The National tribune., 1906-03-08
WASHINGTON
AT the time this law was passed no

| AT the time this law was passed no
action was taken In regard to the Lieu
| tcnant-General, for the reason that 1t
was assumed. and. In fact. stated at
the time that the Lieutenant General
would naturally be the Chief Of staff
| Up to this time that has been the case.
Eut the indications now are-and no
che desires to curtail the power of the
| President i'm this respect-that for the
next few years at least the Lieutenant
| General OF the Army, IL the office shall
be continued, will have no power be-
| yond that which can be legitimately
| exercised either by Brigadicr or
Major-General in charge of Depart
ment and really subject to junior.
who will be Chief of Staff. and there
| fore the head of the military establish
ment, and receive his orders from
junior in grade and rank. I do not
| believe as one member of this House.
that that Is good military organiza
| ton"
Capt. Hull said that in time of war
it might sometimes be necessary to do
| this thing, but not at such time as
| this He then cited the fact that for
over 100 years this country had several
times honored great military leaders
by giving them the highest rank
known. that of >Lieutenant-G General,
these being George Washington. u. S.
Grant. w. 7. Sherman. p. H. Sheri-
dan, j. NJ. Schofield and Nelson Miles,
| Congress in each instance reViving and
| comforting the rank. Then he said that
he could say without SANDER to any
| body that the little war with Spain had
made more Lieutenant Generals than
all the other wars that the Republic
| had been engaged in. Chairman Hull
| then declared that he would like to see
the rank of Northumberland abol-
ished. 1t had been created to honor
| men VINO had done distinguished and
! brilliant service for the country. and
| he did not want to see it again con-
ferred upon men whose real rank was
often not above that of a Brigadfer-
General. and whose services had been
official rather than military. He was
| opposed to the Chief of Staff being
permitted to jump from a junior rank
to the high one because of the title
| Of the Office to which he was raised
and then being retired with the rank
| and title of that highest Office when
he should often be several grades be-
low 1t In point Of service and merit
The discussion on the adjustment
| OF the rank of Northumberland as
| sumed rather acrimonious proportions
at times. Gen. Grosvenor declared that
Chairman Hull was slandering the
| Army in his reflections on the merits
OF those advanced to Lieutenant-Gen-
eral on word from the President
who now has the sole power to create
|. this highest rank-whereas the power
| lay with Congress until the "Reorgan-
izatiOn of the Army" took place in
1901, when the rank was created per-
manently. and the power to appoint a
Northumberland was placed in the
President. Chairman Hull declared
| that it was never intended that the
al,n hn IL lxnx1
to make superior officers out of those
of inferior rank, and then make those
OF actual higher rank subject to the
orders Of the inferior officer. 1t was
an anamoly. The matter was not set
tied. but the disposition Of Congress
seems to be to abolish the Office. Gen.
COrbin who expects to become Lieu
tenant-General very soon, asks that he
be not assigned to Chief of Staff, as
the duties are not to his liking. He
desires to be made Lieutenant-Gen-
eral and retired without performing the
duties Of Chief of Staff, as the Reor-
ganization bill designed should be done
The Senate has passed a Naval Acad-
envy Hazing bill, which may and may
not stop hazing. Its principal provi-
sions are that the Secretary of the Navy
may dismiss at any time Midshipman
whose presence he considers for any
cause contrary 10 the pest interests or
the service, but the accused has the
right to demand a court-martial. 1T
repeats the existing law requiring the
dismissal of Midshipmen found guilty
of hazing; gives authority for courts
martial for hazing under certain condi-
tons and authorizes graduation sentences
under the acts Of June %, 1874, and of
March 3, 1903; requires all instructors
and officers at the Naval Academy to
report offenses to the Superintendent
and defines haZing as the unauthorized
assumption of authority by one Mid
shipman over another"
The Administration sometimes seems
to do things little unjustly. A light
house keeper died the other day and
his wife was given the temporary ap-
pontment, and 1t was hoped that she
would be able to keep it. The point is
down the Potomac a few miles from
Washington, and lis known as Jones
Point" The keeper, who died about
month ago, had been lighthouse keep
er there for more than 40 years. He
brought his wife to that lighthouse 40
years ago. and she never has known any
other home since. All her children
were born there, and for 20 years it is
said, she has been practically the keep
err Of the great light. Now she is forced
TO move out and a man has been ap-
pointed. 1t does not look just right, for
it is said that not one bit Of fault could
be found with the woman's work; it
was just that she is woman.
One Of the interesting exhibits on
q Ill I-kl, H., q