Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1912-10-30

Ga November !, SCh0fich Barracks
will either be- without post quarter
master which is impracticabIe-- o:
else one Of the officers Of the recently
organized quarteTmastcr corps now
stationed here will have to take sta
ten at Leilehua-which is inCOnVen
lent In the absence OF orders from
the War Department assigning a re-
gulafy detailed Quarternastcr to the
post, the Department of Hawaii will
probably have 10 take the initiative,
for the army bill is plain on the point
that no regimsRtal QuarterHaster can
act for other organizations than his
own. and under this ruling Captain
Watkins. the present post quarter
master, becomes ineligible for office Oh
that date.
II might be possible to relieve Zap
tain Watkins as regimental quarter
master and continue him as post quar-.
termaster, but at best this arrange
ment could be only temporary.
The idea Of the military legislators
is evidently to keep regimental quar-
termaStcrs and commissarics free to-
Immediately take the field with their
own organizations, and to do this they
must be kept clear of the accumula-
ted business of big post. An example
Of this very thing occurred in the re-
cent maneuyers, when Captain Wat
kinS was unable to accompany the
Second Infantry into the field, being
eft behind in command Of the post
and with a vast amount OF property
besides that belonging to his own
regiment in his charge.
OF the five officers of the new quar-
termaster corps now stationed in
this department, the choice to take
permanent station at Schofield mar
rows down to two, Capt. ID. B. Case,
and Captain E. H. Cooke The latter
is soon to be sent back to the line of
the army, so this leaves Captain Case,
q permanent member of the corps, the
probable selection, unless the, War
Department orders all additional quar-
termaster here. =
Case Will BE Busy.
Captain e. Fl. Cooke is another Of
Seer who has knotty problem to
solve in connection with the consoIi.
dation of the three departments AS
pay officer of the department, all his
funds are subject to his cheque as
e. H. Cooke. Paymaster, U. S
Army" On November ! he will no
longer be paymaster, and will not be
able to sign his own cheques. OF
course there are ways of getting round
this Eobstacle, but it instances some
of the puzzles that are constantly
coming up over consolidation.
s Until the pres ent consolation of the
staff corps Captain Case has been an
officer of the substance department.
and has been acting as depot commits
sary at Honolulu with title of assistant
10 the chief commissary of the West
ern Division. He is now an officer Of
the Department of Hawaii, under che
chief quartermaster and can act as
or all three. If he
takes station at Schofield Bar
racks he will probably have
TO fill all three positions, and his wotk
will be no sinecure.
The policy of the War Department
during the last few months has been
to send regular aquartermasters to
army posts, so that when the new law
goes into effect on the first of next
month the post commissaries and
could return to their
own organizations However, Soho
field Barracks, the largest post in the
army, has been overlooked, and to
comply with the law the Department
OF Hawaii will have to order one OF
the quartermasters on duty here to
that station. IL subsequent orders
sending another officer to the post are.
received, no harm will have been done
but now the supposition Is that with
i've of the quartermaster corps attach
Ell to the department, the War De-
partment considers Hawaii amply
and will expect the work to
he split up between them.
Major Cheatham, as chief quarter
master, unquestionably belongs with
headquarters; Captain
is needed on the construction
1000 tons old-crop beet for prompt
shipment from Hamburg, at los. 115d.,