The Washington herald., 1908-01-06
INFANTRY MAY RIDE
President Wants All Captains
TO Be HOrSemen.
SUGGESTS REMOUNT DEPOTS
Asks Secretary Taft 10 Try to Secure
Legislation i'm Accordance with
tee Report Made by General Bell
on Usage in Foreign Armies.

on sage In Foreign Armies.
President Roosevelt has broken another
precedent by transmitting directly to the
chairman of the Committee on Military
Affairs of the House of Representatives,
a special report on the horsemanship tests
prescribed by foreign governments for the
training Of their army officers.
This report was prepared by Maj. Gen.
eral ]. Franklin Bell, chief of staff of the
army, at the request of the President,
/ TO demonstrate that the riding tests of
the United States army were not more
severe than those required by foreign
governments. The President has sent also
/ TO the Secretary of War a letter direct
ling him to take any necessary steps to
/ bring TO the attention Of Congress the
/ necessity of legislation 10 make infantry
captains mounted officers and TO establish
Iemount depots for the army in accord
lance with the recommendations Of Quar-
/ termaster General Aleshire.
The Presidents Letter.
/ In submitting the horsemanship report
ito the House Military Affairs Committee,
/ the President said:
''Sir-I transmit herewith report from
the chief of STAFF, which is seIf-eXplan-
atory,
/ The field officers of our army cannot
/ be held exclusively responsible for the
poor riding which has been frequently
/ observed among them. The quality Of our
/ horses does not equal that Of mounts
used in foreign armies. Furthermore. all
/ the infantry captains in European armies
are mounted, and an infantry officer in our
Iservice has little opportunity to practice
riding until be becomes a field officer.
'The only practicable way in which
we can improve our military mounts is
/ TO pursue the method adopted i'm foreign
/ armies of obtaining remounts. They pur-
chase young horses. send them 10 re-
mount stations. where they are trained
I for about "a year, and finally assigned 10
/ the service, Well broken and trained for
military use. This has proven to be
/ cheaper In the end, by making the horses
/ last much longer in the service.
| Il have instructed the Secretary of War
( 10 take such steps as may be necessary
TO bring 20 the attention Of your COM
mittee the desirability Of legislation for
mounting infantry captains and for the
+ establishment of remoUBt depots II is
/ hoped that the military committees Of
/ both houses OF Congress may give favor
able consideration 10 these two meas
ures, which are essential IN improving
/ horsemanship in our army and i'm rails
/ ing the standard OF efficiency throughout
the service Sincerely yourc
THEODORE ROOSEVELT"
Gen. Bells Report.
/ Gen. Bells report 10 the President SAYS.
/ in part.
THE general rule prevailing in Euro
/ pcan armies requires all mounted officers
/ OF every grade to keep both themselves
and their mounts in iii condition for war.
/ The French, German. Austrian. and tia
/ liam armies all maintain military schools
ard Institutions Including schools OF
/ eqUjtationl for the instruction Of officers.
( and in all OF them. as a rule student off
! GERS are instructed i'm riding and horse
/ manship. Their conditions of service are
no different from ours. and their organi-
/ zation and system OF training is such that
/ the daily mounted work Of nearly all
/ mounted officers affords ample oppor-
| tunity for practical tests iu hOrSemanship.
/ The European idea appears 10 be that
1 daily service is a daily examination, that
/ as an officer is constantly under the
/ orders and observation OF his superiors
! a special test would be superflu0us for
/ his efficiency report, showing the opinion
/ Of his superiors as 10 his military capac-
/ ity and aptitude in general. and horse
/ manship in particular completely states
/ the case. Division, brigade regimental
and battalion commanders are an present
/ at drills each observing the performance
| OF their respective subordinates. as re-
ports are required Of all comanders each
/ year upon the efficiency OF subordinates
| in all respects. Division comanders
J whose reports upon an officer largely
determines the views Of the War Depart
/ ment as 10 his merits generally base
/ their opinions upon their own impres-
/ siOns supplemented by those of brigade
/ regimeutal, and other commanding Off
/ GERS. The great maneuvers are the prac-
teal testing fields Of all officers Eff
/ cheney reports are usually made after the
! maneUyerS each year. Should a division
/ commander report field officer deficient
! in horsemanship at any time, he is
/ either assigned 10 some kind Of duty not
acquiring physical activity-practjcaiI
! shelved-or becomes subject to transfer
! TO the retired list without any further
| examination or tests.
In United States Army.
/ "In our own army we annually make
efficiency reports ON all oficers-except
/ generals-but it is impossible TO establish
conditions of the service such as exist IN
/ the large standing armies Of Europe. or
/ to apply their methods under our law
"CTOss-C0untTy riding to hounds is COM
mon in all European armies, and all
mounted officers participate In at least
! two European aTmies-those Of Germany
and France-special courses of training in
eqUitatiOn and hOrsemanship have been
/ established for field officers. with q view
I to keeping them under observation sufi-
ciently long TO test and select them for
promotion to active commands.
In the French army there are no ex-
aminations for promotion whatever. in
the Italian army portion of the captains
only are examined, but in both these
armies ample facilities and opportunities
exist for determining the knowledge and
practical efficiency of officers at all times.
As Il rule. the degree of efficiency In rid
ing and hOrseman5hiD of officers is as
well known to everybody as their person
ality, and at all inspections and maneu-
vers officers deficient in riding are re-
ported. In the French. German. and Aus
trian armies, only lieutenants Of foot
/ troops of the line are not required To ride.
as all captains are mounted officers"
CrOss-cOuntry Riding.
The report says that all French cavalry