Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1905-12-07

fcer at West Point. There Is no GOOD
his sny aaaea s @R,s at
Point he is dropped unless he comes up
to a certain standard of excellence, and
army according to his rank Of gradua-
Point: and there should be In the army
itself something that will achieve the
reached. the average officer is. unfit to
do good work below a certain grade
Provision should be made for the promo
over the heads Of their comrades and
for the retirement of all men who have
reached q, given age without getting be-
yond given rank: this age Of retire
rank. In both the army and the navy
there should be some principle of selec-
ton, that is Of promotion for merit
eliminate the aged officers of reputable
character who possess no special effi-
cheney.
An Efficient Medical Corps
There should be an increase in the
coast artillery force, so that our coast
quately manned. There is special need
for an increase and reorganization of
the, medical department Of the army
In both the army and navy ma there re. must N
In the staff corps as in the fighting
line. Only by such training in advance
can we be sure that In actual war field
| ried on successfully. The Importance Of
this was shown conclusively in the
spanish-American and the Russo-Jap,
departments in the Japanese, army and
navy. is especially worthy of study l
| renew my Recommendation Of Jan. g.,
1905. as to the medical department of the
portance Of the needs Of the staff corps
of the navy. In the medical depart
ment of the navy the first in Importance
corp ahe on hs nes Of the a as sp
| Is. 1884, Feb. 1, 1900, and the reappor-
tionment Of the different grades Of the
medical officers to meet service require.
medical officers of the army and navy
should have similar rank and pay in
their respective grades, so that their du-
base hospitals of the navy should be put
| in condition to meet modern require
ments and hospital ships be provided provided
| thought for the medical needs of the
army and navy. appalling suffering. of a
preventable kind is sure to occur If ever
sonable to expect successful administra-
Which m lacks .s q third Gs Of the namber Of
officers necessary to perform the he m nsad
men who are not merely doctors:. they
| must be trained in the administration Of
military medical service.
| New For Old Naval Units
Our navy must, relatively to the navies
Of other nations, always be OF greater
wisely continued for number of years
| to build up our navy, and it has now
reached q fairly high standard of eff
not only be maintained. but increased.
| 1t does not seem to me necessary, how
eyer. that the navy should-at least in
ns 1be num6er Of ups what
| is now clearly necessary Is to substitute
efficient for inefficient units as the latter
become WORKOUT or as It becomes APP
parent that they, are. useless. Probably
the result would be attained by adding a
single battleship to our navy each year,
! the superseded or outworn vessels be-
thus replaced. The four single-turret
monitors built Immediately after the
| close of the Spanish war, for instance.
are vessels which would be Of but little
| spent upon them could have been more
usefully spent In other ways. Thus it
would have been far better never to
have built a single one of these mont
ample supply of reserve guns. Most of
| the smaller cruisers and gunboats,
though they serve useful, purpose so
| police work. would not add to the
strength Of our navy in conflict with a
! serious foe. There Is urgent need Of
Der Of Officers. and especially in the
number of enlisted men.
Trained Men Are Necessary
Recent naval history has emphasized
certain lessons which ought not to, but
which do, need emphasis. seagoing tor
sable, not only for making night attacks
| by surprise upon an enemy, but even in
battle for finishing already crippled
ships. Under exceptional circumstances
/ use. Fast scouts are needed. The main
strength of the navy, however, lies and
| can only lie In the great battleships, the
| heavily-armored, heavily-gunned vessels
which decide the masterey Of the seas
Heavy-armed cruisers. also play a most
useful part. and unarmed cruisers, If
swift enough are very useful as scouts
equal prowess the comparative perfec-
ton, OF the instruments Of war will ordi-
narily determine the fight. But 1t is Of
gun, the man, in the engine room. and
the man in the coming tower, consid-
cred not only Individually, but especially
with regard to the way in which they
than the weapons with which they work
The most formidable battleship is Of
course helpless against even a light
cruiser If the men aboard 1t are unable
to hit anything with their guns, and
thoroughly well-handled cruisers may
count seriously in an engagement with
much superior vessels. if the men aboard
the latter are ineffective. whether from
lack Of training or from any other
cause. Modern war ships are most for
midable mechanisms when well handled
but they are utterly useless when not
well handled; and they. can not be han
died at all without long and careful
training. This training can under no
circumstances be given when once war
has broken out. No fighting ship Of the
first class should ever be laid up save
for necessary repairs; and her crew
should be kept CONSTANTLY exercised on
| the high seas. so that she may stand AT
the highest point of perfection. To put a
new and unframed crew upon the most
powerful battleship and send it out to
meet formidable enemy Is not only to
invite but to insure disaster and dis
grace. To improvise crews at the out
break Of war SO far as the serious
j fighting craft are concerned, is absolute