The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1908-12-09

South America, the battle feet has
been received on its practice voyage
around the world The American Gov
eminent can not too strongly express
its appreciation of the Astounding and
generous hospitality shown our ships
in every port they visited
THE ARMY,
/ AS regards the Army I call atten-
ton to the fact that while our junior
officers and enlisted men stand very
high, the present system of promotion
by seniority results in bringing into
the higher grades many men of medi-
ocre capacity who have but a short
time to serve No man should regard
ii as his vested right to rise to the
highest rank in the Army any more
than in any other profession. 1t is
a curious and by no means creditahle
| fact that there should be so often a
failure on the part of the public and
| its representatives to understand the
great need, from the standpoint of the
service and the Nation, of refusing to
promote respectable, elderly incom-
petents. The higher places should be
! given to the most deserving men
without regard to seniority; at least
! seniority should be treated as only
one consideration. In the stress of
modern industrial competition no
| business firm could succeed if those
responsible for its management were
chosen simply on the ground that
they were the Oldest people in its en-
p1oyment; yet this is the course adj
vocated as regards the army, and re-
quired by law for all grades except
those of general officer. AS a matter
of fact, all of the best officers in the
highest ranks of the army are those
who have attained their present posi-
ton wholly or in part by a process of
selection.
The scope of retiring boards should
be extended so that they could con-
slider general unfitness to command
for any cause. in order to secure a
far more rigid enforcement than at
present in the elimination of officers
for mental, physical or temperament
al disabilities. But this plan is rec
commended only if the Congress does
not see fit to provide what in my
judgment is far better; that Is, for
selection in promotion, and for elm
ination for age. officers who fail to
attain a certain rank by certain age
should be retired-for instance, if a
man should not attain field rank by
the time he is IS he should of course
be placed on the retired list. General
officers should be selected as at pres
ent, and one-third of the other pro-
motions should be made by selection,
the selection to be made by the Pres
ident or the Secretary of War from
a list of at least two candidates pro-
posed for each vacancy by board of
officers from the arm of the service
from which the promotion is to be
made. A bill is now before the Con-
gress having for its object to secure
the promotion of officers to various
grades at reasonable ages through a
process of selection, by boards of Of
fcers, of the least efficient for retire
ment with a percentage of their pay
depending upon length of service. The
bill, although not accomplishing ALI
that should be done is long step in
the right direction; and I earnestly
recommend its passage, or that of at
more completely effective measure
The cavalry arm should be reorgan-
lied upon modern lines. This is ar
arm in which 1t is peculiarly neces-
sary that the field officers should not
be old The cavalry is much more
difficult to form than infantry and it
should be kept up to the maximum
both in efficiency and in strength, for
1t can not be made in a hurry. At
present both infantry and artillery
are too few in number for our needs
Especial attention should be paid to-
development of the machine gun. A.
general service corps should be es-
tablished. As things are now the av--
erage soldier has far too much labor
of nonmilitary character to perform.
Now that the organized militia, the
National Guard. has been incorporat-
ed with the army as part of the ma
tiona1 forces, it behooves the Gov
eminent to do every reasonable thing
In its power to perfect its efficiency.
1t should be assisted in its instruc-
ton and otherwise aided more liber-
ally than heretofore The continu--
ous services of many well-trained reg
ular officers will be essential in this
connection. Such officers must be-
specially trained at service schools
best to qualify them as instructors of
the National Guard. But the detail
ing of officers for training at the SER =
vice schools and for duty with the
National Guard entails detaching
them from their regiments which are
already greatly depleted by detach'
ment of officers for assignment to,
duties. prescribed by acts of the Con-
gress.
A bill is now pending before the
Congress creating a number Of extra
officers to be trained as instructors
of National Guard and assigned to
that duty. In case of war it will be-
of the utmost Importance to have a.
large number of trained officers to-
use for turning raw levies into good
troops.
There should be legislation to pro-