Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-07-15
CAMP ORDERS ISSUED
District National Guard Dr.
rected to Take the Field.
NEAR HARPER'S FERRY
ANNUAL OUTING WILL BEGIN
MONDAY, AUGUST 1.
Exercises and instruction Will Tend to
Develop the Most Efficient
Organization Possible.

General orders No. s. providing for the
coming field service of the local brigade
of citizen soldery, were issued this after
noon from District militia headquarters, as
follows:
THE annual encampment of the National
Guard of the District of Columbia will be
held at Bolivar Heights near Harpers
Ferry, w. Va, from the LIST to the 18th OF
August, 1884, and will be designated and
known as Camp Ordway.
1.-THE various organizations, except the
LIST Battery, Field Artillery, which will re-
ceive special directions. and the Naval Bat
TALON, will assemble in heavy marching
order, fully armed and equipped, on August
l. at the armories, in ample time to march
thence and reach the Baltimore and Ohio
depot, New Jersey avenue, promptly at
80 o'clock a m, where railroad transport
tation will be in readiness.
ION the duty required for this encamp-
ment officers and non commissioned officers
of the general staff, field and stan ofhcers
of regiments will be mounted. There VIII
be furnished three horses to each battalion
for the use of the battalion commander ana
his staff officers will report to the acting
quartermaster general on July 20 the
names of the owners of the horses hired by
them and the date from which the hlre
commenced
1.-The post office address of the camp will
be Camp Ordway, Harper's Ferry, w. Va
A Fixed Military Duty.
"Under the law making provision for the
organization of the militia of the District
of Columbia, the annual encampment of
the National Guard of the District of CO.
lumbia is a fixed military duty which de-
mands of all it's members faithful dis
charge. The oathS of officers and enlisted
men entail positive obligations and I'M
avOidable responsibilities. With this in view
it should be needless to state that the an
nual encampment is an occasion for such
military exercises and instruction as will
tend to develop and foster the most eff
ficient military organization possible IN the
District of Columbia. To accomplish this,
while it is neither desired nor intended TO
prevent or obStruct the proper individual
enjoyment and recreation of the soldier
when off immediate duty, mere personal
sstime or enjoyment must nevertheless at
all times be regarded as secondary and SUB
servient to that military duty OF which
rigid discipline and accomplishing loyalty
are the distinguishing elements These
points being well fixed in mind, it Is ex-
pected that every member of the guard
during the coming encampment will strive
faithfully and untiringly to meet the re-
sponsibilities which he has voluntarily as
sumed. In this the conscientious soldier
will find his task for the short period of the
encampment easy to perform. The object
to be kept constantly in view BY all con-
cerned during this encampment is increased
military efficiency The equipment of the
soldier has been restricted and the camp
baggage of the officer has been limited to
actual requirements The provisions for
tent pitching. cooking and messing, field
exercises, drills, and the various other
camp duties are all based upon conditions
of actual service, and it is expected that
guardsmen will appreciate the fact that
the advantage of only thirteen days, out
of 1865, devoted 10 military outing must be
mea sured by the cheerful and willing 10y
atty of the individual soldier in learning
his lesson in field and camp to the fullest
extent possible.
The most important preliminary duty of
guardsmen respecting an annual encamp-
ment is attendance, and it is expected that
officers will resort to every practicable
means to insure the fullest possible attend
ance of men. In case less than 10 per
centum Of the enlisted strength of any
company organization shall be reported for
the encampment, the commanding officer
of the organization will be required to show
cause why he should not be relieved from
command of his decimated company. II
fail to attend, except for good and
sufficient reason, prompt punitory or dis
ciplinary measures will be adopted Sim
pie excuse, or offer OF excuse, will not SUI
flee. The excuse must be previously Of
fered by the soldier and accepted by proper
authority, and the soldier who falls to at
tend except Tor SufnClent military reason
will be regarded as absent without leave,
or In desertion as circumstances indicate.
and will be dealt with accordingly
Courtesy and Respect.
Special attention is directed to the uni
versally common tendency of National
Guardsmen to disregard the forms of mill
tary courtesy and respect 80 essential to
true military discipline The effort of all
officers and non-commssiOned officers will
be directed to the instruction of members
of their respective organizations in their
duty in this regard, bearing in mind at all
times that example on the part of superiors
is ever an easy and useful lesson to the
subordinate. Officers and soldiers alike
must be mindful that the prescribed salute
Is an act of courtesy, involving neither
servility nor degradation, and whatever be
the attitude maintained between the mill
tary superior and inferior II their civil re-
lations, in the military the surest mark of
intelligent appreciation of the obligations
assumed by all alike in taking the prescrib-
ed oathS Is a punctiliouS observance of all
the forms which experience and good order
have set in government of the relations be-
tween necessary classes in the military
service. 1t is not deemed essential to re-
peat in this order the detailed instructions
respecting salutes; the authorized manuals
being sufficiently explicit regarding the du-
ties OF officers and soldiers In this regard,
1t is only deemed necessary to announce
that strict compliance with their provisions
will be required.
ASIDE from the general routine of ex-
ercises and instructions hereafter to be
prescribed. special attention of all COM
manding officers will be directed to instruc-
ton in guard duty In all its phases and
quirements. Each soldier must not only be
instructed In the general duties of a
tinel. but will be taught to recite the gen.
eral orders. and, as soon possible after
their PRONUNCIATION, the special orders for
sentinels in camp. Officers of the day and
officers and non-commissioned officers OF
the guard will be held to rigid responsible
ity for the proper performance of guard
duty in camp. well their knowledge
OF all requirements pertaining thereto
Major Charles II. Ourand, inspector gen.
eral, will have charge of all matters per-
! tanning to guard duty, and will see that
the provisions of the foregoing Paragraph
are carried out"