The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-12-22

association should be organized is ques- ton still open It seems to be desirable that the banks which would own the as sociation should in the main manage it It will be all agency of the banks 10 act for them, and they can be trusted better than anybody else chiefly to conduct it It is mainly bankers work. But there must be some form of government super vision and ultimate control, and 1 favor a reasonable representation of the govern ment in the management. l entertain nc fear of the introduction of politics or oi any undesirable influences from a proper ly measured government representations
 l trust that all banks of the country possessing the requisite standards will be placed upon a footing of perfect equality of opportunity. Both the national sys- tenn and the state system should be fairly recognized. leaving them eventually tc coalesee if that shall prove to tbe ;heir tendency But such evolution cannot de velop any advantages of opportunity over those of the other system. And l trust also that the new legislation will carefully and completely protect and assure the Ill., diViduality and the independence of each bank, to the end that any tendency there iudA eyer QG lONdIu d NoAAooAlNett4o4A aA hAAS money or banking power of the nation shall be defeated.
 It will always be possible, of course, to correct any features of the new law which may in practice prove to be unwise; so that while this law is sure to be en- acted under conditions of unusual knowl- edge and authority, it also will include. it is well to remember, the possibility of future amendment
 With the present prospects of this long awaited reform encouraging us, 1t would be singularly unfortunate if this none tary question should by any chance be- come d party issue. And l sincerely hope it will nor. The exceeding amount oT consideration it has received from the people of the nation has been wholly non- partisan: and the Congress set it's non- partisan seal upon it when the monetary commission was appointed. In commend ing the question to the favorable consid- erotion of Congress, 1 speak for, and in the spirit of the great number of my fel- low citizens who without thought of party or partisarship feel with remarkable ear nestness that this reform is necessary to the interests of all the people.
 The War Department
 There Is now before Congress a bill, the purpose of which is to increase the effi-
 
 army. It contains four principal features: First, a consolidation of the general staff with the adjutant generals and the in spector generals departments; second, a consolidation of the quartermasters de- partment with the subsistence and the pay third, the creation of an army service corps: and fourth, an eXten- sion of the enlistment period from three to five years.
 With the establishment of an army corps, a. s proposed in the bill, I am thor oLghiy in accord and am convinced that the establishment of such corps VIII result in a material economy and a very great increase of efficiency in the army. It has repeatedly been recommended by mc and my preeedeeessors. l also be- lieVe that a consolidation of the stair corps can be made with resulting in crease in efficiency and economy, but not along the lines provided in the bill under consideration.
 I am opposed to any plan the result of which would be to break up or inter- fera with the essential principles Of the detail system in the staff corps estab- Iished by the act of February ?, 1901, and I am opposed to any plan the result of which would be to give to the officer se- lected as chief of staff or to any other member of the general staff corps greater permanency of office than he now has. UEder the existing law neither the chief of staff nor any other member of the gen. eral staff corps can remain in office for period of more than four years, and there must be an interval of two years tween successive tours of duty.
 The bill referred to provides that cer- tain persons shall become permanent members of the general staff corps and that certain others are subject to re- detail without an interval of two years. Such provision is fraught with danger to the welfare of the army, and would prac- tically nullify the main purpose of the law creating the general staff.
 In making the consultations no re- duction should be made in the total num- ber of officers of the army, of whom there are now too few to perform the duties imposed by law. I have in the past recommended an increase in the number of line officers by go in order to provide sufficient officers to perform all classes of staff duty and to reduce the number of line officers detached from session increased the total number of of fcers by POO, but this is not enough. Promotion in the line of the army is too slow. Officers do not attain com na anding rank at an age early enough properly to exercise it. It would be a 1ristake further to retard this already slow promotion by throwing back into the line of the army number of high rarking officers to be absorbed as is pro- viGed in the proposed plan of conso;iaa- tion.
 Another feature of the bill which l be- leve to be a mistake is the proposed in- crease in the term of enlistment from three to five years I believe it would be better to enlist men for six years, release them at the end of three years from active service, and put them in reserve for the remaining three years Establishments should be largely confined to the commissioned officers and other en- listed men in the skilled grades. This plan, by the payment of a comparatively small compensation during the three years of reserve, would keep a large body of men at the call of the government, trained and ready for service, and able to meet any eXigency.
 The army of the United States is in good condition. It showed itself able to meet an emergency in the successful mob- ilization of an army division of from 15. .0OC to 2O,OO0 men, which took place along the border of Mexico during the recent dis turbanees in that country. The marvelods freedom from the ordinary camp diseases of typhoid fever and measles is referred to in the report of the secretary of war and shows such an effectiveness in the sanitary regulations and treatment of the medical cOrpS and in the discinIina ,tt