New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1902-12-01

s.,,,.. q d,,tv TO advise inform and assist
superior officer who has command ana 10 rep
resent him acting in his name ana oy MS au-
rbority in carrying out his policies ana seeuni s
The execution Of his commands. The offlcef
who accepts the position assumes the hishest
obligation to be perfectly oyaI 10 ms "a
er 20 exclude all personal interest," from ms du
Vice and representation, and 10 try. in the most
whole hearted way, TO help him to right con
elY,sious and 10 successful execution or MS pol
.-ies aver, though his conclusions may not agree
with the advice given For the successIui per
forTnsnce Of his duties the chief OF slaIL It .
ha.- the entire confidence OF his commander
. proportion as he merits that confidence, the
chief of staff gradually comes to find his adVlee
usually accepted. and TO really exercise the au-
thority Of his commander. subject onIE 10 tIe
most general directions. just as Won Moltke eH-
eTcised the authority Of King William OF FruSSia
as mis- chief Of stan-
CIVILIAN CONTROL
F,xperience has shown that it is impossible for
anv officer to really exercise in this country IN
time of peace the powers which appear ana are
assumed to be conferred along with the tilie o.
Commanding General of the Army ms 1oi-
lows from the constitution Of our government
The constitution requires the President 10 pe
the commander of the army, anu a gIeat n
riety of laws require the Secretary or war; VINO
directly represents the President, TO supervise
and direct the expenditure of the vast sums or
money appropriated annually by congress iot
tho support of the army AS every important
movement requires the use or money, so ions
as the Secretary of war performs TINS uuLS
tions of the army in time Of peace, and there
cannot be any independent command OF the
army except that which the President hlnisen
exercises over the Secretary of War and every
pody else in the military establishment II IS
because Congress has always looked 10 the CIVIL
ian Secretary at the head OF the war pepaii-
rnent TO hold the purse strings that the laws
require all the great departments which Duliu
the Notifications and furnish the arms, supplies
and munitions Of war. and actually expend the
money for those purposes such as the engineer,
ordnance. quartermaster's and subsistence De
A., 1srAas off he
rotary and withhold from the officer who is
called Commanding General of the Army all
control over those departments
This way Of treating the expenditure OF money
is an expression of the ingrained tendency or
the American people to insist upon civilian con-
troll Of the military arm Our fathers inherited
that from Eneland and we have always held to
It It is not likely to be changed in substance
One result Of the arrangement is that the of1cer
who is called Commanding General of the
Army cannot in time Of peace really exercise
any substantial power at all unless he acts in
conformity to the policy and views of the Sec
rotary OF War. acting under the direction OF the
President: that is 10 Say, he cannot exercise any
independent command and this must always
be so as long as the Secretary of War performs
the duties which are imposed upon him by law
and which are essential to the maintenance or
civilian control over the military establishment
1t was the inability to exercise the power which
the title Commanding General OF the Army
appears to carry with it. but which does not
really exist that led General Scott to leave
Washington and .esta iolish his headquarters In
New-york and General Sherman to remove 10
St Louis, both Of them abandoning the attempt
TO do anything In connection with the admins
rration of the army In Washington Ana TINS
dificulty has been the cause OF almost constant
conflict and hitter feeling in the administration
of the army for the last fifty years, to the very
great INJURY of the service and very great loss
Of efficiency.
GENERAL sCHoFTELDs VIEWS
It does not follow. however. that the principal
and most trusted general Of the army cannot
exercise a great and commanding influence IN
the control of the army, and practically manage
it in all military matters. What does follow is
that he can do this only by abandoning the idea
of i,denen6eut command and by assuming the
position and performing the functions which
have described as belonging TO chief Of stah
General Schofeld did this with entire success
snd rendered great service TO the country by
doing so. quote his own words in describing
the course he followed:
Recent experience has se.ved to confirm all the
results Of lifelong study and large experience
that the proper position Tor the senior olnceT OF
-onrlaanding general position which is practically
mnoss9 but that If Of m RAJ IN ra ae which T6
title of seneral in chief vas a permanent one dur
when General Grant became lieutenant general.
When became commanding general addressed
parH and saving that the only way was to
abandon entirely. which I did during my seven
years Of serrice. ali pretence Of being the com
the chief of stan of the army under the secre-
tts{ Of War and the PreSde , The result WAS
and [ did exercise legitimate Influence in com
l
exercise ANYTHING which the law did not give
Everybody is not self-restrained and sensi-
HE as General Schoield, and the best way to
secure from others the kind of good
service that he rendered is TO give the officer
from whom il is expected a designation which
Indicates what he is really to do.
NEEDS OF THE MILITIA
In his strong plea for the enactment into law
of the Hawley-Dick bill for making the National
Guard trustworthy and for creating volunteer
reserves. which has passed the House and is
now in the Senate, Secretary Root says:
II Is absurd that a nation which maintains
but small regular army and depends upon