New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-08-09
ARMS THAT DO NOT KILL.
THE REVOLVER. SWORD AND BAYoNET
IN BATTLE.

co,,,oco de Cuba. July 23-Coonel Theodore
..l, killed a Spaniard with his revolver
:, the charge near the San Juan Hill on July l.
rite is apparently the only case In which that
.anon was used with effect by either side IN
whole campaign Nearly all the officers in
.. armies. or. rather three armies, TO include
~ Crhans carried swords or machetes. Yet
- does not seem TO have been single
I'D inflicted with one Of these Thirdly. all
49,. infantry carried bayonets. but it is believed
-. moi a hurt made with one Of these was
sr.ssed in any hospital American or Spanish
Thsss three arms were carried by the thousand
,,.v cost a great deal of money; with the am
,unit,on Of the revolver they involved the
,ransnortation Of tens Of thousands OF pounds
n, weight, and nowadays. especially In a tropi-
cal region the great object is to burden the SOL
d,er with as little baggage as possible. The
e,,ast,on asks Itself Why are they borne? Ger
,oi,lv the primary object or all three is to
wonnd and TO Kill. II in an entire campaign. IN
which several thousand men were injured more
or loss severely, the revolver. sword and bayo-
net did virtually no execution whatever. ought
.hev n continue part Of the military equip
ment In actual warfare?
As for the revolver there are not lacking Of
eva who think that on the whole. 1t is almost
of enCurnpTdHtc MS IL use. II 10
,rsu enough in a military post. and carries a
certain weight Of authority just as the sword
does Perhaps no man. except of high rank.
would want to go into the enemys country en-
t,relv unarmed He might be sent on some duty
az night or encounter a stray soldier or the
other side in the daytime. The emergency
would probably never arise. but the Keeling OF
security given by good big pistol would be
worth all the trouble Of carrying IT.
IGNORANCE FIGHTING.
In the fighting around Santiago officers were
conspjcuous leading their men in charges. But
os one Of them expressed II, II a commissioned
soldier had time to fire weapon. he was
neglecting his duty Of observing and command
ing his men. The charge in which Colonel
Roosevelt took part was exceptional in the way
IN which the men Of the different regiments
were mixed up and in the nearness of a few
Of the Spaniards. Anything like hand-to-hand
conflict is extremely unlikely in a battle in which
both sides use modern rifles. Their range Is
measured in miles From eight hundred yards
down their accuracy in the hands of skilled
marksmen is frightful. They can be aimed and
fired six or eight times minute The zone or
fire is so large that the victory Is virtually de-
c,ded before a revolver could be used with ac-
curacy.
In the charges at FL Caney and San Juan. the
fighting continued until the two sides were close
together although many Spaniards had man
aged to escape In the thrilling charge up the
Hill on the rifle pits and stone fort OF FL Caney
the enemy's fire. except from the hills beyond.
slackened when the final dash begun. The
execution Of the American weapons was 80
awful that the Spaniards feared to show even
Ga how
Sng party reached the trenches and the fort the
enemy surrendered. For some minutes 1t had
been evident that further resistance was use
less
An officer therefore found his revolver Of lit
tie service. even II the difficult task Of keeping
his men together did not require all his atten-
ton HI, functions are well defined ana we'll
understood. Military tacticians have figured the
need Of a certain part OF an army to direct the
rest. They more useful In this capacity
than they would be handling guns. They can
serve their cause best by doing the work espe-
cially assigned to them. Any mixing up or their
duties with those OF the privates would be likely
TO result in neglectng the more important set
Therefore. II is reasoned out. an officer can be
more effectively employed than in trying with
his own hand 10 kill the enemy.
Soma executions are to be noted. such as when
troops are stationary and an officer borrows a
rife for fancy shot These instances occurred
around Santiago but were. OF course mere d.
A POSSIBLE EMERGENCY.
Granting all this, some men in authority think
that the carrying Of the small arm is Justhed
for one reason. the possibility of having to use
II on YOUR own soldiers. One deserter, volun-
teer. was shot in this campaign. but the Ameri-
eho ,t,ad No ipDl
sh,rk danger. Indeed most Of the examples
were OF companies and regiments advancing
more rapidly than the colonies and generals ex-
pected them to do. Colonel Miles. the brigade
wanted TO charge on the FL Caney
stone fort with his brigade. but two or three
companies of negroes Of the 25th Infantry an
ticipated him.
Still. in studying the problems Of war. It must
be taken into consideration that men sometimes
refuse TO advance. or actually retreat. In spite
OF all commands In a crisis It may be neces-
sary to kill one or two to brace up the rest
uera 10 where the revolver would be invaluable.
On the Almirante Oquendo. just before she was
sunk outside OF Santiago Harbor, the sailors
were so terror-strcken that they refused TO stand
nv the guns Instead they hudded over on the
lee side and even tried TO jump overheard.
The officers shot some OF them. but the de-
was too complete. and the lives
were needessy sacrificed. In such final mo-
ment. however some weapon is necessary to en-
force authority.
Except the few troops OF the 3D. all the United
States cavalry in Cuba was Gismounted. 1t car.
rled no sabres or revolvers. The modern idea or
the use Of cavalry need not be considered mere
TIE carbine is not used when the trooper Is
mounted In pursuit the revolver would be -,
fcacious Old-fashoned cavalry charges would
be anachronistic against modern rlnes. 1here
few cavalrymen drawing their sabres or fring
their pistols In drills. OF course. the sword is
q great card However, being mounted the
trooper need not consider superhuous weight 20
much as his brother, the infantryman.
AS for swords. they have fewest defenders.
Some officers left theirs In the United states,
and carried machetes instead, to cut their way
4t=a..1 L. Some did moi even have