Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-11-04
MAY Be HELDINF FALL
NATIONAL GUARD OFFICERS
WOULD HOLD INSPECTION
RIGHT AFTER CAMP
Companies Are Then in Fair Condition
Winter Inspections Interfere, With
Important Enterprises Of the Guards
men-Some Peculiar Orders.


Important Enterprises of the Guards
men-some Peculiar Orders.
If the recommendations of General
Thrift, Major Olmsted and Inspector
General John R. Prime are accepted,
the customary annual inspection Of
the Iowa National guard every winter
will take place in the fall Immediately
after camp when the various COM
panies are in fairly good condition to
display their real status. A conference
of Adjutant General Thrift and Major
Olmsted of the regular army with
Governor Cummins was held at the
state house Monday. The officers filed
their recommendations and General
John R.sPrime who was unable to be
present will file his in writing.
The winter inspections always have
been unsatisfactory for it is during
the winter season thst the guard COM
ranies find that they are able, by par
ties, plays, etc, to exc out the rev.
enue which they get from the state in
order to pay their expenses and make
a creditable showing, and the inspec.
ton interferes with plans of this char
acter to some extent. The real guard
season Is the spring, summer and
fall, when the camps are held and the
guard is in fair condition.
The conference had absolutely moth
ing to do with the war department,
Major Olmsted at the request of Gov
ernor Cummins, being an arm.- officer,
to late hx, hA orty
der the Dick law, with the Iowa Ma
tional guard, and the law makes it his
duty to inspect the guard companies
and report their standing to the war
department This service he always
has done faithfully. There are no diff
ferences or alterations between the
state guard organizations and the war
department, in any respect.
No Other Inspection Needed.
So thorough is the work of the reg
ular army inspector under orders of
the war department that the guard is
believed to need no other inspection.
The reports of the army officer on the
condition of the guard, if furnished
| the guard organization. would be as
| valuable as any inspection, which the
state inspectors could make. The in
| spections always are made simultane-
ously by the regular army officer and
| the state inspectors of the guard. The
recent conference was to deter
mine which would be the most con-
venient time for all of them to make
the inspections.
Colonel Prime is the inspector gen.
eral of the guard and Frank Lyman is
! I, A., cicfo TI,,Io Inv o,,o
assigned by the adjutant general to
make the rounds of the companies and
report to him their standing. Major
| Olmsted always has accommodated
/ himself to the dates fixed for the state
| inspections. The positions are valu-
able paying from 81 to SO day. The
regular army inspector is paid by the
! government and the state is not out
any money on his account.
| Therefore it has seemed that if the
law did not require the employment of
the state inspectors, under the Dick
law the government or regular army
Inspector might do the work and save
the state a large sum of money. But
this is merely speculative as the state
| inspection seems to be required, also.
The suggestion now rests with the
governor, who is waiting the recon-
mendations of. the inspector general.
There is no friction with which the
public is familiar at any rate, and the
matter Of the inspections of the COM
panies at their home. stations during
/ 1906 will soon be adjusted without diff
fculty
The National Anthem.
Some or the regular army regula-
lions and printed orders, which are
sent to the National Guard now as
we'll as to the regular army officers,
seem rather peculiar" remarked Capt.
G. E. Caughlan of Co. G thi~ morning.
For instance, we have received reg
ulations giving the fees charged by
justices of the peace all over the
country for administering an oath,
Others regarding the wearing Of aigu-
elettes and others regarding court
martials and the like. But there is
one order, which received to-
day, which is of considerable interest"
Part of the order is as follows:
whenever the Star Spangled Ban
ner' is played by the band on for
al occasion at military station, or at
any place where persons belonging to
the military service are present in
their official capacity, all officers and
enlisted men present shall stand at at
tention, and If not in ranks will rem
der the prescribed salute, the position
of the salute being retained until the
last note of The Star Spangled Ban
/ ner.' The same respect will be observ.
ed toward the national air of any 9th.
- :
pliment' to official representatives of
. such country Whenever the Star
Spangled Banner is played, as con
templated by this paragraph, the all
will be played through once, without