The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1910-06-01
TO RETIRE VOLUNTEER OFFICERS.

| ucHC Wnlcn Is very StrenuOuSly 0p
posed, TO put all the surviving volun
teer officers of the War of the Rebellion
on the retired list. The purpose Of this
proposition, Of course, is to give those
officers larger pay than the general
pension laws would allow.
1t seems to us that those who oppose
this proposition have the better of the
argument. The volunteer officers were
in no sense on a par with the regular
officers. The distinction was kept in
view and in the laws and regulations
| throughout, especially in the matter of
promotions. An officer might be a ma
Jor-gencral Of volunteers and only n
captain or even lieutenant in the
regular army, To retire volunteer Of
ticers as of the rank which they held in
the volunteer service would, there
fore, be a clear injustice to the Off
GERS of the regular army, unless in
few very exceptional cases.
Nor is there any reason why the line
of demarcation between the two kinds
OF officers should be broken down, es-
pecially at this late day, for the benefit
of those volunteer officers. They arc
doubtless all on the pension roll now,
either by virtue of general or special
acts. We do not see why discrimi
nation should be made now in their ia
vor, There is no discrimination in the
pension laws as between the soldiers
bearing muskets, no matter what diff |
ference in pay was enjoyed during the |
war. They are all treated alike in gen
eral legislation, and properly so. Spe-
cial cases are taken care of under spe |
clal laws, and many thousands Of such |
special eases have been taken care of |
by this sort Of special legislation.
AT no time during the war were the
volunteer officers on par with the of
icers of the regular army, speaking of
.hom as mass. The regular officers
we're trained especially for their work,
md meant to devote their lives to mill.
AIRY duty. 1t was not so as 70 either
'oint with the volunteer officers, The
egular officers understood their bust
less. They knew how to take care of
heir men. They selected the best
amps for them and saw that they got
heir proper rations and due allowances
# clothing. The volunteer officers were
lstlnctly below the regular officers in
thclency in all these matters. II was
ot their fault TO. be sure, but their
Misfortune, that their lack OF military
raining resulted to the disadvantage of
he men under their command as com
ared with the soldiers who were
nder regular officers It was
ot their fault that large mum.
ers OF enlisted men were perma-
emily disabled by disease and other I,
went TO their death because
the lack of knowledge and training of
he officers over them. The officers did
he best they could, Just as the men did !.
hey were all equally ill-iuformed as
the technical duties and the re. !,
nirements of the military profession. :
len subjected to needless exposures 4.
aught fevcrs. rheumatism, and other /.
-eventable diseases. The volunteer Of .
GERS were not to blame for this; they /.
&c not TO blame now; but it remains !.
lat If they had been better informed. .
large number of these disabled sol. s.
ers might have been preserved in q
,od health for duty. q
We say these things not in the least o
7 way Of criticism upon or reproach a
r the officers of the volunteer army. Il
hey were noble .len, just as the men IL
the volunteer ranks were, no more a,
II no less. We indulge in these re- tc
'ctions simply to show the difference p
tween their case and that of the of. &C
ers Of the regular army, and to show b.
e actual and positive difference be- fc
'een them, as well as to Indicate the IN
asons why we do not believe that d.
ese volunteers should be placed on hi
c retired list of the army. They N
yer belonged 'fin the army" proper, ri
ID have no real claim to be put in II dl