The evening times., 1898-11-23

] at the disposition OF any bureau requiring
IL. This office through the naval attaches
also did valuable duty in arranging the
purchase OF ships of war and war material
| abroad, just before the outbreak of the
! war.
Need for More sailors.
The bureau recommends that Congress
be requested TO authorize the enlistment
OF 20oo0 men for, general service and $500
apprentices. 1t is not possible TO make
close estimate Of the number of men
that will be necessary to man the fleet
during the coming year. but 1t is certain
that within very FEW years il will reac a
/ 2O,O0 Ii has always been the poicy OF
! the bureau TO stop enlistments when the
! cruising ships were full and there We e
/ fair number of men on the receiving
! ships TO make up waste and allow for
| prompt transfers without interfering with
the organization of the cruising ships.
1 For the last few years. however, the bu-
reau has had constant struggle to make
the established quota suffice for the needs
of the service. The crews have been cut
down to the point where the loss of
very few men would seriously cripple the
ship. The reserve on board receiving
ships has practically ceased 90 eX st 80
that now when d vacancy occurs il has
TO be filled by transfer from some other
cruising ship, thereby breaking up the
organization of the latter and being a
serious detriment to her efficiency.
Work of the Volunteers.
The officers who served under volun-
teer appointments during the war have
rendered valuable service to the navy
and TO the country 1t has at all times,
however, been necessary, with exc pit ons
IN rare cases, TO consider the liuitati ms
in experience in.each particular case, and
1 the volunteer officer has not been and
cannot be the equal in professional at
tainments of his brother of the regular
establishment The navy, as amply
shown by the experience of the war, can
only obtain officers trained in every
branch OF naval duty and equally wei
prepared for any service, by training
them in the service, beginning with the
Naval Academy and following the tan
ing up through the various grades.
The Naval Militia Of the various States
were mustered into the service about the
time Of the beginning of the war These
organizations were of great help to the
department in manning the coast signal
stations, which they did promptly and
efficiently, in manning the vessels of the
furnishing material for crews of the aux
illary vessels serving with the regular
fleet. For duty on board active ships,
however, they could not be considered as
more Than material With some individ-
ual exceptions, the personnel was found
10 lack the experience and training which
( would have been necessary for the per-
formance OF tie duties of the ratings held.
In the ordinary course most of these men
would have been enlisted as landsmen
and nothing higher. Men holding the
alnary blue-laCket ratings were, more
over, professional men, while they might
have been able TO camp on shore and
look out for themselves and their sur
roundings, found II a much different mat
ter on board a crowded ship, where only
thorough understanding of how TO make
the best OF everything would make their
position bearable. These men were lands
men, they were not seamen in either the
general or particular sense of the word.
All, as was expected, had TO be put
through q thorough course OF drill; even
the officers, with exceptions-principal
Naval Academy graduates-were found
to be unqualified TO act as instructors
The bureau does not wish to be under
stood as undertaking the zeal of the men,
bers OF these organizations. The reports
made by commanding officers show, al
most without exception, that all were
Jealous and attentive TO duty. but they
also show that officers and men lacked
all Of that training and sea experience
which would have made them really eff
Client. The bureau wishes further 10 en-
phasiZe that the work Of the Naval Mill
tia at the signal stations-duty for which
they were better adapted-was most sat
isfactorily performed and that they like
wise were useful in manning the harbor-
defense vessels of the auxiliary naval
forces, where they were within easy
reach Of the shore with all its facilities
and were not subject to the privations
which are matter Of course on board
a man-of-war when at sea.
a difficulty was experienced. too. In
mastering these men in. The Govern
ment has for some k-sars made a liberal
appropriation FOR thsfsupport OF the Ma
val Militia in addition TO the amounts al
lowed by the States. This expenditure
does not, however. carry with IL the right
to call upon the naval militia unless they
volunteer. They are in no way subject
to the orders Of the Department until
they have ceased TO be Naval Militia and
have been regularly mustered into the
service This same difficulty has been
experienced in peace times The period of
the annual drills has uniformly been a
period of veXatious rearrangements of
program for the ships assigned to this
duty.
Federal Naval Service Wanted.
The foregoing considerations lead the
bureau to recommend that future appro-
priations shall be made on an entirely
different basis The best plan of all, in
the opinion Of the bureau. would be TO
provide only for a national or Federal
naval reserve, to be entirely under the
control OF the department, and to be re-
cruited from the seafaring classes, each
member enrolled being subject to a limit
ed enlistment. which would compel him
to serve in war times under the pains
and penalties of desertion, and which
would require him 10 report once in each
year to the proper authority for instruc-
tion in such drills and other matters as
the department might prescribe, each
man so enrolled TO receive one months
pay in his rating yearly, provided he rem
ders such service.
The bureau has already brought TO the
attention of the department the need for
change in legislation in regard 10 promo
tions of officers on account of gallantry
in action or extraordinary heroism. The
law as IL now stands provides a reward
which can only be given at the expense of
other officers. The bureau urges that
Congress be requested TO enact legisla-
ton which will provide a suitable reward.
such as a medal of honor which could
be given 10 an officer without working TO
the detriment of others who. while thev
may have had no opportunity TO distin-
guish themselves, have nevertheless per-
formed faithful and valuable service and