The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1901-11-12
MILES AS A SOLDIER.

fnHnitlS Ol MS tpph pll lf sNl'ri''Hta
American War" We are bound to say
that. as the charges made by the eN'
Secretary have evoked no denials IRE n |
the Lieutenant General or his Fri. cds !
they are worthy of considerat nv M |
those who would form a just. estimate |
Of the commanding officer II the IJne,cs |
States Army.
Commenting on t % "plans Of earn.
paiGn' the auth ,r recounts what he
calls General flies Impossible and
80 plan to move an army
from H.devi.as westward TO SANTA
cara building roads with the aid oi
pr >soners, and adds:
a ms prop. siton, however, was ohiS
ore of numerous others which were not
approved. Many of the generals propos-
ais were obviously impracticable, and not
infrequently absolutely Impossible lie
recommended the shipment of 1900 men
to Key West. where all drinking water
would have to be brought in tank-ships;
with our hands fun at Santiago, and not
enough troops there, he proposed To sehu
"a battery of artillery and a regiment OF
infantry" as an expedition 10 the iSIe
of Pines" then of no military or strate-
gic Importance. He insisted on sending
10 Cuba, for use with infantry operating
in "a tropical jungle anu oNtI " N''''''
impa ssable to vehicles. his portable
shields. each weighing 1000 pounds, and
each occupying as much room on
transport as a hospital ambulance; ne
recommended the abandonment of San
tiago after Cervera's fleet had been de-
stroyed, thereby lifting the siege of the
city and large garrison, without reapinS
the fruits of victory then practically In
our hands; he wanted 500 marines OF the
IL. y-..l. h..
pressed the opinion that proposed force
of 16.452 men, mostly volunteers, was
10000 more than will be required for
General Merritts Philippine expedition;
| and while In Porto Rico he cabled to the
War Department a recommendation That
the manufacture of Springfield rifles,
ii-calibrc ammunition, all white canvas
1 tentage. and black leather equipments OF
every description be discontinued. as they
are obsolete and should not he part of
the army equipment" In answer to this
last communication the following dis
patch was sent:
| WAR Department. Aug. 3, 1898.
| General Miles, Porto Rico: AS you
ought to know, the last .ij-calibre
| Springfield rifle was manufactured IN
| niuety-thrce. SmokclcSs-powder car
tridgus are now being manufactured, and
will be forwarded. | suggest that you
get along with what the government has
on hand. r. A. ALGER,
Secretary of War"
During the week in which war was
declared he recommended that the man
ufacture of Krug-Jorgcnscu rifles "be
reduced to the minimum if not entirely
lsispcndcd," advising at the same timo
the substitution of another small arm
twice previously rejected by the military
experts who had seloctod the adopted
type of gun then in the hands OF our reg
ular army. OF the generals numerous
ldisapprovcd recommendations none dem
onstrated his lack of judgment more
than this. To suddenly change the type
of the magazine rifle meant also II
change In the machinery and methods OF
) the government armory, where these
/ arms are made. Even If his recommend
, ations in this respect enjoyed the adj
, vantage of some reason excuse, II
crisis Ike the outbreak of n war Is not
the time to change the type of arms or
the machinery for their manufacture.
Moreover. the law making appropria-
tons for the manufacture of arms at the
Springfield armory always designates the
e model of the gun to be fabricated. fact
(, which the president of the board of ord
I nance and fertilization, and the Officer
2 bearing the highest rank in the army
T certainly should have known.
General Miles is what we get in tn
Army by the system of seniority promo
tion-a system which Is rather a goo,
thing to keep the peace between Jealous
officers but an amazingly bad thing fO
the efficiency of an army. However
in time of war, seniority promotion doe
! not always determine commanders
and that is the saving of the country
our great civil war heroes We're jumped
to high commands as soon as thei
merit became known-Grant from
colonel and brigadier- general and Sher!
dan from a major and quartermaster
e both outranling men still in active ser
5 vice, who were from two To four grade
labuNc them when they entered tn
army. In the Spanish American Wa
the promotion of Wood, who was
lcdptuin and surgeon in the early par
70 of 1895 and is now, perhaps, the hes
- administrative officer among the major
generals, was the most conspicuous il
lustration of the merit rule afforded
In the Navy Captain Sampson wa
jumped over the heads of all flag OH
GERS, and II this did not prove to be Tn
= wiscst possible choice, 1t At least prov
. ed that the seniority rule is not so rlgi
- as To keep the President, in time q
h war, from a free choice OF naval com
n manders.