED
A Permanent Force of One Hundred
Thousand Required-Changes Nee
essary in the Militia Laws of Sew
eraI States-Troops Should Com
form to National Regulations.

Mr. Hull chairman of the Committee on
Military Affairs of the House, who will
frame the bill for the reorganization OF
the army at the coming session OF Con-
gress, has made the following statement:
THE regular army should be 100000
strong as permanent organization, or
at least for two or three years TO come
| shall endeavor to secure this strength
at the coming session.
This will give 10000 men for duty in
this country, which will certainly be
needed at the lowest estimate; $1,000 for
Cuba, 6,OC9 or 5000 for Porto Rico, one
regiment for the Hawaiian Islands, and
$4,000 for the Philippines.
If the Philippines are given up, this
estimate can be cut 10000 or $1,000.
Release the Volunteers.
1.-The volunteer army" says Mr.. Hull,
should be released and sent home as
quickly as possible. | do not believe
there is regiment of the volunteers that
is not anxious to be mustered out.
There are undoubtedly many individ-
uals who would prefer to remain, but as
organizations they would all vote for
disbandment. My plan will be to pro-
regulars and to relieve the volunteers
next spring. | believe the entire volun-
teer army can be mustered out then.
There viii be necessity for large part
of the present strength of the volunteers
until that time but the situation in all
the new possessions of the United states
should be so adjusted during the winter
that only police duty will be required aft
er that which the regulars can perform
There will be no need for legislation
relating to the volunteers. The President
will relieve them as fast as possible.
1T will be necessary, however, TO get
| the regular army bill passed as soon as
possible, so that the regulars can take
| the place of the volunteers.
Il shall introduce the bill at the ear
| liest moment. and / believe there will not
/ be much difficulty in securing its passage
! quickly. The pressure from constituents
will be strong 10 have the bill passed.
| Every community that has sent Volun-
! teers will pe an auxiliary committee at
! hcme
infantry the Main Strength.
'In my opinion the larger part of the
increase in the army should be in the in
! fantry. There is no need of any increase
! in the cavalry. The artillery must be
| increased largely to provide troops for
! be some increase in this branch now, but
/ the large part of the troops needed for
! the new territory will be infantry.
II am In favor of increasing the num-
| Der of men In a company of infantry TO
I40 instead of l06, as at present inns
number would still be much less than
! that in the formation of the modern ar
| mfes OF Europe.
The cost OF an army is largely in the
IL, sHa.F Fayxy-
/ er officers and more men Is far more
! economical and equally effective.
IF this is done the present number OF
infantry regiments, thirty, would have an
/ increase of nearly 10,0e0 men The
strength of regiment under SUCH tor-
nation would be about LOO and the total
/ strength of the present number oil lntah-
try regiments about 50GW-
There should be at least ten and per-
hans fifteen more regiments with this for
| nation in an army of 100000 Three or
four regiments of artillery should also be
added
These figures are all based on the sup
| position that the Philippines are 10 be
kept If they are given up l do not be-
! lieve it will be possible to persuade Con-
| gress to do more than increase the size
of the present infantry regiments as L
suggest This alone would make the
army about 70, 0o0
State Militia Organization.
"I am strongly in favor of the reorgani-
zation of the State militias, making them
conform in every way TO the regular for
! nation with three battalions and the cor
rect number of officers. l am in favor of
making this obligatory on State before
the Government gives any money for the
support of its militia.
Under the present system, State
militia has chosen its own plan of organ
ization, with the result that there were
as many plans as there were organiZa-
tions. This undoubtedly cost the Gov
! ernment millions of dollars during the
i war with Spain, besides a great waste
of time in getting the volunteers to the
front. 1t also caused all kinds of jeal-
ousy and chickering's because of the va
rious ranks that went with the same du-
ties in different regiments.
IF all the State militias were organized
on the same plan as the regular army the
volunteer army could be got into the
field in a very short time for the next
| war"
Chairman Hull opposes Gen. Miles plan
to reduce the number of companies in a
regiment from twelve to eight, and the
number of men in q company from one
hundred to seventy-fve, because of his
belief that the entire volunteer force
wishes to leave the service at the earliest
practicable time.
Army officers generally believe that Gen.
Miles plan is an admirable one as it
would give the officers of the volunteer
force who desire to remain in, chance
to stay, while the men who wanted to be
discharged would have that privilege.
Immediately upon his return to the city
Gen. Miles found that the department had
not begun the work of procuring winter
clothing for the soldiers. He at once in
stituted formal inquiry, and as a result
Quartermaster General Ludington has or
dered the contractors to hurry the work
along.