The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1914-09-21
ENGINEER CORPS
OF THE ARMY
Most Efficient Branch of the Public
Abused by Cheap and Time
Serving Men
Special TO the Starr


harbor appropriation bill, which has
run the gauntlet of senatorial oppo-
sition IN some quarters for nearly
three months, Senator Joseph 4.
Ransdell, OF louisiana. paid a glow
ing tribute to the work of the engi-
.neere corps of the army in connection
with waterway improvements This
arm of the military service is rarely
in the public prints except where
some great achievement is accom-
plished, like the building of the Pana-
ma canal, the exploration of unknown
regions, or the mapping of vast
tracts of land for the use of man
kind
Turnout the long and wearisome
debate on the river AMI harbor bill,
a debate that has almost tried the
patience of the most conservative
Senator, much has been said about
the engineer corps. not necessarily
in terms of criticism, but in covert
insinuations that have rankled and
left exceeding sore spots.
1t was these faint praises" for
the honor graduates of the greatest
military school in the world that led
Senator Ransdell, in his speech in
defense of the river and harbor APP
preparation bill, to pay his compli-
ments to one of the most useful and
most necessary branches of the mil
itary establishment.
! Some of the best names in our
history belong to the engineer corps, .
said the junior Senator from Louis
lama. Meade and Lee, who fought
at Gettysburg against each other,
were members of the engineer corps.
They were the leaders of forty mem
beers OF that corps who attained COM
manding rank in the war between
the states. Some of the greatest gem
trails ON both sides were engineer Of
ficers. Joe Johnson. Mcpherson,
Beauregard and Wright, and many
others whose names are emblazoned
on the pages of our national HISTORY.
Coming down to the present time,
Senator Ransdell called the roll of
engineer officers who had made i'm
perishable names for themselves in
connection with the building of the
Panama canal Col. George w Goe-
thals, like "Abou ben Adhem,'' lead
Ding an the rest in that great galaxy
With the name of Col Goethals Sem
ator Ransdeli coupled those of Col.
,sibert, the late Col. GaiIlard and Col.
Hodges, whom, he said, acquired the
training and experience which enalbl-
ed them to construct the greatest en-
gineering feat of all ages from their
Itntimate and personal association
with river and harbor work.
Would any American dare inti-
Innate for an instant that Col Goe-
thals would have favored a project
in which there was pork or graft p
| would like to see the man who
would make that suggestion about
Goethals, or Sibert or Gaillard or
Hodges" said Senator Ransdell, .'yet
i these men were connected with vari-
Gus and sunday river and harbor
projects long before their govern
ment sent them to Panama to build
that mighty achievement of man s
ingenuity. !"
i The engineer corps. which is prob
iably the least SNOWY of the varied
arms of the military establishment,
but which has at least as much to its
credit as any other branch ofthe SER
vice, represents nearly every state in
the union; the states not represented
in the corps as at present constituted
being Rhode Island, South Dakota
land New Mexico, although Little
Rhodey' has been most ably repre-
scented in the past
One of the rather remarkable
things in connection with the present
engineer corps is that Oregon, Della.
ware and New Hampshire have more
representative in the corps thar
they have members in Congress, &
situation that may never occur again
Since the engineers in charge o
rivers and harbors have reported ia
xorably upon 329 of the 331 items il
the river and harbor bill, which has
been kicked about like a football 70
the past three months in the Senate
there can be no denial of the fac
that those who charge that the bill
; is full OF pork are at the same tins
i, charging that the army engineer
| are either corrupt or inefficient.