The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1903-09-13
GENERAL STAFF
WILL DO THINGS
More Military Departments Will
Be Created.
OLD OFFICERS DROPPING OUT
%-
HEREAFTER PROMOTION WILL
BE VERY SLOW.
OLD OFFICERS DROPPING GU

I
eral staff Of the army has succeeded
in attracting considerable public at
I tention in the early stages Of existence
| by proposing 10 redistrict the United
/ States and change the boundary lines
Of the military departments. Such
/ move as this viii awaken great pO-
/ htical activity, for the establishment
| or department headquarters and new
/ garrisons is move prolific Of siren
/ uous effort ON the part of members of
! congress and of bitter controversy be-
/ tween neighbOTing communities There
/ are now nine military departments
! within the boundaries of the United
/ states. Secretary Root has long en-
/ Uertained the belief that the depart
/ ments as no-s constituted We're not as
l they should De. The theory upon which
! they are esta blished Is entirely based
/ on transportation facilities, and when
! the troops were distributed over the
/ country In permanent quarters many
/ years ago these facilities were at n low
point since that time thousands Of
/ miles Of new railroads have been con-
/ structed. stage lines have been abol-
: lSnedr and the character of the army
/ Itself is not exactly as it was For all
! OF these reasons. il is considered best.
/ IN the undermining Of the military arm
! OF the United states which is now in
]
! troops to the possible needs of the
J country. General Sheridan built a line
/ of posts along the frontier from Texas
| TO Montana. These posts are now OBJ
| solete and the greatest need of troops
/ is not upon the prairIes. but near great
/ cities or ut points from which they
! can be moved with great Tapidity on
! numerous lines of railroads.
Department Of Kansas.
/ The first thing done viii be the Gre
/ alton Of new department 20 be known
! as the department of Kansas. This
/ viii include Kansas. Missouri. OlzIaho-
ma, and Arizona. New Mexico and In
dian territories. The headquarters Of
! this department viii be presumably at
/ Kansas city, and will be quite a tri-
/ umph for that town. as for years past
| a bitter controversy has Oeen main
tanned with Omaha over the lOca ton ut
the latter place of the headquarters Of
! the department Of the Platte. The de
! Dartment Of the east. with headquarters
! at Governors island, is now an i'm
mense and Unwieldy institution. with
/ nearly seventy gaTTisOns under its iu-
/ riSOlctIOn. A department of the Allan
tic viii therefore result from a division
/ of the eastern territory Sevefu other
/ divisions are contemplated. and also
| what is rather a reversal of recent
policy in the distribution TROOPS
| Prior to the Spanish war the idea took
1 strong hold of the war department
that the regular army should be con-
centrated in large posts a L railroad
centers. This idea originated and was
strongly advocated by General Ruger.
| Now il is proposed not only to increase
| the garrtSons at posts already estab-
lished, but 10 possibly occupy military
/ reservations which have quite recently
been abandoned The army is now
/ three times as large as II was before
! the war with Spain. The troops are
coming home from the Philippines in
large numbers, and places must be
/ found for them. The home military es-
/ adjustment is more formidable than
/ ever before. and the general staff will
give a great deal of consideration to its
proper distribution and housing. with
the result that many western communi-
/ ties VIII again receive the benefit of
government expenditure in their neigh
borhood.
Means More Commands.
The war department is gsily sailing
into political situation. not yet fully
appreciated In all it's Importance by
within the congressional districts. In
the past il has taken bold secretary
OF war to abolish an army post, or de-
eide between the claims Of two rival
towns for the establishment Of a new
one. Army officers regard with equa-
nimity. however, any possible compli-
! cations which may arise in this direc-
ton, for every new department created
means dignifed command for another
brigadier general and the creation Of
quite a number Of good positions on his
staff. The army at present is a lttlh
long on brigadiers and short on ats
factory places for them to settle down
while they arc awaiting retirement The
effect Of another draft upon the line
for more staff officers will have a bad
effect upon the army. as many COmpa-
mics of infantry and troops of cavalry
are now commanded by second lieuten-
ants. many Of them appointed from
civil life and who do not know as much
about their duty as an enlisted man
who has served a couple Of years. The
shortage OF officers is felt i'm all
branches of the service. There are now
siXty-nine vacancies in the rank OF
second lieutenant and with few excep-
tions these VIII have TO be filed from
civil life
Promotion Will Be Slow.
Regular army, officers stationed i'm
| Washington have been studying the
official list with considerable interest
and not a little alarm. Upon examina
tior OF this list it is found that within
a year or so an of the older men will
have retired from the service and that
beardless boys viii wear all the shout
der straps The direct result Of this
condition viii be 10 produce such a
stagnatiOn In promotion as will make
the army unpopular. as II was prior 10
the war with Spain. Promotion will
only come by death or resignation and
in times of peace deaths are not fire.
qUent enough, and I'm al times resig-
nations are so exceptional that a man
wei down on the list viii view his
chances Of a rise with gloomy forebod-
ings that he may be retired i'm a minor
rank. The list Of captains, for instance.
which numbers nearly 300 shows that
hardly a score are above middle age.
and as there are only very few Offices
In the higher ranks where retirement