The times., 1898-06-29
Army and Navy Reform.

Army anu navy
1t has been like pulling teeth to drag
the people of this country out of many
old and moss-g grown provincial ways.
to which the backwOOds conservatism
of their average legislators have bound
them for a generation, and would keep
them in today if they could. For exam
pie, during more than century the dip
lomatic representatives Of tbs great ma
ton at the capitals of the leading Eu-
ropean states were accorded rank 50
low that they We're obliged to give
precedence to the ambassadors cf such
states as Spain, Portugal and Turkey,
and did not enjoy the right Of personal
conference with the heads Of the gov
ernments to which they We're accredited,
that being privilege accorded only 10
full ambassadors; while. until recently,
we were unrepresented by any diplo
mat of a higher dignity than that OF
minister plenipotentiary.
The excuse for allowing this state of
affairs to continue so long was that it
was in the line of republican simplici-
ty.' a fiction which resulted in the So
cial. snubbiDg of our ministers, a seri-
Gus handicap upon their official infiu-
ence and usefulness, and a general
opinion abroad that we did not amount
10 much as an International figure
among the powers of the world. We
have changed that, much to our inter
est and advantage, and the lesson
should serve US in other and cognate
directions.
Up to the time of the Civil War the
American Navy never had an admiral.
The rank, like that OF ambassador, in
the minds of bucolic statesmen, seemed
in some unaccountabie way to smack
of field marshals and dukes, of crosses.
stars and ribbons. AS a consequence
when our commodores, who were our
highest naval officers in those days.
were compelled to represent their coun-
try on foreign stations and to meet the
naval chieftains of Great Britain, Rus
sia, France, Prussia, Austria and so on,
they found themselves inferior. and of
necessity treated as inferior, TO the ad-
mirals, vice admirals and rear admirals
of other governments. We got as far
as rear admiral as regular grade dur
ing the war between the States, and.
| by way of personal reward, conferred
the titles of admiral and vice admiral
in a few Instances; but these higher
ranks have never been recognized as
/ permanently or properly belonging t.
! the service, as is the case with all other
countries having respectable navies-
In exactly the same way the legisla-
tive influence of the country in the past
has fought shy Of giving rank to the
higher officers of the Army, such as
men occupying like positions in any
| foreign service would receive. tIoi-
Washington to Ulysses 5. Grant we
never had even a lieutenant general
| Winfield Scott having been one only by
/ brevet Like the titles OF admiral anc
vice admiral, those of general and lieu.
tenant general have been conferred
| specially as extraordinary honors fol
| personal reasons or achievements ant
| have not taken their place as regular
| grades in our military establishment
We think it is time to make change
Every American familiar with military
|
est rank in the Army TO that of majol
general is to involve our war organiza
ton in endless trouble, due to the en-
w, jealousy and uncharitabienes
which is certain TO mark the relations
of a number OF general officers, all hold
ing the same rank and title. but o
widely varying command and, hence
influence and Importance. A maio
general commands all the armies il
war. Other major generals under hin
command the separate armies. Still
other major generals under these com
mand army corps, and each of thes
corps commanders is over more majo
generals in charge of divisions. 1t is a
sane an arrangement as it would be t
eliminate the colonel and lieutenan
colonel from regimental organization
and to say that anything above ma
jor savored of trucking to the wick
methods of effete despotism.
Since we are to have modern arm
and navy, what is the reason that the
should not be officered in accordanc
with the principles of organization
which have been found necessary to tn
best results elsewhere? We have con
ceded one point of modern civilizat.o
as illustrated in war. by abandonin
our Chinese regimental idea and ac
cepting the three battalion formatio
Of enlightened states. Why not go
/. step further and add to the efficienc
of our service by adjusting it to Othe