Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1904-12-09

| military. The experiences Of the war raw.
| shown in conclusive fashion that while sea
| going and sea-keeping torpedo Ges roy Ell:
are indispensable, and fast lightly armed
| and arInored cruisers very useful yet that
/, the main reliance, the main staEoby, in any
navy worthy the name must be the great
1 battleships heavily armored and heavily
gunned- Not Russian or japanese battle
/ ship has been sunk by a torpedo boat, or
1 by gunfire. while among the less protected
ships cruiser after cruiser has been de-
stroyed whenever the hostile squadrons
have gotten within range of one another
weapons. There will always be a large field
| Of usefulness for cruisers, especially of the
more formidable type. We need 10 increase
the number of torpedo boat destroyer
paying less heed to their having a knot
or two extra speed than to their capacity
to keep the seas for weeks, and, if neces-
sary, for months at a time. It is wise to
build submarine torpedo boats, as under
certain circumstances they might be very
useful. But most of all We need to continue
building our feet of battleships, or ships
80 powerfully armed that they inf1ict
the maximum of damage upon our oppon-
ents, and so well protected that they can
suffer a severe hammering in return with
out fatal impairment of their ability to
1Sht and maneuver. OF course ample
means must be provided for enabling the
personnel of the navy to be brought to the
highest point of efficiency. Our great fight
ing ships and torpedo boats must be cease
lessly trained and unanswered in squad
TOQS. ne OI1CSrS ana men can only learn
their trade thoroughly by ceaseiess prac-
tice on the high seas. In the event of war
1t would be far better to have no ships at
all than to have ships of a poor and inef-
fective type, or ships which, however good,
were yet manned by unframed and I'M
skillful crews. The best officers and men
in a poor ship could do nothing against
fairly good opponents; and on the other
hand modern warship is useless unless
the officers and men aboard her have be-
come adopts in their duties. The marks
manship in our navy has improved in an
extraordinary degree during the last three
years, and on the whole the types of our
battleships are improving; but much re-
mains to be done. Sooner or later we shall
have to provide for some method by which
there will be promotion for merit as well
as for seniority. or else retirement OF all
those who after a certain age have not ad-
vanced beyond a certain grade; while no
effort must be spared to make the service
attractive to the enlisted men in order that
they may be kept as long as possible in it,
reservation pubic schools should be pro-
vlded wherever there are navy yards
The Army.
Within the last three years the United
states has set example in disarm-
ment where disarmament was proper.
BY law our army is fixed at maximum
OF 100000 and minimum of 60 1000 men
Wnen there was insurrection in the Phil
lppines we kept the army at the maxi
mum. Peace came in the Philippines,
the minimum at which it is possible to
Keep it with due regard to its efficiency
The guns now mounted require $500
men, If the coast Notifications are to be
adequately manned. Relatively to the
nation. 1t Is not now so large as the DO
lice force of New York or Chicago rela-
tively to the population of either city
We need more officers; there are not
enough to perform the regular army
work. 1t is very important that the off,
GERS OF the army should be accustomed to
nanole their men in masses, it is also
important that the national guard of the
several states should be accustomed to
actual field maneuvering. especially in
connection with the regulars. For this
reason we are to be congratulated upon
the success of the field maneuvers at
Manassas last fall, maneuvers in which
larger number OF regulars and national
guard took part than was ever before as
sembled together in time of peace No
other civilized nation has, relatively to
It's population, such a diminutive army az
ours; and while the army is so small we
are not to be excused If we fail to keep
II at very high grade of proficiency.
1t must be necessarily practiced; the
standard for the enlisted men should be
Kept very high while at the same time
the service should be made as attractive
as possible; and the standard for the Of
hcers should be kept even higher-which,
as regards the upper ranks, can best be
done by introducing some system of Sc
lection and rejection into the promo
of some sudden emergency. to put into
the field one first-class army corps which
should be-, as whole, at least the equal
of any body of troops of like number
belonging to any other nation.
Great progress has been made in pre-
tecttng our coasts by adequate fortin-
cations with sufficient guns. We should,
however. pay much more heed than at
present to the development of an ex-
tensive system of floating mines for use
in all our more important harbors. These
mines have been proved to be a most |
formidable safeguard against hostile fleets
Medals of Honor in the Navy.
I earnestly call the attention of the |
congress to the need of amending the ex- |
listing law relating to the award of con- |
gressional medals of honor in the navy |
so as to provide that they may be |
awarded to commissioned officers and |
warrant officers as well as to enlisted men. |
These justly priced medals are given In |
the army alike to the officers and the |
enlisted men, and 1t is most unjust that |
the commissioned officers and warrant |
officers of the navy should not in this re- |
spect have the same rights as their /
brethren in the army and as the enlisted |
The Philippines.
In the Philippine islands there has been |
during the past year continuation of |
the steady progress which has obtained |
ever since our troops definitely got the |
upper hand of the insurgents. The Phil |
1ppine people, or, to speak more accur- !
ately, the many tribes, and even races |
sundered from one another more or less |
sharply, who go to make up the people |
of the Philippine islands, contain many |
elements of good. and some elements |
which we have a right to hope stand for |
progress. At present they are utterly |
incapable of existing in independence at |
ali or Of building up civilization of |
their own. l firmly believe that we can
help them to rise higher and higher in |
the scale of civilization and Of capacity
for self-government, and 1 most earnest
ly hope that in the end they will be able
to stand. if not entirely alone, yet n
some such relation to the United States |