The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1899-02-20
MORE REGULARS REQUIRED
OF THE SERVICE ARE
: NOW NEGLECTED.
Of the Measures Before Congress the
; Hawley Bill Is Urgently Recon-
mended by Those Most
Interested.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

paytment on pending army legislation
. and the needs of the service was issued
to-day with request for it's publica-
ton:
On. Monday the Senate will take up
what is now conceded to be the most i'm
,portant subject before Congress-the reor-
gahization Of the regular army. The Mill
'Iary Committee has submitted two bills
% tor Its consideration. One of these, the
= JIG use (knoWn as the HulD bill, is report
ed with but few amendments, by its
.: chairman, Senator Hawley. an expert in
matters relating to military organization.
II has been perfected by the committee,
including the Democratic members, in
= several particulars; the most noteworthy
:end valuable being, perhaps, the provision
- increasing the corps of cadets by 100 and
iRsuring an adequate source of supply for
.Nacaht second ueutenancieS. The meas
sure preserves the present organization
- ard. slightly strengthens the cavalry, aug
%: arm on scientific basis suited TO our con-
.ditions; gives to the infantry the much
needed three-battalion organization, and
. makes only SUCH additions to the stan as
ARE absolutely Indispensable. Under its
provisions entrance to any branch of the
army can be obtained only after the can
6idate for a commission has demonstrated
his htneS for IL to the satisfaction or
competent examining board There is a
clause empowering Lle President to ex
tend or contract the enlisted strength &C
- cordiug TO the necessities of the country,
adopted long since for all modern Euro
.peap military systems.
- The other bill is brought forward by
Senator 'Cockrel. Its first section directs
j. the DISARMAMENT OF the volunteer army
.- within a specified period after the peace
treaty shall have been ratified by Spain
SECTIONS and contain its principal pro-
. visions BY the former, authority is con-
" $eYred for continuing the regular army at
;, .trs war strength until July l, 1901, while
the third section authorizes the President
70 raise the military forces to the number
OF IS coo in Cuba, Porto Rico and the Is
lands of the Pacific, 10 be known respec.
:tiEely as the Army OF Cuba, the army or
::ROTto Rico and the army OF the Islands
Of the Pacific, to be composed or the IN
-, :habitants Of such Islands. No organlza-
:: ton is provided in the bill for this force.
Nor does II determine what relation IL
shall sustain toward the permanent mill
:. tary adjustment of the United States
and TO professional educational, or other
test is prescri ped for the persons who are
-;tC officer IL. The bill does not PROVIDE Tor
:arly additional general officers greatly
: Seeded IN the administration Of affairs In
..:Cuba Porto Rico and the Philippines. It
would leave the army as now organizes,
:. -bEigadier generals. which a-IoWs Dut one
general officer for each Of the mlIItary
DEPARTMENTS in the United States and one
: for. commanding general OF the army.
: =. Cuba row constitutes a military dlFi-
:: sion commanded by major general, and
moreover, comprises six military Qepart-c
:; rnents commanded by general officers OF
: volunteers. In Porto Rico there Is
necessity for at least one general officer
and in the Philippines for the general of
ficers required for an army corps, so that
d. If Senator Cockrell's bill should become
q law il would leave the army denclent
nor only in enlisted force, but without any
q general officers to administer the lmpor-
tant duties now deVolVlng upon the 10Y
eminent. Moreover. the Dill falls 70 MAKE
any provision for the increase IN the gen
eTal STAFF. which is urgently called Tor
by the necessities of the situation IN our
new possessions.
The criticism that has been passed upon
= the department has been the absence or
go off q
.this alleged lameness. Should his bill be
passed into law, the ad5utant, inspector;
o.. quarterrnaster, subsistence, medical and
pay departments would be left with only
. the bare skeleton Of the staff organiza-
tons that we have had for the admins
rerfng Of affairs in the United States
alone previous to the declaration of war
with Spain. The returns of the War De-
aartment show the strength of the reg
ular .arny. at this time. to be only a few
: less than go 900 enlisted men. OF these
hearty 1900 are in Cu9a and Ili,i like num-
:: her in or en- route to the Philippines; and
n Porto Rico 1886. leaving the total en-
listed men Of the. regular army in the
. -GTited States "a 900. Of these 5000
. held in readiness for dispatch to re-
= IrfOrce the army at Manila This would
:saye the total enlisted strength Of the
5000, or nearly 1000 less than is neces-
..'sary 10 furnish a single relief to man the
guns now on our SeacOast Notifications.
>. II would compel the abandonment of all
: our posts in the interior, would strip the
indian country Of troops and leave none
: to supply the requirement Of an exigent
: The Hawley bin fixes the permanent
Il: 'rniitary establishment at the minimum
~-ot 1000, a force that in proportion to
.. population and wealth of country is less
ihan fixed by any other act of Congress.
At, At this time there is not an officer on
= Sudy. with any college in the United
: States. Notwithstanding the law con-
templates that there shall be a hundred
detailed for the instruction of the young
country. dDS6nC6
= officers from their regiments by reason Of
: wounds and sickness, and Of the ne
:; the muster-out of volunteer regiments,
: compelled the department to Withdraw
. buttons. Neither has 1t been able to at
tach officers to our embassies and lega-
tons abroad There should be one at
every: European capital; there are now but
three in all, and those who were recalled
49, TO participate in the war cannot be re-
!: turned. The passage of the Hawley bill
. would; enable the department to meet this
sargent requirement and also to re-estab-
Nsh the schools at Fort Leavenworth and
i. which are now closed for the want of Of
fcers: The passage of the Cockrell bill
would discharge at once all the volunteer
quartermasters. medical officers and COM
..missaries. among whom are officers Of
the regular army holding volunteer
commissions and would leave the deDart-
adequate with the increased demands that
=. are being made from every quarter. The
only for the absolute needs Of the SER
:. VICE. on lines of efficiency and economy
- it was at the instance Of Mr.. Hull pre-
pared under the supervision of the adju-
liant general Of the army, of General
q Schwan. Colonel Carter. Majors Hest and
Johnston and Simpson. officers of long
service and high ability The passage Of
s0 the .IaWley bill would give promotion to
officers that have earned it by the hard
est kind of frontier and battle service.
:. Otherwise our gallant officers must go
without reward beyond a sense Of duty
well done.
e. The natives of Cuba. Porto Rico and
i. the Philippines do not understand our pur-
poses and ways of government sufficiently
to admit of their being made part Of our
o military establishment to the extent Of
Organizing them into. companies, battal-
ions and regiments at once. Our officers
70 Of greatest experience with them are of
this opinion. In time this could doubt 4,b
= By. degrees a company could be given to
regiment to be utilized as scouts d;,,s and nd
added. and in time, things working well,
\ regiments could be organized; but 1t viii