The Washington herald., 1907-07-21
The Troops at Boipar Heights


order, a duty which lasts until recall. at
7:30. The first drill call sounds at 7:45.
Now is the time 10 see how these young
soldiers can drill The officers are mount
ed, and they work hard TO get order out
Of the chaos of individual effort on the
part of the soldiers. 1t seems that the
work that has been done in the armOTy
has all been for naught and that the men
forget much OF what they have learned
when they get on the tented field.
But bit by bit you see the units losing
identity in the whole mass. Instead of
individuals you begin TO see companies,
and before long the troops are moving
with grace and precision, and winning ad-
miration for the business-like grace Of
their direction. For a long time-it seems
much longer under the hot sun-the men
move about the plain in their various
intricate evOlutiOns, and then. to the
sound Of bugle and drum, they move off
down the road and are lost to sight
among the trees, doing outpost and ad-
vance guard duty.
Recall from Drill.
The recall from drill-ygith what alacrity
it is obeyed-sounds at Il o'clock. and
then the men have time to rest and battle
and enjoy themselves, until II 1915 the
call TO dinner sounds
The afternoon is less filed with work,
though most of the troops are busy most
OF the time. There is guard mounting
the First Regiment at 1:I5. the Second
Regiment at 1:4j. and the First Separate
Battalion at 2:l5. In the meantime the
unemployed troops use their time as they
please, and to show that the work they
have done is not too hard for them you
will,see most of them engaged IA baseball
or other sports.
In the meantime. at 12 o'clock. there has
been officers drill on the parade grounds
Adj. Gen. l. NJ Brett who knows all
there is 70 know about a horse. takes the
squad of mounted officers in charge, and
We ride down with Gen. HaTries 10 watch
the drill The officers are all well mount
ed, but some of the horses need training
more than the officers DO, for the steeds
start at the ring OF the sabers as they
come from the scabbard. and il is hard.
indeed, to keep any sort Of formation.
The officers are drilled I'm marching at
various gaits. and when II comes TO need
ing a leader the brigadier general in COM
mand offers his services. Gen. Harries IS
mounted on his fuil-blo0ded horse PotO-
which the other officers follow Then fol-
lows dinner for the officers and a restfuI
afternoon, waiting for the parade at
o'clock.
The Big Parade.
This parade was the big event OF the
week. The entire body Of troops in
Camp Ordway was reviewed by Gen.
Harries, who had also directed the move
ment Of the troops There was an ex-
cursion from Washington which brought
up many visitors and friends of the sol
diers, and there was large crowd of
sightseers from the nearby towns.
In spite of the fact that a mild rain
set in, the parade was carried out as
ordered. The troops formed on the plain
marched 10 the left and countermarcheI
past the general and his stan. VINO were
halted, on horseback. near the Y. NJ c. A
tent First came the First Regiment.
commanded by Col c. II. Ourand- Then
the Second Regiment Of infantry, cOEl-
manded by Col NJ L. UTeil followed by
the First Separate Battalion, commanded
by Maj. Arthur Brooks. Then came the
Field Battery. under command OF Capt
Fox, and then the Hospital and Aubu-
lance Corps Of the District National
Guard, under command Of Surg. Gen.
Henderson. Then came the battery OF
regular artillery from Fort Myer. uu-
der command OF Capt. Cassels This bat
tery marched into camp on Wednesday,
having taken four DAYS TO march from
Fort Myer to Harpers Ferry. II was q
hard march, over difficult roads. and the
horses We're not. all Of them. in the best
condition, but the march was without
Incident and horses men. and guns ar
rived in excellent shape. Following the
artillery came the Signal Corps. under
command Of Capt. Chandler. The rear
guard Of the parade was made up of thrp;
troops OF regular cavalry from the Thir-
teenth Cavalry at Fort Myer. under
command Of Maj. Joseph T. Dickman.
After the parade there was a horse
race between Capt. Fox, of the District
battery, and Sergt. Lanham. of Gen.
IIarries' staff. and the sergeant won.
After the parade the bugles sounded To
the Colors, and then came supper.
after which there was a lecture to the
officers by Mai Dickman on "The for
eign troops in China in 1900 enl tho
recent developments in the Chinese army. "
The major is inclined TO the belief that
the Chinese army has. in some essential
--t-N''f - hf~ASNA VI ce%iAlLdAAbA llIdn our
own.
The officers, with Gen. Harries who
reviewed the troops. We're Lieut.. Col
Lloyd NJ. Brett, adjutant general. CAM.
Z. +. Cook, assistant adjutant general: the
two special instructors detailed from the
regular army, Capt Firth. Of the Twenty
third Infantry and Capt Cowan. Of the
twentieth Infantry, and there were some
visiting officers from the National Guard
Of New York
Officers Opinion.
The parade showed as nothing else
could have done the efficiency and thal
fine appearance Of the troops. Amateurs
they may be, as sometimes they are
called, but the training they are getting
should prove to be invaluable A regular
army officer who saw the parade and
commented on the value of the National
Guard to the country at large. said:
1T IS really remarkable what can be |
done with these young men. I have been
looking over the roster of these /. 400 men
and I find here nearly every trade and
many professions represented All the I
work that is needed in the field there
are men here competent to do. The thing /
hat strikes a soldier when he sees a /
parade Of efficient troops. such as this. /
s the pity that so much of this work
should be wasted.
Is 1t wasted2' he was asked
Yes he replied. These men are en-
listed for three years. That gives them
raining in the armOry. in the manual Of |
arms, and the duties Of a soldier in bar
racks, and they get yearly instruction as
10 field duties. in camps such as this. At
-he end of three years they are dis
charged, return to civil life, and new re-
'ruits take their places. There should be
some provision for a reserve force for the