The herald., 1898-12-20
SChOfItLO IS FRANK
IN STATING CAUSES OF ARMY
FRICTION
LONG AND VARIED EXPERIENCE
Enables Him to Make Suggestions
Likely to Result in Improvement
of the Service
Special Correspondence to The Herald

Special Correspondence to The Herald
WASHINGTON, Dec. l9.-Much COM
ment has been aroused by General Scho-
feds's frank statement before the house
military affairs committee in regard to the
general of the army" He says that there
is no such officer, and never has been ex-
cept for one year, when it was held by Cen
eral Grant.
General Schoield undoubtedly knows
whereof he speaks. Besides having spent
q lifetime in the army he at one period held
the posts of secretary of war, general of the
army and adjutant general, all at once, and
had an excellent opportunity to learn all the
innner working of the system.
He asserted that there was no act of con-
gress authorizing any such rank. The gen
eral Of the army was merely the senior Off
Ger assigned by the president to COM
mand the army. The president could re-
move him at any time and place him on
waiting orders, and appoint the officer next
in rank to the post Then he could also
relieve this successor in similar way, and
then relieve another and another, until he
had gotten down to the officer that he wished
to place in command. The only limitation
on this was that he could not order the
senior officer to duty under the junior, but
must merely put him on waiting orders, thus
mortifying him and injuring the morale of
the army. The result was that the presi
dent rarely exercised this power.
We therefore have secretary of war, a
cabinet officer chosen by the president and
enjoying his confidence, and a senior gen.
eral not appointed by him, and perhaps
hostile to him, both assuming to command
the army. Hence friction was always aris-
ing, and unless the general was an unusually
good manager, the secretary soon took to
ignoring him and issuing orders directly
AS a matter of history this had almost in
variably been the result.
General Schotield therefore advocated that
congress should frankly recognize this fact,
and should provide that the president might
select his general from the major generals
list, appoint him an acting lieutenant gen.
Grant with larger pay. Thus he would be
congenial to the president, and friction with
the secretary of war would be largely avoid.
ed. When a new president came in,
he could appoint new general, and the
former one could retire or return to duty.
There would be no modification over this
any more than now exists in the navy over
the appointment of acting rear admirals like
Sampson and Schley.
Moreover, and this point was emphasized.
this would not increase the legal powers of
the president in the least. He is now com
mander in chief of the army and navy by
the constitution, and no one can take that
power away from him or from his delegate,
the secretary of war. The only real ef-
feet OF the change would be to enable him
to select his general without mortifyne
other gallant soldiers, and to reduce fric-
tion in the army.
The plan, sometimes suggested, to put the
secretary and the general on an equality OIL
to make the general superior, General Seho-
field thought impractcable, as it would iu-
volve an amendment to the constitution de-
priving the president of the command of the
army.
In other words, General Schofeld wished
it to be made clearly evident by law that
the general in command of the army was ex-
pressy, as he is actually the chief Of staff
of the president. AT the same time, while
his mere verbal Importance might be slight
ly diminished by this, his actual power
should be increased.
1t is singular fact, according to General
Schofeld, that the heads of the great staff
departments, which pay the men, cothe
them, inspect them and feed them are prac.
tically independent of the general who com
mands them. This was the cause Of
great deal of suffering during the war; The
staff department officers report to their
heads IN Washington, and not to the general
commanding in the field, or even to the
senior general in Washington. Orders are
even now daily being sent out from Wash
lngton OF the gravest import to the welfare
OF the army OF which the commanding gen
eral knows absolutely nothing and which
the secretary does not appreciate or
prepare for. In other words. there are
half dozen practically independent little
empires within the army whose heads |
even the secretary would find it difficult to
remove. The system was ridiculous, but
would be hard to break up because the de.
partment would all fight to retain their
powers.
If the general of the army had the conf |
dence of the president, as he would have if |
selected by him and was allowed to issue
orders only in the name of the president or
OF his delegate, the secretary of war, and |
was further given control under the secra
tary of the staff departments, his influence
would be greatly increased, and the anon.
ally, often known in the United States, Ct |
general in command" of the army being
practically subordinate to the adiutant gen.
eral would be avoided in future.
Although General Schofield took care not
to say so, it was evident throughout that he
had present conditions in his mind. Under
his plan the president could have selected
an acting lieutenant general, in whom he
had confidence, for the war, and the com.
mand would not have rested with General
Corbin, as it practically did Probably, too.
if General Miles had been chosen as this
lieutenant general, as he probably would,
there would have been less friction with
Secretary Alger.
CRIIIENQEN MAppIO,c,r