Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1901-04-26
Adv ncinq tho Volunteers.


volunteer officers to the new places in
the commissioned ranks occasioned by
the army bill. A strong plea on behalf
of these volunteers is made by General
Charles King. the veteran fighter and
veteran writer of the regular army. He
is Il West Pointer but his warm regard
for the volunteer, as he has seen him
in the Philippines and at home. is
shown in an interesting article in the
Saturday Evening Post. Out Of all the
thousands of candidates for the few
hundred positions General King
thinks that the authorities at Wash
ington should give the preference to
the volunteer officers who have seen
service and proved their worth. even il
they are not so smart in textbook
knowledge as some who may apply.
There is every indication that Presi
dent Mckinley intends to give the vol
unteer officers now in service this pref
erence. Hundreds of them have al
ready been ordered before the examin-
ing boards, and we have as yet heard
no complaint that the examinations
dent or secretary of war less friendly
to the volunteers might readily exclude
an overwhelming majority of them.
and that without the appearance of
unfairness. by setting up a technical
standard in the examinations that
it would be impossible for them to
reach. AS General King says. there
has been little time for text books
these last two years in the Philippines.
and even the best educated of our vol
unteer soldiers will find themselves
rusty. But the war department shows
an inclination to make things as easy
as possible for these young applicants.
relying mostly on the records which
they have made in the broad school of
experience.
General King has used the occasion
to pay some high compliments to the
volunteer soldiers who came from the
West. He notes that the call for VOL
unteers was responded to by high
grade of young men-higher than the
average of the national guard regi-
ments which went as entities from the
Eastern states. Il am reminded" he
says. ''of a day in camp at San Fran
cisco before we got away to Manila
The stiff gale blowing in from the
Pacific snapped the ridge of the fly in
front of brigade headquarters, and an
cnterprisinG quartermaster-a West
Pointer and a cavalryman-calledf for a
and six men of n brand new volunteer
regiment from the Pacific coast came
on the run. In ten minutes the pole
was spliced and the squad was march
ing back to camp. Then entered the
quartermaSter. lifting his cap and
wiping his brow. Warm work. l.
asked. Yes, sir. but just look at that
squad. That man in the lead on the
right put me up at his club last time
l was in Portland. The fellow on his
left dropped a position at six thousand
year to soldier for thirteen month.
and the corporal can sign his check for
more cash than all the colonies and
generals in the camp
''Of course Colonel Roosevelt's story
beats this-his going yachting with a
New York rabob and next finding him
peeling potatoes for his squad of rough
riders at San Antonio. 1t was all in
the game. But it is wonderful to look
back on the composition of the old
Eighth corps and to think of the men
who sweltcred under the Luzon suns
in blue flannel and khaki. their faces
blistered. their shoulders black and
blue from the vicious kicks of the
Springfield under the influence of the
smokeless cartridge. There was more
education under those SLOUGH hats than
under the laced chapcauX of many q
European war;
And, speaking of education. General
Kings says that nearly every Western
regiment had university company"
composed of students, who sent above
the crash Of battles the yell Of rival
colleges. Moreover, there were profess
sional men of all sorts. When the gen
eral had his command at Honolulu
and malarial fever broke out, he was
at his wits ends to get proper medical
attendance. Then the doctors com
menced to step out of the ranks until
he had enough and plenty. He tells.
too. Of hearing a mighty technical dis
cussion Of astronomy by some pickets
on guard one night outside of Manila
a discussion which resulted in the