Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-04-25
Half a Day Service Of the District
Soldier Boys.
MISUNDERSTANDING ABOUT ORDERS
Everything in Readiness at Soldiers
Home and Alorg the River.
BUSY SCENES AT ARMORY

With hearts beating to the tune of yam
kee Doodle, Dixie" ard The Girl 1 Left
| Behind Me- the District National Guard,
about eighteen hundred strong, marched
from the arnory over t:le Center Market
| il. detachrneEts between the hours of . and
II o'clock this morning amid the cheers
from large crowd Tho haG assembled
in front of the armoty to see them off.
Wives, mothers, daughters and sweethearts
Of the soldier boys began to assemble at
! the FeEnsylN a.ia Avenue entrance at an
carly hour this morning to give the brave
soldier boys great send-off.
1t looked like war. 1t meant war. The
! Guard was never in better shape to meet
, the emergency. They were ordered to as
senbie at o'clock, and fifteen minutes
thereafter the 18th Battalion left the armory
on its march to the Soldiers Home where
they were to go into camp.
The other companies and battalions left
in succession. In just one and three-quar-
ter hours the last detachment, the 9Th Bat
TALON of the % Regiment, which was the
last to leave. marched up the avenue The
quartermasters and commssdries had in
| the meantime gotten everything packed on
the wagon trains and they had left the
arn!ory for the various camps. A few min
ntes after the 9TH Battalion left the armcry
they We're seen marching down the avenue
returning to the armory.
CONSERVATION rcigned supreme at the ar
| nlcry. Ii could not be understood why the
battalion coming back. They returned
10 the armory with disappointment pictured
on every face. They went to their quar-
tiers in a very crestfallen condition.
For a moment rumors of all sorts were
floating through the great building.
Spain has surrendered and we will have
more war;, I'VE are going south to-
night" and like expressions were heard on
every side. No one seemed to know just ex
actly what the order meant. Tie reporter
for The Star went Immediately to Maj. 81
monson of the 9Th Battalion and asked for
Information. Maj. Hine said: i don't know
what it means. l have simply received or
ders to return to the armory and store al!
Of my stuff This l have DONE" From
about 30 until 2:3O the companies which
had been sent to the Soldiers Home began
to return to the arinory. On. the face Of
every man who returned was the same
crestfallen appearance. None of them
could understand just why they were or
dered in. The officers were equally as ig-
norant as the men.
1t took the National Guard Just one hour
and a half to turn its entire strength out
from the armory. at $3.50 o'clock the las,
company had returned, and 1t will not take
more than an hour for all of the stores.
the tents and other camp equipage to be
put away where it was taken from, and
the armory will present the same peaceful,
quiet appearance that 1t did before the
troops began to assemble this morning.
All CT the men expressed the deepest
regret that they we're not allowed to stay
out in camp over night, as they We're of
the opinion that IL would have been cf
great benefit. When the companies Were
taken to the armory the order for dsms-
sal was given, but the company com
mal.ders took the riecaution TO ,eii ti-i.
men to hold themselves ready to report
at a moments notice, and a number OF
them told them to rep TT tonight any how.
lt is believed that the entire guard would
answer to a hurry call in less than an
hour.
An EXplanat ton.
1t was extremely difficult to obtain from
the officials of the War Department any
very satisfactory explanation for the recall
of the District National Guard this morn
ing. Saturday afternoon Secretary Alger
gave Brig. Gen. Harries, commanding the
guard. written authority to use his own
discretion in ordering the guard into camp.
Gen. Harres informed the Secretary, when
he received the order. that he proposed to
have the entire National Guard in camp
at the Soldiers Home at sunrise Sunday
morning, and that he had arranged to issue
the necessary orders. Subsequently the
Secretary notified Gen. Harries that he
would prefer that the troops should not go
into camp until Monday 0his) morning, his
idea being to the Sanctity of the
Sabbath as much as possible.
1t was upon this understanding that Gen.
Harries issued the orders under which the
guardsmen assembled at their armories this
morning in heavy marching order and
started out for the stations assigned to
them. The main body was to have gone
into camp at Soldiers Home, while smaller
detachment started on their way up the
Conduit road, to guard the Washington
aqueduct.
The order for their recall was issued by
Adjt. Gen. Corbin by the personal direction
of Secretary Alger, who was at the White
House in attendance on the cabinet meeting
at the time. The Secretary's action is I'M
derstood to have been based on representa-
lions by the heads of the various executive
departments that the work in the depart
ments was being seriously embarrassed by
the aoseAce oI many clerks ana employees
belonging to the National Guard, who failed |
to report for duty at the departments this
morning. The alacrity with which the
National Guardsmen had responded to the
call for military service gave the officials
no time or opportunity to supply their
places.
In view of this consideration and the
further explanation on the part of the Sec
rotary OF War that there was no special
necessity for the guard to so into camp
Immediately, the cabiret concluded it best
to call the soldiers back and postpone the