The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-01-18
ARMY NOW UNDER AN ATTACK.
SON OF GEN. MCCLELLAN THINKS 1T
NEEDS REORGANIZATION.

He Looks Upon 1t as Little Better
Than n CIumsiIy Organized Police
Force, and Top Heavy With the
Gold Lace of staff Omcers Who
Have Seen No Service-.I. Hamilton
Lewis Protests Against Amy In
crease In the Strength of the Army
and Makes Characteristic speech.
Washington, Jan. 17.-This was District
OF Columbia day I'm the House and mme-
diatelg after the reading of the journal Mr..
Curtis of the District of Columbia COM
mittee claimed the day. and the House
proceeded to the consideration of district
business.
After the presentation of three bills OF
purely local Importance the House resum-
ed consideration of the army appropriation
bill, which was begun on Saturday.
In the course of general debate Mr..
Griffith, rep. of Iowa. defended the policy
of retiring army officers on three-quar-
ters pay.
The discussion of the bill brought forth
an attack on the army by Mr.. Mcclellan,
dem, of New York. son of Gen. George
b. Mcclellan. The army to-day. he de-
clared. was little better than a clumsily or
ganized police force, top-heavy, with the
gold lace of staff officers, many of whom
had seen no more active service than falls
to the lot of a member of the police force
The army should, he declared. be entirely
reorganized. He said this in no spirit of
jingoism but for the purpose of calling the
attention of the country to the fact that
we were paying a large price for a very
inefficient army, utterly unprepared for
war. while a very small additional ex-
penditure with proper reorganization would
work wonders.
MIR. Mcclellan went into a detailed dis
cusson of the various branches of the
subject. Our infantry organization, he said,
would have been considered excellent i'm
the Seventeenth century. He criticized the
organization of the cavalry, and the
mounts purchased for the use of the caval-
ry.
Mr.. Lewis, Dem, of Washington, made
a vigorous speech against an increase of
the army. He credted something of an In
novation by taking his position In the area
in front of the speakers rostrum and
speaking to the House face to face as to
congregation. He charged that the trusts
were In control of the country, and con-
stituted the mailed hand of the power be-
hind the decree of the courts. If the army
were increased, the people would, he said.
be justified in asking whether IL was not
to be used to barricade the courts and
break down everything. that meant the
freedom of the government He differed. he
said, from the leader-Mr. Bryan-whose
cause he had followed to the pit. He was
not willing to subscribe to the idea that
free silver was the single end to be fought
for. There was necessity, he said, for
return to the true Democracy which had
for its end the freedom of the individual
as an individual Mr. Lewis quoted a tele-
gram which, he said, Senator Hanna had
received from Frankfort, Germany, signed
by a. Seligman. as follows: II congratu-
late you on your election 1t Is most sat
isfactory to me-"
That message he said, came from the
man who helped to put a mortgage on this
government of $20000,00O Its insoence,
he said had no parallel in history save
In the message sent by Pontius PLATE to
the executoner OF Jesus Christ congratu-
lating him that his work was well done
Mr.. Grosvenor interrupted to ask IL Mr.
Lewis was aware of the fact that Mr..
Seligman was an American citizen.
II am responded Mr.. Lewis. HE Is
an unpatriotic citizen" applause on the
Democratic side)
Mr.. Grosvenor recalled the fact that Mr.
Seligman, with the credit of his house.
rendered Invaluable aid 10 the Union cause
during the war.
To this Mr.. Lewis replied with the state
ment that MIR. Seligman had removed his
residence from this country at a time
when he feared the income tax law would
compel him to pay his share to the sup
port of the government.
HE Is the last man. said he, "whom
should take pride in calling an Ameri-
cam"
Mr. Hull, Rep, of Iowa, chairman of the
committee on military affairs, expressed
concurrence I'm the views of Mr.. Mcclellan
to the extent that he believed that the army
should be reorganized. the present or
ganiZation was obsolete. The discussion
OF the needs of the army was continued ty
Messrs. Wheeler. Dem, of Alabama, Mr..
Cox, Dem, of Tennessee, and others.
At the conclusion of the debate the COM
mittee rose and the House, at 500 o'clock,
adjourned.