Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1910-12-06
WAR DEPARTMENT.
We Are Sadly In Need of More Of
ficers=Deals With Militia.


The war department has within it's
juriediction the management of the ar
my and in connection Herewith the
coast defenses. the government of the
dependencies Of the Philippines and of
Porto Rico, the recommendation of
plans for the improvement of harbors
and waterways and their execution
when adopted and. by virtue of an ex-
ecutive order, the supervision of the
construction of the Panama canal
The army of the United States is a
small body compared with the total
number Of people for the preservation
of whose peace and good order it is a
last recourse. The army now numbers
about $4,000 men, of whom about 49,
600 are engaged in the coast artillery
and detailed TO the management and
use of the guns in the forts and bat
teries that protect our coasts. The rest
OF the army. or about 10000. is the
mobile part of our national forces and
is divided into thirty-one regiments of
infantry, including the Porto Rican
regiment. fifteen regiments of cavalry,
six regiments of field artillery, a corps
of ordnance. of engineers and of sig
nal, a quartermaster's department, a
commiSsary department and a medical
corps.
The general plan for an army Of the
United States at peace should be that
of a skeleton organization with an ex-
cess OF trained officers and thus capa-
BILE of rapid enlargement by enlist
ments, TO be supplemented IN emer-
volunteer force. In some measure this
plan has been adopted in the very
large proportion of cavalry and field
artillery as compared with infantry in
the present army and on a peace basis.
An infantry force can be trained in six
months. cavalry or a light artillery
force not under one and half or two
years: hence the Importance of having
ready larger number of the more
skilled soldiers
The militia system. for which con
Gress by the constitution is authorized
to provide was developed by the so
called Dick law. under, which the dis
ciplinc. the tactics. the drill. the rank.
the uniform and the various branches
Of the militia are assimilated as far as
possible 10 those of the regular army.
Under the militia law, as the cOnsti-
tuition provides. the governors Of the
states appoint the militia officers, but
by appropriations from congress states
have Ueen induced to comply with the
rules Of assimilation between the reg
ular army and the militia. so that now
there is force. the efficiency of which
differs in different states. which could
be Incorporated under n single COM
mand with the regular army and which
for some time each year receives the
benefit of drill and maneuvers under
conditions approximating actual mill
tary service under the supervision Of
regular army officers.
In the army of the United States, in
addition to the regular forces and the
militia forces which may be summoned
to the defense of the nation by the
president, there is also the volunteer
force. which made up q very large part
of the army in the civil war and which
in any war of long continuance would
become it's most important constituent.
There is an act which dates from the
civil war, known as the volunteer act,
which makes provision for the enlist
ment Of volunteers in the army of the
United States in time of war. This
was found to he so defective in the
Philippine war that special act for
the organization of volunteer regiments
to take part in that war was adopted,
and it was much better adapted TO the
necessities of the case.
There is now pending in congress n
bill repeating the present volunteer act
and making provision for the organiza-
ton of volunteer forces in time OF
war which is admirably adapted 10
meet the exigencies which would be
then presented. The passage Of the
bill would not entail a dollars ex-
pense upon the government at this
time or in the future until war comes.
but when war does come the methods
therein directed are in accordance with
the best military judgment as TO what
they ought to be, and the act would
prevent the necessity for the discus
sion of new legislation and the delays
incident to its consideration and adop-
ton. 1 earnestly urge the passage of
this volunteer bill.
1 further recommend that congress
as early as practicable comprehen-
sive policy for the organization. mob
ilization and administration OF the reg
ular army. the organized militia and
the volunteer forces in the event OF
war.
Need For Additional Officers.
One of the great difficulties in the
prompt organization and mobilization
of militia and volunteer forces is the
absence of competent officers of the
rank of captain TO teach the new army
by the unit of the company the bust
ness of being soldiers and of taking
care Of Them elves so as to render eff
fective service This need of army
officers can only be supplied by pro-
visions of law authorizing the appoint
ment of greater number of army Of
flcers than are needed to supply the
of regular army troops now