Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1900-12-06
NAVAL MILITIA REPORT.
Lieutenant-commander w. q. 81.
Switzerland, in Charge of the
Naval Militia Reports.
TWEHrY-sTATEs HAVE ORGANIZATIONS.
The Practice Cruises of the Past
Year Have Developed n Deal OF
Energy, Ability and Zeal AMONG
Officers and Men-The Need OF q
Regular Naval Reserve.

Washington. Dec. 1.-Lieutenant-
| Commander ". III. III. Switzerland.
| the officer in charge of the naval mill
tia, has made a special report to the
navy department upon the opera
tions of that organization during the
past year. Twenty states are shown
| to have an organized naval militia,
comprising in all 567 officers and s.
500 petty officers and enlisted men.
The naval appropriation act allotted
the sum of 100000 for the militia, OF
which $57 1000 had been distributed
among the 20 state organizations on
January last.
Practice Vessels.
The navy department assigned two
vessels for the practice cruises of h
militia, the Prairie, on the Atlantic
coast, and the Michigan on the great
lakes. Through lack of facilities 3
vessel on the Pacific seaboard was not
assigned. ~Contingents from LOUISE
ana, Georgia, Pennsylvania, New Jes-
sey, Connecticut, Rhode Island and
Maine took short cruises of about q
weeks duration on the Prairie, and
the organizations of Ohio, Michigan
and Illinois made practice trips on the
lakes aboard the Michigan. These
cruises developed a deal of energy,
ability and zeal among the officers
and a like efficiency. together with a
high state of discipline among the en-.
listed men.
Need of a Naval Reserve.
Lieutenant : Commander Souther-
land sets forth an array of facts to
make obvious the absolute necessity
of a national naval reserve, in addi-
ton to the present militia ~organiza-
tions, calling particular attention to
the fact that this proposed innovation
is not suggested with any view what
ever of displacing the present naval
militia. The general government of
the United States, says Commander
Switzerland, has no direct control
whatever over these naval militia bod
les. They are state organizations,
pure and simple, organized under
state laws, and thus it is that in the
event of war, no member is under any
obligation to answer a call of the
president for any naval service.
Possibility Pointed Ont.
Then, too, it is pointed out hat our
opponent in a possible war of the fu-
ture, may be a ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS,
first-rate naval power, in striking con-
trast to our adversary of 1898, and
that, therefore, it behooves the navy
department to create some sort of re-
serve force, organized under the pro-
visions OF federal law, and operating
under the direct control of the navy
department, ready at a moments no.
tice to reinforce the regular fighting
strength of the navy.
Status of Naval Reserve OHicers.
The status of the naval reserve off,
Ger would be well defined. He would
hold a commission in the navy, signed
by the president, and his name would
be borne on the naval register. The
primary, in fact, the sole object of b
first naval reserve, the report says,
would be the manning of the fleets:
the overflow which would form the
second reserves could be utilized by
the navy department on many kinds
of special duty.