The Kinsley graphic. [volume] (Kinsley, Kan.) 1890-1940, 1898-05-06
ACTED IN LINE OF DUTY.
COVE RNOR LEEDY SIMPLY FOLLOW
ED THE Law PASSED By CONGRESS.

Levenworth Army ofncer commends him
for his stand In his recent action dis
banding the National Guard of
tho state.
LeavenwOrth, Kan. May l. The Sc
we're criticisms made in some quarters
upon the action of Gov. Leedy in dis
charging the national guard from the
service of the state, with a view to
making political capital against the
executive, led an army officer today to
make a few observations and his state
ment of the case shows that the gov
ernor acted not only in the line of his
duty, but to have done anything else
would have been in direct opposition
of the intent of the law recently passed
by congress directing the president to
call for volunteers and not the nation
al guard.
!, SIN the first place." said this officer,
"the public appears to forget that the
present war is not an insurrecti on, but
a war against foreign foe, therefore
quite a different fair from the war of
the rebellion. Then the country was
divided. One section wanted to Sc
cede from the other, and this was
called an insurrection or rebellion
against the constituted authorities.
Our constitution authorizes the use OF
the militia national guard) for the
purpose of suppressing instructions
or repelling invasions. To suppress
the insurrection the president called
out the militia of the states, but as the
number of states from which to secure
such organized force was limited, a
call for volunteers became imperative.
and the calling out of tho militia and
the call for volunteers were both au
thorized by the law and the constitu-
tion. To meet the present emergency
congress passed a law auth horizing the
president to call for volunteers,in suci
numbers as the situation may require.
The president, in issuing his procla-
nation, recognizing that the national
guard could not de called out, urgeG
upon the governors in his proclama-
ton to give the members of such STATE
organizations the preference in enlist
ments. The call does not require the
governors to turn the guards into vol
| unteers. Each member must pass
muster before the recruiting Officer
| and take the same chance of passin&
| as any other volunteer who never be
longed to a military organization.
| The claim set up in some quarters
that the governor has not dealt fairly
with the state troOps'Or some secre
be the sons of ex-soldiers is all non
| sense. The sons of eX-soldiers hav,
no greater privileges than the sons o
any other citizen who has never beer
in the service, when it comes to volun
teering for the defense Of the country
| Oae man is as good as another. Tine
very fact that the conditions prevalen
during the late war in organizing
)companies and presenting them for &C
ceptance by the governor is not nov
practiced is due to the law recentl,
passed bycongress, and uot any act o
Gov. Leedy's. Then any person VIII.
sec, q few men for company W /:
comu issioned captain. so long as n:
had the political influence with tn
state authorities. Now this is proven
ted, as will be noticed by the appoint
ment of son of a prominent Kansa
republican politician to the colonelc.
of regimentof volunteers.
1t is apparent to any unprejudicet
observer that SO long as the governo
is not required to send the nationa
guard, but merely furnish g. cersai:
number of able-bodied men, he is full!
| justified in his course of action, ant
the results will. prove this. It is lie
cognized by those who are we'll enough
informsd to know that.in'. the first plac
the strength of the guard woul'
only meet half way the quota GALES
for by the president. 1t is also ma.
ter of fact that the national guard is
in many instances made up Of youn
men unfit, for field service. This, Q
course, is not true of all the compar
les in the state. Under the call OF tn