The Indianapolis journal., 1898-05-27
A TELEGRAM Misunderstood.
Views of State Officers on the Filling
Up of Delinquent Regiments.

Up of Delinquent Regiments.
A telegram was received from Senator
Fairbanks yesterday which is not very well
understood. 1t says: present purpose is
to fill existing regiments. Are ours filed?
Formal allotment not probable for some
days" 1t is not understood whether the
sentence, Present purpose is to fill exist
ing regiments means that men who en-
list in the various States will be sent South
and combined with regiments of other
States that are not filled, or that full regi-
ments will be sent to make up quotas Of
Southern States that have not yet complied
with the first call. There would be great
dissatisfaction in Indiana if squads of men
were drafted into regiments from other
States and Governor Mount will resist such
proposition to the last. It is known that
some States, Pennsylvania. for instance.
sent regiments to the South that were not
as large as those from Indiana, where
eighty-four men constituted a company
while the Pennsylvania companies had but
sixty. This would make the Pennsylvania
regiments about three hundred men short
of the Indiana regiments. Here it is felt
that if it is meant that the numerical
strength of regiments from the various
States is to be increased the States furnish
ing the original regiments should make up
the deficit, not that other States should be
expected to furnish companies and parts of
companies for this purpose.
indiana, said the Governor dec1sively,
will not send men South to patch up regi-
ments from other States that are numerical
~ short. If the government finds difficulty
in getting Southern States to furnish the
regiments they have been called on for In
diana will be glad to furnish all the regl-
mentS that are needed. We can give them
all the full regiments they want, but we will
not send Indiana men to fill up short regi-
ments from other States"
If it is the intention of the government
to take men by companies from Indiana to
make up short regiments from other States
the. result would be that there. would be no
other evil is this: While the companies of
some States regiments are numerically
woSlo fro DC 70 a,,eds u nF
twenty or thirty to increase the numerical
strength of the separate companies Of short
regiments. SO that Indiana men would be
scattered far and wide Governor Mount is
not inclined to believe that this is the policy
intended. He rather inclines to the belief
were SO prompt before will be called on for
entire regiments to make up the quotas
that have not been filled by some of the
Southern States.
1t is the understanding here that while
some of the States have sent small COM
panieS those of Indiana come up to the re-
quirementS of the new volunteer bill, or
practically so. The new BILL it is said, pro-
vides that volunteer regiments shall contain
nine companies OF elSnIy-tnree men edcn
and three companies of eighty-four each.
Indiana companies contained eighty-three
men. A telegram was sent to Senator Fair
banks informing him that all the Indiana
regiments now in the field are up to the
standard in numerical strength.
Immediately on receiving information
through the press Wednesday that the Sec
ond proclamation had been issued and that
Indiana's quota under it would be about
$500 men, Colonel Wilson, the Governors
military secretary, telegraphed to Washing
ton asking that the State be called on for
three full regiments. The following mes
sage was received from Senator Fairbanks
yesterday: IT will endeavor to have three
full regiments allotted to US as you request
and advise you latter"
Press dispatches from Washington indi-
cate that the War Department will simply
fill regiments now incomplete from the
States wherein they were recruited.