The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-11-10
IN BEHALF Of
NATIONAL GUARD
General Drain Appeals for the
Interest and Support
of Citizens.
RIFLE PRACTICE ESSENTIAL
OUTLINES PURPOSE OF UTAH
STATE RIFLE ASSOCIATION.

General James A. Drain of New York, |
chairman of the executive board of the |
National Guard association and president |
of the National Rifle association, who |
organized state rifle association in Salt
Lake on Wednesday evening, gave out the
following interview for the purpose OF en-
listing interest in the National Guard or
Utah and encouraging rifle practice among
its members:
Zone of the first duties which a state
of this Union owes to the nation is its
best efforts to maintain within its Dor
ders a National Guard organization OF
reasonable strength and high efficiency.
A progressive state, one which desires TO
make itself a worthy part of this great
nation has many obligations TO fulfill,
not the least of which is due consldera-
ton for the welfare of the National
Guard.
1.-THE Constitution of the United States
declares "A well regulated militia being
necessary to the security of a free state,
the right of citizens to keep and bear
arms shall not be infringed. There Is
no question that the trainers or the
Constitution were right when they said
that a we'll regulated militia is necessary
to the security of a free state. 1t is
doubtless a realization of this as fun
damental truth which has quite generally
led our people to designate the state sub
divisions of the militia by a more ex-
preSsive and truthful title. viz: the Ma
tional Guard. This force is in truth the
guard of the nation. 1t stands as a first
line behind the regular army to protect
and defend the country in time of war.
In it the best young men of our land are
| taught in peace how to do those things
which they would have to do when trou-
BILE comes-to shoot. to cook, to camp, to
march, to give and to obey orders.
Obligation of Citizens.
| In a country like ours, where the bur
den of standing army Is not placed upon
| the people, where we must, of necessity,
/ depend in time of war upon the citizens,
every male inhabitant ought to feel proud
I Il fawlaa la 7
| afford in peace to preparing himself TO
| fight the countrys battles in war. war
| of itself is essentially an evil, an EVIL
which we would all avoid, when we can
| with honor but the surest way to lessen
| the chances of our becoming involved in
war; the plainest plan to preserve peace
is preparation The National Guard then
| is primarily a training school, in which
| citizens are trained in peace for service
when peace has fled; secondarily it Is the
/ strong right arm of the state TO reinforce
the civil authority, but its aid ought not
| to be and cannot be lawfully or rightfully
| be invoked unless the ordinary peace Off
| GERS have shown inability or Discrimination
| to preserve peace.
| THE appropriations to support the Ma
| tional Guard come from the United States
and the states but an investigation of
the conditions will disclose that the real
| contribution which makes the National
Guard what it is, is patriotic devotion, the
unselfish service and the zeal. of the
men who serve in it. A proper militia pol
icy for this country Involves the main
tenance OF a small but we'll trained army,
a strong navy, national guard, which is
in fact as well as name the guard of the
nation and the instruction of so many OF
our citizens as can be instructed in the
use of the military rifle.
Support Is Essential.
1.-THE men who serve in the National
| Guard make many sacrifices to do their
| work, because every hour spent in the
| service is taken from their civil employ
ments or their pleasures. We cannot ap-
preciate nor praise them too highly for
| their noble unselfishneSs, but all their ia
Dor and interest goes for nothing unless
the people among whom they live believe
in them and stand behind them. In late
years more than formerly the realization
has come to our people that the National
Guard ought to be so organized IN peace
as to closely resemble the regular army,
so that when ordered into the. field In
the event of war there might be practic-
alIv no difference between the organiza-
tions That I say has been the idea Of our
people and it has been also the tendency
OF recent national legislation, but II is NOT
possible to accomplish the desired result
unless the citizens of the state feel their
responsibility for doing it. Not all citi-
zens are so situated as to allow them to
serve in the National Guard; not all citI-
Zens are physically fit to do so. but every
one of such citizens can discharge In part
the debt he owes to his country by assist
ing aiding and supporting those who are
United States what it ought to be.
Rifle Practice Vital.
zone of the most important items of
knowledge to a soldier Is that which al
lows him to make the fullest use of the
weapon with which he is armed. Skill
, with the rifle is becoming less common
each year in this country among the gen
eral body of our citizens, as the supply
| Of game grows less and less. The purpose
of the National Rifle Association OF
America is to encourage rifle pracuce
among our citizens with every form OF
| rifle but to particularly assist in the
! instruction of men in the use OF the mill
tary rifle 1t seeks to accomplish this
Durpose largely through affiliated organ
izations viz: state associations, regimen
tal associations civilian rifle clubs, col
| iege rifle clubs and school-boy rifle clubs
, Most of the states already have state as
I sociations and | have organized here the
; Utah State Rifle association. 1t should
he of much use in accomplishing the pro-
motion OF rifle practice In Utah.
"Rifle practice has taken a very de-
cided stem forward in this country during
+he mast wear or two. The great national
rifle matches of the United States were
held this year at Camp Perry. Ohio. over
! 900 contestants were present forty-eigh'
teams of twelve men each. representing
respectively the infantry of the army, the
cavalry of the army. the navy, marine
corps, naval academy and forty,three
states and territories competed Utah was
moi represented in this match, but / an
assured that she will be, In the one which
will take place next year.
After the conclusion of this match thf
National Rifle association took to Otta-
wa, Canada. a team of American rifle
men to compete against teams from can
ada, Australia and England for the cele-
brated plama long range rifle trophy. The
American team finished first in the cor
test. breaking every worlds record FOL
similar conditions. The result was es
pecially gratifying to all Americans mas
| nc ha -xn~aa
tary arms Of the respective countries anC
also that the American team finished fir
ing at every range from twenty-one tc
thirty-one minutes before the other con-
testants. An additional cause for gratifi-
cation was the fact that the teams from
the other countries were acknowledged tC
be the best which had ever been sent ou'
from them"