Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1901-12-07

"A
for the general staff and supply Depart
ments, they should be filed by detalls
from the line, the men so detailed return
ing after awhile to their line duties. ~ s
very undesirable TO have the senior grades
Of the army composed Of men who nave
come to fill the positions by the mere TACT
Of seniority. A system should be ADOPTED
by which there shall be an elimination
grade by grade Of those who seem unht
TO render the best service in the, next
grade. Justice TO the veterans Of the
civil war who are still in the army would
seem TO require that IN the matter of re-
tlrements they be given by law the same
privileges accorded to their comrades In
the navy"
Another recommendation which the pres
ident makes in connection with the army
is for the reduction OF the paper work
of the service, known to the public as red
tape" OF this he says:
Every effort should be made 10 bring
the army to a constantly increasing state
Of efficiency; When on actual service, no
work save that directly In the line Of such
service should be required, The paper
work in the army, as In the navy, should
be greatly reduced. What is needed Is
proved power of command and capacity
to work well in the field. Constant care
is necessary to prevent dry rot IN the
transportation and commissary Depart
ments."
He also urges the enactment OF legls-
idtion in connection with the militia and
]
they may be better fitted for active serY-
ice In time Of war, and says:
our militia law Is obsolete and worth
/ less. The organization and armament oil
1 the national guard Of the several states,
which are treated as militia in the ap-
preparations by the congress, should be
made identical with those provided for
/ the regular forces. The obligations and
! duties of the guard in time of war should
/ be carefully defined and a System estab-
/ lished by law under which the method OF
1 procedure of raising volunteer forces
should be prescribed in advance. 1t is ut
/ terly impossible in the excitement anc
haste of impending war to do this salts.
factorily If the arrangements have moi
/ been made long beforehand. Provision
should be made for utilizing in the first
T volunteer organizations called out the
/ training Of those citizens who have al.
ready had experience under arms, anC
especially for the selection in advance ol
/ the officers Of any force which may bt
raised, for careful selection Of tine kline
necessary is impossible after the outbreal
/ of war
He praises the veterans Of the civil war
the war with Spain and those who hay'
rendered the nation valiant service in th'
Indian uprsings Of the west and in tht
| Philippines, and Counsels continued lib
erality in the nations dealing with them
The Civil Service.
He recommends the enactment Of egis
Of the merit system many classes Of EN-
ployes not now governed by It, His rec
ommendaton for this is as follows:
II recommend the passage Of a Law
which will extend the classified service t
| the District of Columbia or will at leas
enable the president thus to extend It
In my judgment all laws providing 70
the temporary employment OF clerk
should hereafter contain provision tina
they be selected under the civil servic
law"
He also wishes the merit system to OBJ
tain in the government service in tn
colonies, and says:
Not an Office should be filled in tn
Philippines or Porto Rico with any regart
to the mans partisan affiliations or sery
ices, with any regard to the political, so
cial or personal influence which he ma
have at his command. In short hee
should be paid to absolutely nothing say
tho mans own character and capacit
and the needs Of the service.
THE administration Of these island
should be as wholly free from the sus
picion Of partisan politics as the admin
istration of the army and navy. All tha
we ask from the public servant in tn
Philippines or Porto Rico is that he re
fleet honor on his country by the way Il
which he makes that country'S rule
benefit to the peoples who have come un
der IT, This is all that we should ask
and we cannot afford to be content wit
less"
other RecOmme II dations.
Among other recommendations which tn
president makes are those asking for leg
islatlOn that willimprove the consular serV
ice along lines outlined in bills Introduce
at previous sessions, and he says that
TT is true that the service is now in tn
main efficient, but a standard of eXCellenC
cannot be permanently maintained unit
the principles set forth in the bills here
tofore submitted to the congress on thi
subject are enacted into law"
He believes the time has arrived whe
the Indian should cease TO be treated as
member of a tribe, but as an individua
and recommends breaking up the tribs
funds, putting a stop 10 the indiscrimlnat
permission to Indians TO lease their allot
ments and stopping the ration system. II
recommends also the establishment Of q
industrial educational system, and an er
deaVOr to encourage the Indians to becom
cattle raisers rather than agnCulturist
where their lands are unsuited TO the latter
He recommends liberal appropriations fc
the Louisiana Purchase exposition and q
appropriation covering expenses inCurre
by the Charleston exposition in remOyin
government exhibits from the Buffalo e.
position to that at Charleston
Another of his recommendations is fc
a permanent census bureau, as II would II
sure better, cheaper and more sausfactor
work in the interest Of business, statistic
economic and social science.
The POstal service.
He calls attention to the growth OF tn
postal system and TO the fact that the ar
nual deficit in this department OF the GOV
ernment service has been reduced to th
small sum of S3, 92S 727. This, he says, coul
further be increased and possibly surpll
shown but for the fact that many publ
cations are now securing the pound rat
as second-class mail matter which are nc
entitled to the same under the law. {
this he says:
Tho full measure OF postal progre;
which might be realized has long bee
hampered and obstructed by the heav
burden imposed on the goyernmer
through the intrenched and wsll-undel
stood abuses which have grown IN COZ
nection with second-class mail matte
The extent Of this burden appears when
, is stated that, while the second-class ma
ter makes nearly three-hfths Of the wegi
of all the mail, 1t paid for the last fsci
year only H294,445 of the aggregate post
revenue of Slll.6Sl, 1913. II the pound raj
of postage, which produces the large los
thus entailed and which was fixed by II
congress with the purpose OF encoursgir
the dissemination of public information
were limited to the legitimate newspaper
and periodicals actually contemplated B
the law, no just exception could be tskel
! That expense would be the recognized an
accepted cost Of liberal public policy d.
liberately adopted for a tustiiable en-
But much of the matter which enjoys n
privileged rate 10 wholly outside OF Il
, Intent of the law and has secured admit
sion only through an evasion OF its r.
quiremeuts or through lax construction
The proportion OF such wrongly include
matter is estimated by postal experts
be one-half of the whole volume Of seconC
class mail. II It be only one-third or ont
ouarter the magnitude OF the burden
apparent. The post office department h5
now undertaken to remove the abuses s
far as possible by a strcter applicatio
,, of the law, and it should be sustained
, its effort"
, The Chinese Dificuities.
He calls attention TO the satisfactor
/ settlement of the Chinese difficulties (
last year, and this nations part in n
= settlement and says provisions nay
I been made for insuring the future safet
of the foreign representatives. or II
: promises made by China he says
- "The Chinese government has agreed
: participate financially in the work OF be
, terlng the water approaches TO Shansh
and to Tientsin the centers of foreig
trade in central and northern China, an
an international conservancy board,
| which the Chinese government is largeI
represented, has been provided for Il
Improvement of the Shanghai river an
the control of Its navigation. In the san
= line of commercial advantages revisfo
, Of Of the present tariff on Imports has bee
assented to for the purpose OF substitu
ing specific for ad valorem duties, and q
: expert has been sent abroad on the pa
. Of the United States TO assist In tn
work. A list Of articles TO remain free
! duty, including flour. cereals and ric
) gold and silver coin and bullion has ais
been agreed upon in the settlement"
Nations In Mourning.
1.-THE death OF Queen Victoria caused th
people OF the United States deep an
heartfelt sorrow, to which the sovernmer
gave full expression When President Nj
, Kinley died, our nation in turn receive
from every quarter OF the British empir