The Farmington times. [volume] (Farmington, Mo.) 1874-1902, 1900-09-06

question Of the army csnteen. Inc
letter, which was made public yester.
day. Is as follows;
War Department,
AdjutAnt Generals oEiee,
Washington, d. C.. Aug. Is, 1900.
Hon. William J. Sewali. Military Com
mittee, L. =. Senate:
Dear Senator-Rc Replying to your
several inquiries concerning the post
exchange, or army canteen," ! have
the honor To inform you.
First That the sale of all splrituouA
liquors by the cantecn 10 and has al
ways been absolutely prohibited.
Sccond-Only beer aud light wines
are sold 10 either officers or men. and
these only when the commanding Of
fccr ia satisfied that giving TO the
troops the opportunity of obtaining
such beverage within the post limits
viii prevent them from rrsorting for
strong intoxicants 20 places without
such limits, and tends to promote
Temperance and discipline among
them.
Third-The cantecn was established
and has been maintained In the in.
terCsts of temperance and betterment
of discipline, with most satisfactory
results, This IL shown in fewer trials
by courts martial. In the decreased
number Of descrtions, and In the inn
proved health Of the men.
Fourth-Thr exchange IL coop
crntiye store where supplies are sold
ut cost, or a. nearly 40 as posaiblc,
for the benefit Of officers and men OF
the army. The Cantecn H. depart
mcnt Of the exchange constituting an
enlisted mems club Rooms In or near
the soldiers quarters nre set apart
for this special purpose, furnished
with reading matter, billiard tables
and other gamcs, but where every
form Of gambling is absolutely forbid
den. II is where the men write their
letters home, and read the ncwspa.
pcrs and magazines. The government
las no financial interest Whatever IN
either the exchange or cantccn. the
funds being supplied 10y the soldiers
themselves.
Almost every company commander
has reported in favor Of the exchange
and canrtcn rs an effective temper.
nncc measure. One thousand aud nine.
teen commissioned officers have made
special reports to this effect. II mny
be proper for me To say that in the
beginning ] opposed the cantccn, but
WAS brought to its support by the
overwhelming evidence OF It's bcnef.
iccnt results upon the morale. health
and contcntment OF the service.
A. set forth in the report of Assist.
ant Surgeon MunSon. u. s. A.. who,
under instructions of the war depart.
ment, made careful investigation into
the effect of the canteen upon the
health OF enlisted neh, the result
more than met the expectations of
those most interested In the promo
tion OF temperance in the military
service. lie further finds that the per.
crutagr of dcscrtions has been con.
tinually reduced since the iutroduc.
tion OF the clntecn. Prior to its IN.
PRODUCTION dcscrtions averaged from
10 to II per cent. annually. Since its
establishment these have decreased rs
follows;
First year. TO ~: the next year TO
81, the next 81. then 6.3, the next 10
SO, then 30; the next 10 80, and final.
~ to 90.
Further, the number OF trials and
gnuytasfaua g., Ivst,,Guaua.a T.
fenses originating therefrom for the
Eix years preceding the canteen was
J72.j. These decreased during the fol.
lowing siX years of it's establishment
10 1905. Further, that for the seven
years preceding the establishment OF
the cantecn, the average number Of
men vino deposited their savings with
the government was 7.273. For the
seven years following It's introduction
the average has increased to s,3s2.
II has been stated IN the public
press that "the receipts Of the ex.
change are nearly all for drink" To
meet this statement have TO inform
you that the official reports of the
department show that the receipts
from sales Of beer and light wines are
and have been less than one-third of
gross receipts, being, In 1895, five-sev.
enteenths, and In 1899, six-seven.
teenihs
II there is any further information
that you desire from the records on
this subject the department will be
osply too glad 10 furnish Il. You must
admit that the anxiety OF temperance
people outside the service about the
army IL unwarranted. As compared
with those existing twenty or thirty
years ago-aE we knew IL then-or
with any community at the present
time anywhere In civil life, the army
IL model temperance Eocieiy--a
practical one, where reasonable nbsii.
ncnce is the ruie, and where excesses
are the exceptions; a society whoSe
preecpts no less than its example
could be followed by all people In
safety and sobriety.
With great respect, sincerely yours,