New-York tribune., 1910-06-25
MILITIA OPPOSE MARCH
Parade Was Approved by the
Mayors Committee.
NEEDLESS, SAYS GEN. HENRY
Gaynor Tells Commander Raynor
He Believes Most Guards
men Favor Parade.


! national guard on July as a part of the
"sane celebration which many citizens de-
sire, and which the Mayor is earnestly
promoting. The suggestion made yesterday
| by The Tribune that Governor Hughes
might be asked to rescind the order for
the parade, provided substantial opposi-
| ton should be found in the public mind
met with pretty general appreciation among
prominent citizens and even with some
members of the Mayors committee on
sane Fourth, whose opinions on the sub
| ject were sought yesterday
The parade was approved by the Mayors
! committee at a recent meeting, and the
| official order calling upon all the troops
to march, with the exception of the Sth
Artillery. which is detailed for duty for
| the coast defence, was issued from the
rational guard headquarters at Albany
by Adjutant General George Albert Win
gate on Tuesday.
| Although the guardsmeu themselves are
| reluctant to voice a complaint against the
! order, more from a sense of discipline than
anything else there is no doubt the pa
rade on a holiday they might enjoy is
| looked upon as needless and distasteful
General Henry Against Parade.
! General Nelson H. Henry, who until his
| appointment as Surveyor of the Port was
adjutant general Of the state, said yester
! day that he heard of the plan for the
first time at the police parade in May.
| He was here as a guest of the depart
ment.
Mayor Gaynor spoke to me at the time
about Fourth of July parade, and 1 told
! him that no order more distasteful to the
! guard could very well be conceived" the
Surveyor said. "The stand The Tribune
has taken is just. There are other times
when the national guard can be seen TO
| advantage The lack OF complaint from
the guardsmen does not mean that they are
| Indifferent 1t shows the high grade of
discipline they are under. Not one man
in hundred would express his opinion.
1t wouldn't be military
IAN unfortunate mistake has been made.
There is no realization of what the ma
tional guard is to-day, the seIf-sacrifce
the willingness to go to any Inconvenience
for the good of the service-none not close
to the fine body of men constituting the
state soldiery knows of these things. Most
| or the men get no other vacations than
the days of field service, when discipline
is strict. | am Ioath TO say much about
this, for | am still member of the guard,
the feeling in the service about the propo-
sition to parade on the Fourth of July"
leading member of the Mayors COM
mittee intimated yesterday that the COM
mittee's approval of Fourth of July pa
rade was given perhaps without sufficient
deliberation at the time. He said the
project had been carried through on a wave
OF enthusiasm when IL was suggested by
Major General Roe, with little further con-
sideration.
| Il believe the demonstration would be
sufficiently appropriate and impressive
| without the national guard parade" he
said. Personally. can't see the neces-
sity for it,
Depiores Military Show.
| f. Ross Appleton, former member of the
Municipal Civil Service Commission. was
candidly opposed to the national guard pa
rade
In my opinion. il would be an imposition
| on the men who had to march," he said,
"and I believe it wcsld result in injury TO
the school children and hundreds of other
persons who would be expected to stand on
the street to watch the show on such hot
day as we usually experience on the 9TH
THE idea that many people have that
the Fourth of July is a time TO celebrate
our victory over the mother country with
military show is wrong. The thought that
1t is a celebration of the birth of a new
nation should rather be inculcated in the
minds of the children, and this can be bet
ter accomplished by more peaceful object
lessons and exercises in the schooiroom
rather than on the curbstone. In my opin-
ion, it is better to teach the children that
We don't need an army or a navy and are
big enough and strong enough to get along
without them.
Il believe we should turn our attention
to civic celebrations rather than the mill
tary, and look forward to our future
| achievements as a country, instead of re-
Iverting to past victories in warfare /
think we have reached the crest of arma-
ment, and that the true patriotism Of the
future lies in desire to preserve universal
peace.
On the other hand. Henry Clews, the
banker. said yesterday that he thought the
military parade would be good thing
IF we keep on cutting out all the old
time forms of celebrating the Fourth in
order TO make it sane he said, soon we
won't have any celebration left. I suppose
it is all right tc cut out the fireworks, be-
cause they are dangerous, but believe the
national guard parade would be inspir-
ing sight for the children and most appro-
pirate in perpetuating the memory of that
day. 1t may be hard on the soldiers to
march in warm weather, but they wouldn't
mind the temperature or the weather in
time Of war and why in the parade? But.
of course3 it is easy for me to say that, for
| I don't have to march
Guardsmen Are Bitter.