The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-08-06
SHELVING ARMY OFFICERS
Generals Out of the Service Could
Serve Four Years Longer.

LOEan's Act of June 30. 1882. for
Compulsory Retirement said 90
Have Been Aimed Mt ". r. Sher-
mnn-Onee Offended the senator.
Army men contend that the age OF
SiNty-four years. az which all are com
PEELED to retire from active service on
three-fourths pay by operation Of law. is
far too soon for average officers, and that
tn. Law is detrimental TO TO the public in
tercsts- n recent circumstance serves to
give emphasis TO their views. and at the
same tine suggests a modification OF the
present law.
This was the retention by Judge Advo-
cate General Davis Of General John w.
Clous. retired. as counsel for the Govern
ment against OberIin NJ Carter. Benja-
min d. Greene. Joan p. Clyn0r, William
II. Gaynor. and Edward II. Gaynor. who
have been indicted for conspiracy 20 de
fraud the United States out Of some s.
500 go. Carter. formerly a captain Of en-
gineeCs. is in the Leavenw0rth peniten-
tiary for his part n the alleged COnspir-
acy. Greene and the GayHors are dog
sedly fighting 20 prevent being taken TO
Georgia for trial
Under his retainer. it viii be part OF
General Clous' business to fight Carter's
release and 10 prosecute the Greene-Gay-
nor case TO a conclusion. 1t Is generally
admitted that ne is mentally and physical
y well equipped for the work required Of
him, although the accused parties viii be
defended with an the ability and energy
that money can command. General Clous
Of
case from the beginning. which gives him
special advantages for its future conduct
When Judge Advocate General IIeber
retired on account OF age on June 4 Col
onel Barr vas appointed TO the vacancy,
and was Immediately retired at his own
request. although his date for retirement
was November Is next In turn Colonel
Clous was then appointed 20 the Barr va
Cancy, and he, TOO. al once retired about
three weeks ahead or his retiring date.
All this was in pursuance OF n general
agreement TO enable both CIoUs and Barr
20 retire as bTIgaciers. ThereupOn Col.
George ,. Davis was appointed Judge Ad-
vocate General The new Judge Advocate
General az once proceeded 10 retain the
retiring Judge Advocate General TO carry
on this old case
Those who know General CIous uuhesi-
tatiugiy affirm that he IS every whit as
competent for any official duty as ne was
prior 80 retirement, and will probably
continue 20 D. for several years 20 come.
They say that he is still full man
mentally and physically. as vigorous AMI
alert as any officer on the active list
General Davis doubtless holds him equal
to the task or he surely would not have
retained hin. in short at the age OF
siNty-fCur General CI0us' CAPACITY as
military lawyer rs at ITS very zenith.
And the same may be trIthfuIy said OF
nine out OF every ten ofiCEv rs retired com
10 hEH
SChoneid wrote one or the most IuTL0us
and interesting biographies eNtauJ after
Eis retirement IN 1898. and Il seventy he
Is still a physically vigorous and mentally
capable man
Major General Wesley Merritt retired
last year az siNtv-fOUr- With the cNcep-
ton Of his grey hair and experience AIcr-
ritt is not much less a boy and far
more fit TO exercise command tHau wher
he fought under Sheridan. thirty=siX years
ago
General Richard @. Drum. who retired
eleven years ago, Is apparently as capd-
BILE at Seventy-fve OF directing the Ad-
jutant Generals department as ne was in
1879. when the iueNOrabIe law operated
70 let hin. out Mentally and physically
vigorous, he still keeps step with the
times.
Major General William r. Shaftcr TO
tired two years go I'm the permanent es-
adjustment BY favor Of his old Chum.
AdJutaut General Corbin. he was kept IT,
active service as a volunteer ma jor gen
eral in command Of an important military
department until June 80 last. He retired
reluctantly, and reluctantly Yielded the
volunteer commission which Kept him in
the swim He still desired active service
and deemed himself competent To COM
mand. as many others did
n speaking Of the retiring Of army Off
Grrs prominent War Department official
said:
Here in Washington. where the retired
army officers are seen in greatest num-
bSrs. Of all ranks and degrees Of decay
from advancing years. the observer re
Quires no further evidence than his eyes
afford that nine out Of every ten are re-
tired before their powers are exhausted
or their usefulness has ceased
The best interests Of the service re
Quire that in some manner the mOsshaCks
be sidetracked and the system of com
pulsory retirement is doubtless the fair
est method Of accomplishing this desira-
bic end. But II Is generally agreed that
the retiring age should be. say sixty
eight years Instead OF sixty-fOur. as best
subscribing both the interests of the Gov
eminent and the army
The theory Of the retirement law is
that at SiNty-fOUr an officer has largely
If not wholly lost his capacity for use
fulness. Very few military OF civilian
longer believe this The real
object Of the law is 10 expedite promo
The law as It stands IS in high favor
with the young sUbdlterCs, and for very
obvious reasons. Its beauties and utiii-
ties grow more and more doubtful. how
ever. as they near the sINty-t0ur-year
When that fell day arrives
they are TO man decidedly "1glu It,
for reasons equally obvious
There is an old story that the original
act Of June 30, lSS2, for compulsory re-
tirement was conceived and engineered
through Congress by the late senator
John a Logan 1t was a shaft aimed at
William sherman. then General OF the
Army. by the implacable Logan. for dis
placing him from the command OF the
Army Of the Tennessee before Atlanta IN
1854. Anyhow. Sherman was sheIved by
this little piece of legislative lcSerdcmain
In 1884. couf.ssCdly long before he desired
TO be. whether the story OF the object of
the law and Logan connection Herewith