The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-06-07
NIorong.

A striking feature Of the current opera
tions around Morong is the part taken in
them by volunteers who are on the eve of be-
ing sent home for muster out. Gen. HALLS
force consisted OF the Second Oregon Rcgi-
ment, half of the Colorado and four CON-
panies OF the Second Wyoming, besides
eight companies Of the Fourth and four OF
the Ninth Infantry and four troops Of the
Fourth Cavalry, with some mountain guns.
Col. WHoLLEY had the First Washington
Regiment and the First North Dakota,
with one battalion OF the Twelfth Infantry
and section OF SCoTT's battery. The vol
untecrs outnumbered the regulars.
Thus the volunteers are seeing active SER
vice to the very end OF their term and fight
ing splendidly. Yet the Government has
decided wisely to trust to the regulars to
furnish the 5000 additional troops thai
Gen. OTIs will require after withdrawing
the last Of the volunteers from Luzon.
Over six months ago Gen. Otis put
the enlisted force needed by him at
10000. and repeated statements OF his
views from time to time have not al
tered the figures. He will have $4,000
men when the volunteers are gone; but it
seems to have been decided that II any vol
unteers should be called out, it would be-
better to raise 10, 900 than 5000, so as to
be reh iy for contingencies. To enlist, or
ganize, arm, equip, clothe, feed and train
10000 volunteers would call for a consid-
cradle sum- and there is the chance that
before they could be ready for field service,
that ia, about the end OF tho rainy season,
the war with the insurgents may be over.
During that season, too, the maximum
force for aggressive operations on large
scale may not be required. The enemy
will be punished when he attacks but the
condition Of the roads and the heat and un-
healthness will probably deter our COM
manders from attempting the final cam
paign now. The regulars now in Cuba and
Porto Rico are to a certain extent accli-
mattel in tropical service but IL it should
be deemed wise not to draw further on
them, the Nineteenth Infantry having Just
been ordered from Porto Rico to Camp
Meade for ultimate transfer to Manila,
there are still troops to spare at home.
The artillery undoubtedly should stay in
the forts. With the entire Second Artil-
lery, except \ and o batteries, in Cuba,
the entire Sixth at Honolulu and Manila,
or on the way thither, three batteries Of the
Third at Porto Rico and four batteries of
the Third, besides one light battery each OF
the First, Fourth and Fifth at Manila, it is
clear that We have not too many officers
and men at home for the care OF the costly
guns and their mechanism, to say nothing
of the drilling and especially of a sudden
emergency or war alarm.
But Of the infantry there are still left at
homo three regiments, the Seventh, we'll
scattered, with two companies in Alaska ::
tho Twenty-fourth. mostly on the Pacific
coast and in the Northwest, with l. in
Alaska; the Twenty-nfth In the Southwest.
These perhaps, or parts OF them, except the
Alaska companies. could be spared for Ma
Mia. or the cavalry We have four entire
regiments Mt home, and it is suggested
that one could be spared, leaving three to
look after the Indians, and that even these
three together with those in the Antilles,
should give up portion Of their strength
for Manila.
All this suggests close calculation and n
good deal Of pairing and scraping to get to-
gether 5000 regulars, However, Cuba is
so near that, in case OF extra needs at home,
it would be easy to hurry troops from it by
transport and then by rail to any required
point 1t ia plain that the Government will
do all il can To deal properly with tho
Philippines without raising another voun-
teer army, and that while ii may not count
on AGUTSALDos surrenderlng during the
rainy season, it believes that his career
will be short thereafter. Already some