Omaha daily bee., 1906-12-12
TAFT ON WAR DEPARTMENT
Secretary Tells Of Work Done by Soldiers
During the Year.
BROWNSVILLE AFFAIR AND EARTHQUAKE
Effective Force of Army Not Ms
Large ms IL was Mt Time
of Last Annual
Report.

WAbE1lNG1ONs Ice. lG-oeGIeLhIy lhlA
today hands the president his annual
port The two principal topics OF which
It treats are the San Francisco earthquake
and the discharge Of negro troops. The
secretary enters at length upon the work
Of the War department through Generals
Greedy and Funston, giving the facts made
public at the time
On the Brownsville affair the secretary
Incorporates in a cursory manner the re-
ports of inspectors, and his remarks thereon
are practically Identical with his recent
remarks on the subject.
The secretary says in part:
On the 9th of December 1905, the date
of the last annual report, the army of the
| United States according to the latest re-
| military departments October Is, 1866
consisted of $3.50 officers and 56O4 enlisted
men, a total of 59,S14. In addition there
! pital corps, excluded by the act OF March
| /, 1887, from classification part OF me
| enlisted force of the army. There were
also in the service twenty-five officers and
! $50 men of the Porto Rico regiment and
lis officers and 5,O5s enlisted men of the
At the date Of the last reports received
! from the military departments October Is
| 1906 the actual strength of the regular
army was s,7O9 officers and $3.50 enlisted
Enlisted Men.
| The total number of enlstments in the
| army during the fiscal year ended June
! 80 1906 exclusive of the Hospital corps and
| Philippine scouts), was 24,0S3. OF this num-
| original enlistments. The percentage of
| native born among the original enlistments
| was eighty-nine. The corresponding ngureS
Of the preceding fiscal year Q905) are as fol-
lows: Total enlstments, 1878 of which
1899 were re-enlistments and D,4l0 were
OF the 4O8S accepted applicants, 21SOS
| were native born, 1858 were of foreign
birth fourteen were Indians, thirteen were
/ horn an no philinDiDa islands (cnliSte0 Tor
band musicans), and seventy were porn III
! Porto Rico.
forts on the part of recruiting officers, the
need for recruits during the last hseal
year could not be fully met, and the diff
ncuities Increased rather than abated, as
compared with the year before.
The relative number of assertions in the
army has continued to increase, the number
for the last fiscal year being "a per cent
of the whole number of enlisted men IN
service during that year, as against SIS
average for the three years l9O2-lsO4 was
81 per cent, and for the ten years 1895,
total number OF enlisted men in service.
Eight and four-tenths per cent of the
white soldiers in the service during the
year deserted, as against only 2.3 per cent
OF the colored soldiers.
Fifty-eight per cent of all the assertions
. during the year were assertions of men In
their first year of service, and considerably
more than half of these assertions were
during the first six months Of service, Six
teen per cent Of the assertions occurred
among men in their second year of service,
and per cent among those In their third
year. making a total of n per cent during
the first enlistment with progressive de-
) crease from year to year during the three
, years term Sixteen per cent of the de-
sertions occurred during the second enlist
l ment, per cent during the third enlist
ment, and per cent during the fourth and
subsequent enlistments
Ninety per cent Of the deserters were of
] native birth and but 10 per cent Of foreign
stments in 1904 80 per cent in 1905 and
e SO per cent in 1906 were native born, 1t APP
pears that the natives contributed only
their proportionate share to the number of
assertions.
The secretary then refers to the Browns
vile affair and the relief Of San Fran
! CISCO other remarks are
5 Except for the Brownsville incident, the
discipline of the army has been upon the
{ whole good but there is one important par
. ticular which calls for improvement. The
: number of cases referred to the minor
Z courts for trial is far in excess of the
disciplinary needs of the service The re-
port of the judge advocate general shows
summary courts during the year was but
slightly less than during the preceding
year, when there were 81, Sf9 trials.
II is believed that a strict observance OF
the requirements of the regulations in this
!. matter and thorough exercise of the
, jurisdiction granted post and company Of
y ! hcers would bring about a substantial dimi-
y | mutton in the number of summary court
e trials, reduce coninements lessen forfeit
ures and result generally in a correspond
= ing advantage to the discipline of the mill.
E tary service The necessary instructions
i have been given accordingly.
t Health and Mortality.
That there has been a steady and pro.
n gressive Improvement in the health Of the
: army is shown in the statistics for the
g current year.
i sick report was 1912, equal to admission
rate of 1887, compared with l,S54.S9 fol
h NAL period 1898 to 1903.
e The discharges for disability were 1,46
e and the rate %, as compared with 2290 FOL
i the preceding year and 23.10 for the sex
y ennial period 1888 to 1903, The increase
in the discharge for disability figure II
e easily accounted for by a temporary chang,
e (since DISCONTINUED in the system of re
- The Constantly noneffective rate was As 90
/, compared with 1880 for the preceding year
o Encampment of Army and Militia.
The past year has been one OF great &C
n tivity for the army in the earnest and per
n sistent training that has been had in tn
e different exercises calculated to instruc
$ and prepare the soldier in time OF peac
Is for his actual duties in war. There hnv
Il been weekly practice marches of not les
v than twelve miles for foot troops and eigh
- teen miles for mounted troops and durIn
70 lie open season a monthly march of In
,e struction covering three consecutive day
a and requiring two camps.
- The principal difference between the oil
=, | system Of training and the new system In
. auguated during the past year consist
IN the frequency VI pIdCllCe marches, VIII
full equipment and the conduct of skirmis
4 fire at target practice in field kit; and 1
IL addition to the valuable practical know
III edge that was to be acquired, one of tn
so main objects was to keep both men an
W animals in Mt condition for active servic
Is at any time. There has been some differ
e. ence OF opinion regarding the efficacy q
the new system, particularly with referenC
rs to the marching and skirInish fire In fu
el equipment, but, upon the whole, II has me
Sc with approval.
n All the work incident to tn eformatior
v Htaintepance and discontinuance Of tn
Il camps WAS done by officers and enliste
Is men, each officer doing, so far as praC
B. tcable, the duties of the stan corps G
arm Of service TO which he belonged.
IA The aggregate number Of officers an
4 men Of the regular army and militia con
al bined assembled at these camps was nearl
IL 50 OC0. there being a little more than %
al 90 from the regular army and nearly 30
al 900 from the militia.
OF Nominations by President
WASHINGTON, Dec. 1.-THE presider
al today sent TO the senate the followin