The age-herald., 1901-12-04

value. are first, the substitution of four year details from the line for permanent appointments in the so-ealled stan diyis- ions; second. the establishment Of corps Of artillery with chief at the head; third the establishment of maximum and minimum limit for the army. It ] would be difficult to, overestimate the I'm provement in the efficiency of our army which these three reforms are making. and have In part already effected.
 The recognition provided for by the act has been substantially accomplished. The improved conditions in the Philippines have enabled the War Department ma terially to reduce the military charge upon our revenue and to arrange the number of soldiers so as to bring this number much nearer to the minimum than to the maximum limit established by law. There is, however. need of sup plimentary legislation. Thorough mili- tary education must be provided and in addition to the regulars the advantages of this education should be given to the officers of the National Guard and others in civil life who desire inteiigentiy ta fif
 themselves for possible military duty.
 The officers should be given the chance
 to perfect themselves by study in the
 higher branches of tiis art. At West
 Point the education should be of the kind
 most apt to turn out men who are good in actual field service; too much stress
 should not be laid on mathematics, nor should proficiency therein be held to es- tablsh the right of entry to a corps d elite. The typical American officer Of the best kind need not be a good mathe-
 matician; but he must be able to mas- ter himself. to control others. and to show boldness and fertility Of resource in every emergency.
 Action should be taken in reference Go the militia and to the raising of volun- teer forces. Our militia law is obsolete and worthless. The organization and ar mament of the National Guard of the several states. which are treated as mlli- tia in the appropriations by the Congress,
 should be made identical with those pro-
 vided for the regular forces The obli-
 gations and duties of the guard in time
 Of war should be carefully defined, and
 a system established by law under which
 the method of procedure of raising vol unteer forces should be prescribed in ad- vance It is utterly impossible in the ex- citement and haste of impending war
 to do this satisfactorily if the arrange
 ments have not been made long before
 hand. Provision should be made for
 utilizing in the first voluteer organiza-
 tions called out the training Of those cit- izens who have already had experience under arms, and especially for the selec-
 ticn in advance of the officers of any
 force which may be raised; for careful
 selection of the kind necessary is impos-
 sible after the outbreak of war.
 That the army is not at all a mere in-
 strument of destruction has been shown
 during the last three years. In the Phil
 ippines, Cuba and Porto Rico 1t has
 proved itself a great constructive force.
 a most potent implement for the upbuild-
 ing of a peaceful civilization.
 No other citizens deserve so well Of
 the Republic as the veterans. the survi-
 vors of those who saved the Union. They
 did the one deed which if left undone l 1,,lI kox, flaf oil aic In. otfr
 history went for nothing. But for this
 steadfast prowess in the greatest crisis
 of our history. all our annals would be
 meaningless, and our great experiment
 In popular freedom and self-government
 a gloomy failure. Moreover. they not
 only left us a united nation, but they left
 us also as heritage the memory of the
 mighty deeds by which the nation was
 kept united. We are now indeed one
 nation, one in fact as well as in name;
 we are united in our devotion to the
 flag which is the symbol of national
 greatness and unity; and the very com
 pleteness of our Union enables us all.
 in every part of the country, to glory Tn
 the vaior shown alike by the sons of the
 North and the sons of the outh in the
 times that tried mems souls.
 The men who in the last three years have done so well in the East and in the
 West Indies and on the mainland of l, Asia have shown that this remembrance . is not lost. In any serious crisis the , United States must rely for the great mass of its fighting men upon the volun- teer soldiery who do not make a perma- | nent profession of the military career; , and whenever such a crisis arises the
 deathless memories of the civil war will
 give to Americans the lift of lofty pur- , pose which comes to those whose fathers
 have stood vaently in the forefront of
 the battle.
 The Civil Service.
 The merit system of making appoint
 ments is in it's essence as democratic and American as the common school system
 itself. It simply means that in clerical
 and other positions where the duties are entire non-political, all applicants should
 have fair field and no favor, each stand ing on his merits as he Is able to show them by practical test. Written compet- tive examinations offer the only available means in many cases for applying this
 system. In other cases. as where labor CTS are employed, a system of registra- } tion undoubtedly can be widely extended ! There are, of course, places where the -written competitive examination cannot be applied, and others where 1t offers by , no means an ideal solution, but where under existing political conditions it is , though an imperfect means, yet the best ) means of getting satisfactory results. Wherever the conditions have permit ted the application of the merit system in its fullest and widest sense the gain
 to the government has been immense. The navy yards and postal service illus ) trate, probably better than any other } branches of the government, the great gain in economy efficiency and honesty. due to the enforcement of this principle } I recommend the passage of a law l which will extend the classified service to the District of Columbia, or will at
 least enable the President thus to ex- ' tend it. In my Judgment all laws provid- . ing for the temporary emplament of ) clerks should hereafter contain a provis- ion that they be selected under the Civil 3 Service Law. M It is important to have this system to . obtain at home, but 1t is even more impor- tant to have it applied rigidly in our in- t sular possessions. Not an office should l be filled in the Philippines or Porto Rico . with any regard to the mans partisan af-
 filiations or services, with any regard to ! the political social, or personal influencs Q which he may have at his command; in r short heed should be paid to absolutely 9 nothing save the mans own character l and capacity and the needs of the service The administrations of these slands should be as wholly free from the suspi- cion of partisan politics as the adminis- tration of the army and navy. All that we ask from the public servant in the
 Philippines or Porto Rico is that he re- fleet honor on his country by the way