Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1903-11-12
STRENGTH OF OUR
ARMY ON OCT. 18TH
Report of Acting Adjutant
Genel al Hall.
ENLIoTED MEN AND OFFICERS

report OF Acting Adjutant General
Hall of the army was made public to-
day. 1t deals with every phase OF
the military establishment. The ac-
tual strength of the army on Oct Is,
1903, was 1861 officers and $4,000
enlisted men. There were last to the
army during the year ended June 80,
1903, 29,279 men, as follows:
Men Lost to Army.
One hundred and thirty eight officers.
of whom 25 were killed in action or
died of wounds or disease; 2S,141 en-
listed men, Of whom S37 were killed
in action or died of wounds or dis
ease, the remainder representing the
men discharged for expiration of term
of service, Tor inability, by sentence
of courtmartial, desertions and retire
ments
Over one-half of the report is devoted
to the militia and it gives a detailed
account of the workings of the act
to promote the efficiency of the. mi
Htia passed at the last session of
congress. Inspections of the several
militia organizations, the report says,
were begun on April 25 1903, and
completed about the first of July. The
total number of the organized militia
including officers of every rank and
grade was ascertained to be 1862.
Strength of Militia.
Regarding the dependable strength
of the militia in time of national per.
il the adjutant general states that al
though the obligation of officers and
men OF the militia to respond prompt
ly to sudden call of the president,
has been on the statute books more
than hundred years, and of the or.
ganlzed militia or national guard for
nearly forty years, and the neglect to
so respond is punishable by such pen
aIt1es as q courtmarrfal may direct.
experience has shown that this obIi.
cation is a theory rather than a fact.
Without going farther back than the
Late war with Spain the proportion
of the membership of militia organiza.
tlonS which have actually responded
to the calls of the president have borne
very small proportion to those actu.
ally borne on the company rolls"
Eliminating the men unfit for mil.
ltary service and those unable to go
to the front for logical reasons. the re-
port says that only about thirty of the
original company is fair estimate of
the number of men in each companv
that were finally received into the
service of the United States.
Opposition to Militia Law.
The adjutant general comments at
length on the opposition developed in
some quarters to the militia law which
he says is less on the whole than ewas
anticipated. He says it is true that
certain radical leaders of the labor
unions regard the militia as a menace
to their purposes, although it is doubt,
tul, he adds, if this animosity extends
to any considerable numbers of their
membership.
AS to employers objection to their
employees leaving their work to attend
encampments and target practice as
well as in responding to calls for SER
vice from the state for the suppres.
sion OF disturbances, the objections
are at the minimum.
Business and professional men. the
assistant adjutant general says, feel
that they cannot afford to waste their
time in riots or labor troubles, while
they would be perfectly willing to re,
spond in case of war IN some cities
of Virginia, Georgia. and Louisiana
the newspapers have pre1udiced the
minds of the militiamen by their dis.
torted views.
Would be Objectionable.
The fear is expressed in some south.
ern communities that under the presi.
dents orders white national guards.
men might be compelled to serve un.
der negro commander and still Others
believe that they are state troops and
should be ordered for duty outside the
state. All the objections, however.
are to be regarded as sporadic rather
than contagious, and as the intent
of the law becomes better understood
with perhaps some further legislation.
it is believed all opposition will be con.
fined to such irreconciliable elements
as are no to be satiied with anything
less than the abolition of all agencies
that make for the preservation of law
and order.
Some Recommendations.
Among the recommendations are
the following:
That the attention of congress be in |
vited to the adWisability of a proviso
in the appropriation bill for the next
fiscal year giving forage to horses of
mounted militia troops and of mount |
ed militia officers while at maneuvers;
for per diem allowance to be made for
the hire of horses of militia troops
and batteries while engaged in ma.
neuvers; for the furnishing of fuel
for cooking and heating purposes by
the United States while engaged in
maneuvers and for the furnishing of
straw and hay for bedding of militia
soldiers while engaged in maneuvers.
In order to increase the attendance
at drills and thus secure increased eff. |
aciency of the organized militia, that
governors be permitted to utilize the
allotment of their respective states
under section 1861, revised statutes, |
for the purpose of furnishing per
diem allowance, not in any case to
exceed 43 cents per drill of one and a
half hours for the purpose of paying
enlisted men of the organized militia
or attendance at each of the "a drills
annually required by statute.
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