The Birmingham age-herald., 1910-12-07

being soldiers and of taking care of them
 selyes so as to render effective service
 This need of army officers can only be
 supplied by provisions of law authoriz-
 ing the appointment of greater number
 of army officers than are needed to sup
 ply tfe commands of regular army troops
 now enlisted in the service There are
 enough regular army officers to com
 manc the troops now enlisted. but Con-
 gress has authorized, and the department
 bas followed the example of Congress and
 exercised the authority conferred by de-
 tailing these army officers to duty otheh
 than that of the command of troops. For
 instance. there are a large number or
 army officers assigned to duty with mili-
 tary colleges or In colleges in which
 military training is given. Then large
 number of officers are assigned to gen.
 eral staff duty, and there re various
 other places to which army officers can
 be md are legally assigned. which take
 them away from their regiments and
 companies. In order that the militia of
 each state should be properly drilled and
 made more like the regular army, regu
 lar army officers should be detailed to
 assist the adjutant general of each state in the supervision of the state militia:
 but this Is impossible unless provision is made by Congress for a very consider
 able increase in the number of company and field officers of the army. A bill
 was pending in the last session of Con
 gress for this purpose, and I earnestly
 hope that, in the interest Of the proper
 development of a republican army, an army. small in the time of peace but pos sible of prompt and adequate enlarge
 ment in time of war; shall Aecome pos sible under the laws of the United States.
 A bill, the strong argument for which | cal be based on the ground quite simi- | lar to that of the increased officers bill,
 is the bill for the increase of 60 in the
 army engineers. The army engineers arc largely employed in the expenditure of the moneys appropriated for the iini i provement of rivers and harbors. Thif
 in addition to their military duties, which l includes the construction of Notifications l both of our coasts and in our depend
 encies, together with the number used
 in the Panama canal work, requires many
 mere engineers than the army has; and
 this shortness of supply in such officers delays important river and harbor work and important fortiication work. I earn
 estly recommend the passage of this
 bill, which passed the House at the last session and is now pending in the Sen ate
 | Fortifcations
 | I have directed that the estimates for | appropriation for the improvement of | coast defensessin the United States should l be reduced to a minimum, while those l for the completion of the needed forti- | fcations at Corregidor in the Philippine | islands and at Pearl Harbor in the Ha- weiian islands, should be expendited as much as possible. The proposition to | make Olongapo and Subig Bay the naval base for the Pacific was given up, and l it Is to be treated merely as a supply | station, while the Notifications In the Philippines are to be largely confined to | Corregidor island and the adjacent islands which command entrance to Manila bay and which are being rendered impreg- nable from land and sea attack. The Pacific naval base has been transferred | to Pearl Harbor in the Hawaiian islands, This necessitates the heavy fortifcation of the harbor and the establishment of an important military station near Hon. ollllu. I urge that all the estimates made bv the war department for these pur- noses be approved by congressional ap- propriation.
 Philippine Islands
 During the last summer, at my request, fthe Secretary of War visited the Philip nine islands and has described his trip in his report. He found the islands In a state of tranquility and growing pros
 perity. due largely to the change in the | tariff laws, which has opened the mar kets of America to the products of the Philippines, and has opened the Philip nine markets to American manufactures. The rapid increase in the trade between tha two countries Is shown in the follow ing table,
 Philippine Exports, Fiscal Years 19OS-1910 (Exclusive of gold and silver)