Gilpin observer., 1907-12-05

| has been made TO prepare medical
| corps of sufficient size to prevent the
| repetition of the same disaster on n
| much larger scale IL we should be
| engaged in serious conflict.
| But the medical department is not the
| only department for which Increased pro-
| vision should be made. The rate of pay
| for the officers should be greatly in
| creased; there is no higher type of citizen
| than the American regular officer. and he
| should have a fair reward for his ad-
| mirable work. There should be rela-
| lively even greater increase in the pay for
| the enlisted men. An especial provision
| should be made for establishing grades
/ equivalent to those of warrant officers in
the navy, which should be open to tho
enlisted men who serve sufficiently long
and who do their work well. Inducements
should be offered sufficient to encourage
really good men to make the army life
occupation. The prime needs of our pres
ent army is to secure and retain compe-
tent noncommissioned officers. This diff
Guilty rests fundamentally the ques-
| ton of pay. The noncommssioned officer
| does not correspond with an unSk1lIed Ia
! borer: he corresponds to the best type of
skilled workman or to the subordinate
official in civil institutions. Wages have
greatly increased in outside occupations
| in the last 40 years and the pay of tho
soldier. like the pay of the officers, should
be proportionately increased. The first
sergeant of a company, II a good man.
must be one of such executive and ad-
ministrative ability, and such knowledge
of his trade, to be worth far more than
we at present pay him. The same is true
Of the regimental sergeant major. These
men should be who had fully re>
solved to make the army a life occupa-
ton and they should be able to look for
ward to ample reward; while only men
properly qualified should be given
chance to secure these final rewards Tho
increase over the present pay need not
| be great in the lower grades for the first
| one two enlistments, but the increase
| should be marked for the noncommfs-
stoned officers of the upper grades who
| serve long enough to make it evident that
| they intend to stay permanently in tho
| army. while additional pay should be
| given for high qualifications in target
| practice.
Among the officers there should be
severe examinations to weed out the
| unfit up to the grade of major. From
that position on appointments should
| be solely by selection and it should bs
| understood that a man of merely av-
| erage capacity could never get beyond
| the position of major. while every man
| who serves in any grade a certain
! length of time prior to promotion to
| the next grade without getting the
! promotion to the next grade should be
| 'orthwith retired"
President Sees Need of
Largely Increased Navy.
| The president asks for a continuous
J increase in the navy. and asks present
congress for appropriations for four
new battleships. and says:
we need always to remember THAI
in time of war the navy is not to be
| used to defend harbors and sea-cOast
| cities; should perfect our system Of
| coast Notifications. The only efficient
use for the navy is for offense. The
only way in which it can efficiently pro-
tect our own coast against the possible
action of a foreign navy is by destroy
| ing that foreign navy. For defense
against a hostile fleet which actually
| attacks them the coast cities must de-
| pend upon their forts, mines, torpedoes.
| submarines and torpedo boats and de-
| stroyers. All of these together are ef-
| fcient for defensive purposes. but they
| in no way supply the place of a thor
| oughly efficient navy capable of acting
on the offensive; for parrying never yet
| won fight. 1t can only be won by
| hard hitting. and an aggressive sea-go-
| ing navy alone can do this hard hitting
of the offensive type. But the lortS
and the like are necessary so thar tho
navy may be footloose. In time of war
| there is sure to be demand, under pres
| sure of fright. for the ships to be scat
tered so as to defend all kind of ports
| Under penalty of terrible disaster, this
| demand must be refused. The ships
must be kept together. and their OBJ
| jective made the enemies fleet IL
X
modern navy will venture to attack
them. long the foe has in exist
| ence hostile navy of anything like
| the same size efficiency. But unless
| there exists such a navy then the forti
| fications are powerless by themselves
to secure the victory. For of course
| the mere deficiency means that any
resolute enemy can at his leisure COM
bine all his forces upon one point with
the certainty that he can take II.
| Gives Reasons for Despatch
| Ot Fleet to the Pacific.
| Until our battle fleet is much larger
| than at present 1t should never be split
| into detachments so far apart that they
| could not in event of emergency be
speedily united. Our coast line is ON
the Pacific just much on the At
lantic. The interests of California
| Oregon and Washington are as en-
| phatically the interests of the whole
union those of Maine and New York.
| of Louisiana and Texas. The battle
| fleet should now and then be moved to
| the Pacific. just at other times 10
should be kept in the Atlantic. When
the isthmian canal is built the transit
| of the battle fleet from one ocean to
| the other will be comparatively easy.
| Until 1t Is built 1 earnestly hope that
| the battle fleet will be thus shifted be-
| tween the two oceans every year or
two. The Workmanship on all our
ships has improved phenomenally dur
| ing tne last HNe years Ontil Witnlu
| the last two or three years IL was not
| possible to train a battle feet in squad
| ron maneuvers under service conditions
and II is only during these last two or
three years that the training under
these conditions has become really ef-
fective. Another and most necessary
stride in advance is now being taken.
The battle fleet is about starting by
the Straits of Magellan to visit tho
Pacific coast. Sixteen battleships arc
going under the command of Rear Ad-
miral Evans. while eight armored
cruisers and two other battleships wiH
meet him at San Francisco. whittier
certain torpedo destroyers are also go
ing. No fleet of such size has ever
made such a voyage. and II will be OF