Evening journal., 1902-12-02
THE MESSAGE
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mum allowed 10y inv. II Is very small for
| the size OF tho nation and most certainly
should be kept at the highest point Of efil.
| cheney. The senior officers are given scant
chance under ordinary conditions TO ex-
ercise commands commensurate with their
| rank under circumstances which would tit
| them TO do their duty IN time OF actual
| war, a system Of maneuvering our army
IN bodies of some little size has been be-
| gun and should be steadily continued.
| Wlthout such mancuvers IL is folly to eN-
pect that IN the event Of hostilities with
any serious foe even a small army corps
could be handled to advantage. Both our
officers and enlisted men are such that
we can take hearty pride in them. No
better material can be found. But the'
must be thoroughly trained, both as indi-
Nlduals and in the mass. The marksman-
ship OF the men must receive special at
tentlon In the circumstances Of modern
warfare the man must act far more on
his own individual responsibility than
ever before, and the high individual eff
cheney OF the unit IL Of the utmost i'm
portancc. Formerly this unit was the
regiment 1t Is now not the regiment. not
even the troop or company, It is the indi-
Vldual soldier. Every effort must be made
TO develop every worlkmanlike ard sol
dierly quality In both the officer and the
enlisted man.
I urgently call your attention to the
need Of passing a bill providing for gen
eral STAFF and for the Reorganization of
the supply departments on the lines Of the
Old proposed by the secretary Of war last
year When the young officers enter the
army from West Point. they probably
Sand above their compeers i'm any other
military service. Every effort should be
7 made by training, by rewnrd Of merit, by
scrutiny into their careers and capacity.
to keep them of the same high relative
excellence throughout their careers.
The measure providing for the reorgan-
pf m eft md for
curing the highest efficiency I'm the nation
Al guard, which has already passed tile
mousse, shouid receive prompt attention
and action. IL is Of great Importance that
she relation OF the national guard to the
militia and volunteer forces Of the United
states should be defined and that in place
OF our present obsolete laws a practical
and efficient system should be adopted.
Provision SHOULD be made to enable the
secretary Of war TO keep cavalry and ar
tllcry horses worn out In long perform
ance OF duty. Such horses fetch but n
trihc when sold, and rather than turn
them out TO the misery awaiting them
when thus disposed OF IL would be better
10 employ them at light work around the
posts and when necessary to put them
painlessly to death.
For the first time In our history naval
mancuvers on large scale arc being held
under the immediate command OF the ad-
miral Otfthe navy. Constantly incgeaGlnC
attention Is being paid TO the gulnery o.
the navy, but 1t Is yet far from what
should be. l earnestly urge that the IN
crease asked for BY the secretary Of tht
navy in the appropriation for improyini
the marksmanship be granted. In bait.
the only shots that count are the shot.
that hit. lt Is necessary to provide amp,
FUNDS for practice with the great guns b.
time or peace. These funds must prOviC~
not only for the purchase of prOlcCtiles
but Tor allowances for prizes TO encoui-
age the gun crows, and especially the gun
pointers, and for perfecting an Intelligent
sNstc4l under which alone it Is possible TO
seI good practice.
Dundlnr up the navy providing every
year additional fighting craft. We are a
very rich country, vast in extent Of terri
tor, and great In population, a country,
ih Sreover, which has an army dimlnutive
indccd when compared with that Of any
.other first class power We have deliDer-
I otely made our own certain foreign poll
cies which demand the possession of q
| first class navy. The isthmian canal will
greatly Increase the efficiency of our navy
II the navy Is Of sufficient size, but II We
| have an inadequate navy then the build
| ing OF the canal would be merely giving q
| hostage TO any power of superior strength
| The Monroe doctrine should be treated as
the cardinal feature Of American foreign
| policy but Il would be worse than idle
10 assert II unless We intended TO back II
up, and Il can be backed UP only by q
| thoroughly good navy. A good navy Is
| not provocative Of war. IL is the suresi
| guaranty OF peace.
Each Individual unit OF our navy should
| be the most efficient of its kind as regards
both material and personnel that is TO b,
| found in the world. / call your spcca
| attention 70 the need OF providing for tn,
, threatens us II we cannot do better thar
we are now doing as regards securing th'
services OF a sufficient number Of the high
est type Of sailormcn, Of sea mechanics
| The veteran scamen Of our warships ar'
OF as high type as can be found in an,
| navy which rides the waters of the world
/ They are unsurpassed in daring. in reso
| luton, IN readiness In thorough knowl
| edge Of their profession They deserve ev
| cry consideration that can be shown them
But there are not enough Of them. Il q
| no more possible 10 imprOvise a crew THAI
: u Is possible to improvise "a warship. ~
( build the finest ship, with the deadlies
battery, and 10 send Il ahoat with raw
| crew no matter how brave they were in
dividually, would be TO insure disaster II .
| zoe OF average capacity were encountered
| Neither ships nor men can be improvscl
| when war has begun.
We need a thousand additional officer
| IN order 20 properly man the ships nov
| provided fdr and under construction. TN
classes at the naval school at Annapolis
should be greatly enlarged. Al the sam
time that we thus add the officers wher
| we need them, we should facilitate the re
| tirement OF those at the head Of the l.s
| whose usefulness has become impaired
| Promotion must be fostercd If the scrvic
Is TO be kept efficient.
The iamentable scarcity OF officers an
| the large number OF recruits and Of un
| skilled men necessarily put aboard III
new vessels as they have been commits
stoned has thrown upon our officers. en-
: especially ON the ItAiendnAo ana JNilN
! grades unusual labor and fatigue and ha
gravely strained their powers OF endur
I ance. Nor is there sign Of any immeciat
letup in this strain. IL must continue 70
some time longer until more officers or
graduated from Annapolis and until IN
I recruits become trained and skillful /
their duties. In these difficulties incidcn
upon the development of our war feet IN
| conduct Of all our officers has been cred
liable to the service, and the leutenan,
and junior grades In particular have dis
:, | played an ability and a steadfast cheer
fulness which ontitle them 70 the ungrudgin
thanks Of all who realize the disheartening tria
and fatigues TO which they are OF necessity sui
iected.
There Is not a cloud on the horizon at prcsen
There seems not the slightest chance Of troub
with a foreign power. We most earnestly hol
that this state OF things may continue, and q
way 20 insure its continuance is TO provide for
thoroughly efficient navy. The refusal TO mai
tain such a navy would invite trouble, and
trouble came would insure disaster. Fatuous %
complacenCy or vanity or shortsightedncss IN 7
fusing 10 prepare for danger is both foolish an
wicked in such a nation as ours. and past cNpci
ence has shown that such faulty In refusing
! recognize or prepare for any crisis in advance