Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1916-02-02
Important Battle Fr0,,t Lessons for Amer

; for America
for patriotism.
If we compare them with our ma
tional guard, what do we find? That
the national guardsmen. being Ameri-
cans and, therefore. quicker n more
adaptable, ought to learn faster. So
tional guard gets less drill than the
new army got in 10 days. The new
army drill was continuous. 1t was
carried ont in the fields under some
thing like war conditions-with the
very latest teachings of the experience
of the trenches at the call of the in
StructOrS.
Our national guard drills on armory
floors. 1t gets almos no chance to
go out in the open except in it's sum-
mer camps.
One national guardsman and an able
soldier, too, told me he learned more in
a month at Plattsburg last summer
than he had learned in all his five years
IN the guard. Again, it is not the
fault of the national guard; it is the
fault of the system. We go around
Robin Hoods barn to make a soldier.
The most practical people in the world.
we become theorists when we approach
the subject of war. Our national
- sNioO NAVY Lil6SSIl1llCSIk CldIlS,
but their splendid armories are occu-
pied only Il few nights a week. More
waste of material: more unnecessary
cost il. upkeeo which the aXpayer
must pay.
No Professional Soldiers in Europe
When people talk of IL regular army
of 250,0O0, they will please answer the
question:: Where are we to- get the
men? We have to advertise and plead
to get loo, OO0. and tai some pretty
poor physical types. A regular has to
serve for four years, and, if he is a
man of character, he is expected to
keep his word to the nation. But it
cause we are not patriotic. but because
the situation has become accepted
through the Indifference of the public.
He becomes an excellent automatic SOL
dier, an excellent shot-thanks to the
excellent training Of his officers and
the use of vast quantities OF service
ammunition. He is trained by COM
pantes n b~attalions-not as an army.
But. If o succeed in making a regu-
lar army of 100000 men and half OF
them reenlist, and a fourth reenlist
again, thus becoming professional SOL
diers for life, you have removed a large
force of adult males from taking any
part In civil occupations. This is un-
democratic, un-American. bad sociol-
ogy.
AANSI ~ HO
soldiers except the officers and the
noncommissioned officers. Every man.
after he has served his time, returns to
civil employment. II there be advan-
tage in the discipline n physical
training he receives It's application is
universal. Thus h army is the ma
tion-its blood, sinew. character.
The German army is renewed every
Two years; every year half of the pri-
Yates return to their homes and half
L CfO rf In nc pax xy vo0v,,,itp (orr,ro, -,:Al
her hard-and-fast military ideas, re-
qulres only two years to make a SOL
der suitable to the ideals of Prussian
militarism. We think four years are
necessary. We. who are the most
all peoples! If his country is ever
invaded, it will be better to have $780,
900 men In a composite force who have
had a years service. h only zoo, 900
who AVE had anywhere from four to
brid organization of four kinds of
troops. For, you must have numbers.
The day of the short battle front /.
over. Should an enemy ever land in
the United States with 10000 0 or $780,
900 men. he will cover a battle front
of anywhere from 100 to 200 miles. Any
small band of regulars. however brave.
must be and o%utflanked.
The Nation Must Have One Army.
And. why not hav one army? Why
not start it on the basis Of what wo
already have-the regular army? IL a
FrenchmaE serves three years. and q
German two, why should we serve
four? The reason the French serve
three is not that q Frenchman is un-
able to learn how to be a soldier in
less n three years. but because the
smaller population Of France requires
longer service in order to have a first
line Of adequate size.
suppose that aside from the men
who enlist in the regulars to get the
pay. a little adventure n a Comfort
able life. We include men who enlist
for patriotism. training and experience.
Many a young man who had never
thought OF becoming q PROFESSIONS
soldier would come In IL he knew that
at the end of a year or even six months
he could receive his discharge with
the recommendation Of q board OF Off
GERS as having filled the requirements.
II you put 100. 900 young men through
the established regular school. an UNI
excelled school. with its forms set.
then you would have q real reserve.
Those who like the soldiers life and
wish to remain regulars would form
:he trained nucleus and become the
material Tor non-cOmrnissioned Off
cers-drill sergeants and c%orporals.
They could go on re-enlisting IL they
chose. They might form our garrisons
in Panama n in the Philippines.
A young man. having served his
year: iH.sht be promoted for another
Ger. Thus o would have started re-
serve forces of officers. Then, once
the telegraph instrument began click
Ing In Washington In case OF danger.
both reserves and officers and men
would respond. a knowing where he