The times., 1898-12-25
CHAIRMAN HULLS REPORT
Provisions of the New Army
Bill Contained in It.
ESTIMATES OF THE COST
Less Than Claimed by the Minority
Report - No Maximum Strength
Fixed-EAiciept Organization Pro-
posed = Chnnses in Artillery md
Hifi-The Question of Retirement.

The majority report of the House Com
mittee on Military Affairs in reference
to the Hull army bill. which has been
held up in the committee to await
an estimate of the cost of the proposed
Increase IN the army. was filed yester-
day by Chairman Hull before nc eft for
his home in Iowa to spend the Christmas
holidays. The estimates were furnished
Chairman Hull by the War Department
yesterday.
The estimates show that the pay OF the
army under the provisions of the bill will
amount to s2i.ll6.s17 per annum. The rest
of the expenditures entailed by the pro-
posed legislation will bring the total up
to Eot more than $4,000, 900 These figures
furnish a striking contrast to the minority
report which places the cost under the
Hull bill at sl50.0e0,too.
The report Is as follows:
fhe oiil fixes no maximum strength for
the entire army. Assuming that the Gov
erHinent VIII require about LOG. .0O0 for de-
tense of the frontier, for coast defense
and 20 maintain our authority in the ISL
ards for whose good order and govern
ment this nation is now responsible to-
gether with reasonable reserve force, the
bill provides foc sufficient cavalry
and infantry TO provide the number
required for each arm of the service and
corps OF artillery for our sea coast bat
teries, with two regiments of artillery for
field batteries
he committee believe the organization
as provided for in this bill will make the
most efficient military organization at the
lowest COST TO the taxpayer of any or
ganization proposed by any bill before
Congress.
THE organization of the cavalry as pro-
yided in the bill is substantially the same
organization now provided for by law.
The change in the present organization is
making fifteen captains in place of twelve
and providing for commissary of the
regiment. By this increase Of rank the
adjutant, quartermaster and commissary
are given the rank of captain. and a COM
inissary sergeant is also added. The fifteen
first lieutenants provided include three
extra first lieuterants for each regiment
TO be available as squadron adjutants- 1t
also provides for the creation of a band
for each regiment by enlistirg them as
musicians while Under the present law
they are enlisted in the regular force and
detailed as musicians. The organization
of artillery provided for in the bin changes
from the regimental formation to that of
a corps of artillery, and as the artillery
arm has so grown in importance the COM
mittee feel justified in submitting the full
reason for the change
"The relation of artillery organization
to the work that the army was to per-
form may be best understood by brief
/ reference to its history. Our present sys-
/ tenn dates back to 1921. when the first four
| regiments We're organized. The Fifth
Regiment was added in 1851. and the
Sixth and Seventh in 1898 Now. when
first organized, that is. in 1921, the quss-.
ton of coast defense was not nearly SO
important as ii Is today, and consequent
| ly the question of organization was not
J so important. Moreover. this relative
unimportance of both functions and of
| organization continued for many years.
| in fact. down TO 1861. On the other hand.
; there were questions before the country
that made the services Of infantry of
very great Importance, and hence We find
| the artillery almost continuously used as
! infantry Thus in the Mexican war
three-fourths of the artillery was used
| as infantry. 1t was, armed and equipped
| as infantry and served as such. not only
| in Mexico. but also in Florida during the
| Seminole troubles, on the plains and
| elsewhere. even in the forts. When the
civil war broke out in 1851 all the foot
! batteries heretofore armed and equipped
and serving as infantry Were converted
into light batteries. only to resume their
infantry equipment and duties after APP
pomattox.
''In the bill under discussion the num-
Der of artillery units (batteries) was OBJ
! tanned from a consideration of the num-
Der of gun positions to be manned. You
! must have. at the limit many batter
! les as you have gun positions. Further,
! these batteries must be grouped in sufii-
cient numbers at each harbor, to man all
the guns in that harbor. Evidently, the
idea of the regiment does not come for