El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1915-10-09

I a demand IN civil life Tor men skilled
IN this kind Of work, which is
I thoroughly taught IN the saddIers'
Z school Of the army. at the Rock Island
] (llL)) Arsenal. here the enlisted men
learn how to make and repair harness
; and other horse equipments: also, how
/ TO care for sick horses. They take les
| sons IN practical horseshoeing.
Good Chance to Become Musicians
( II the young man desires to become
firSt-class musician, without having
/ for instruction, he may gain his object
I by enliSting in the army. But he will
! not be accepted as musical apprentice,
I so to speak unless he has a little
! knowledge OF music to start with. The
I army has 81 bands in all one being
/ attached TO each regiment. and no milf
! tary duties are required of the bands
/ men, except to play-unless the band be
/ mounted tas in the cavalry, in which
J case each man must take care of his
/ own horse. The enlisted men thus en-
| ployed are constantly under instruction
: by the chief musician Of the band. who
! of course, is an expert Honorably dis
| charged army bandsmen are always in
| demand in civil life.
These are only a few Of many
! branches of vocational training which
| offer themselves TO the bright young
| man who enlists in the army with a
/ definite ambition in view. The war de-
] partment, in fact, is doing its best
/ TO work out a plan under which the
! military service may become as far as
| possible school for the practical in
4
7 crafts as are useful in civil life. Re
! cruits are as rule hardly more than
/ boys To them IL is an enormous ad
| vantage If, when their terms Of en-
listment are over, they can go out into
! the world with a technical education
/ that viii enable them TO command
! profitable employment
Varied Opportunities Offered
Opportunities for such an education
/ are particularly varied IN the Signal
/ Corps, which might be described as q
body Of specialists. the duties under
/ taken by its personnel being technical
and professional in character. The
l young men enlisted in this branch Of
I the service learn to be skilled me
chanics, electricians wiremen. tele-
( graph operators. wireless operators.
Z cable men, photographers, aeronautic
experts, and chauffeurs.
Part Of the business Of the Signal
corps is the installation and opera
tion Of wireless, telephone systems,
and telegraph and cable lines and Of
! fees There is opportunity for the en-
listed man to become proficient in any
one Of these important professions
In many instances young men. after a
single enlistment in the corps. have
left il so well equipped with practical
and technical knowledge as to enable
them at once to command situations in
civil life at high salaries
Deep-Sea Gable Work.
Take deep-sea cable work for ex-
ampe- 1t is a trade all by itself One
/ enlisted man of the Signal corps, now
retired on half-pay. is employed by the
government at high salary as a
cable electrician" His retired pay is
Just so much extra money.
In Alaskan waters The Signal corps
has had formidable job OF deep
sea cable work to tackle. That is a
region Of volcanoes and earthquakes.
and every now and then the submarine
wire from Sitka to Valdez (Which COW
ers distance Of 500 miles, snaps some
where, ten OF IS miles Of cable being
Then the problem is TO find the severed /
ends. piece them out with a few miles |
OF fresh cable. and do some difficult J
splicing. perhaps in heavy sea way /
while for several hours the ship is
anNiOusly Unanswered in such wise as
TO avoid straining the electric rope. :
The radio" work is Of two kinds
% at wireless stations. and (2) in the !
field There are ten such stations in I
Alaska, which as well as the cables |
and telegraphs in that Arctic province, |
are operated by the Signal corps /
Others are located at large army posts, !
such as Fort Leavenworth and Fort /
Riley, and at the great forts along the !
seacosrs- The operators are enlisted /
men, whose business 1t is also to look l
after the mechanical and electrical /
equipments of the stations. It is like /
wise their duty TO operate the portable |
wireless outfits which. carried on /
muleback or wagon. accompany troops j
in the field. one such outfit has been |
installed on an aeroplane. and il is the /
4
sages from alOft while in flight
Get Airplane Experience.
Up 10 the present time the enlisted !
men Of the Signal corps have not been |
trained as pilots Of flying machines, |
this duty being assigned to officers. !
But they act as assistants. the soldier /
going along with the officer for the !
purpose Of making notes Of things j
seen. and drawing sketch-maps, while i
watching the behavior Of the engine, |
the gasoline supply, and the indicator
which shows how fast the prOpellers /
are revolving.
1t is absolutely necessary, by the /
way, that a man who attempts this /
sort of work shall not be subject TO sea-
sickness. For-as anybody knows who /
has flown-an airplane in flight is a
very unsteady craft tt is continually |
balancing from side TO side, first one 4
wing up and then the other. and. at the
same time, is constantly diving and ris-
ing, so that there is no comfort what
ever for a person afflicted with a SEN :
sitive stomach
The enlisted man in the Signal corps.
if assigned to such duty. learns all I
about the mechanical care Of flying ]
machines. and acquires an incidental /
training in the handling and repair
ing of gasoline engines. In any case he
will be taught how to make and repair.
as well as to operate, various kinds Of
electrical apparatus. This is an impor-
tant part of the instruction given in a
technical school maintained at Fort I
Leavenworth. At this scnoOl the soldier
students are called upon to tackle all /
sorts Of problems in the laboratory. |
They undergo regular examinations at
intervals, and on graduation receive !
certificates which are in effect diplo-
mas. The school just now is temperate |
" broken up, owing 70 the troubles ]
with Mexico. both teachers and pupils I
being in camp along the border.
Another Force OF Specialists.
There are only 1912 men in the Signal /
corps this being the limit OF its en- |
listed strength as fixed by law. Ac-
cOrdiEEly, a recruit desiring to enter |
this branch OF the service may not |
find a vacancy at the moment There
are plenty of other opportunities for
him elsewhere, however. He may, for
Instance, obtain an assignment TO the
Corps of Engineers. which is another
force Of specialists. In that corps
facilities will be placed at his disposal
'or the study Of civil and military en-
yineering. surveying, map-makinE.
typography, the installation of electric
power plants, the operation Of power
machinery, mason work, carpentry, and /
plumbing and pipe-fitting.
An admirable trade school for teach
ne these arts is permanently main
aimed at the Arsenal barracks. in the
f. q ha ms he Z