New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1916-02-23
Gardner Declares II Pro-
vides Only a Fair Foot
ball Audience.
LEAVES DEFENCE
TO PAPER MILITIA
Calls for Impossible Numbers OF
Men Under Control of Forty
eight Executives
From The rrisun. Bureau

Washington. Feb. 22.-Characterlzins
the increase proposed in the army ohl
drafted by the Military Committee o.
the House as 6 surrender TO the oe'
n.nds Of the officers Of the militia,
Representative A. ?. Gardner OF mas
sachusetts. tonight classed the regular
army proposed in the bill as enough
tor a first class procession or iaT
audience at a great football game
Mr. Gardner introduced to-day a OH
providinc for a regular army OF ISL
600. the Army War College estimate
declaring that the bill favored DIV
Chairman Hay Of the Military Affairs
Committee placed its main dependence
On the militia. putting it under the
control Of the President in time OF
war.
"The danger il that when war
breaks out" Mr.. Gardner asserted
"cvery order 70 mobilize will be re
sisted by lawsuit or an alibi.
ION that committee are several men
who arc we'll known 10 be out and out
pacifsts or something mighty Ike IL.
ANY hin which will appeal 10 those
men unanimously is likely 10 be more
satisfactory 10 William Jennings Bryan
than il is 20 Leonard Wood. chairman
Hsv provides an increase OF 10000 men
in the regular army. This IS a force
sufficient TO man a trench seven mile
long. or half the length OF the isiand
Of Manhattan. 10 is enough Tor hrst
class procession or fair audience AZ
a great football game. All the rest OF
the army increase which he gives US
is on paper.
dence on state militiamen amounting
10 425.OOO men. lnasmuch as we never
were able to get more than 10000 men
into our state militia there is long,
long road 20 travel before We can sleep
comfortably AT night with the thought
Of those 425. 900 militiamen TO guard us.
Calls for Impossible Increases.
Speaking Of state soldiers. it would
be a good deal better to make our
present militia efficient rather than
provide for impossible increases. We
have Just now 10000 men in the
militia, or national guard. as 1t IS
called. OF that number, last year no
fewer than $4,000 failed TO attend the
summer encampment. and $4,000 OF those
men behind the guns we're so far be
hind the guns that they never went to
the rife range in the whole course OF
the Twelve months. This Is the force
which the bill proposes partially 10
federalze in compliance with the de-
mands of the executive council OF the
National Guard Association.
"This scheme of near liberalization
is the precise plan which caused the
resignation Of Secretary Garrison. The
Secretary desired the militia or ma
tional guard OF the country TO be
turned into a national militia absolute
~ free from state control. The eX-
ecutive council Of the National Guard
Association demanded that the power
10 name the officers and TO train the
national guard must be reserved to
forty-eight different state governments,
so that each generslissimo under each
Capitol dome should have his little
army under his control.
personally, ] believe that in the
long run the best and cheapest thing
20 do is 20 maintain a fairly large
standing army handsomely paid, with
plenty of chance for promotion for
enlisted men. A standing army of $780,
900 men is none too large for my ideas.
To supplement this | should require
that every young man in the United
States, be he prince or be he pauper
must receive compulsory military train
ing side By side with youths OF his
own age.
There is all the difference in the world
between compulsory military training
and compulsory military service in time
of war. ] hope that our future wars
can be conducted by volunteers. but
want those volunteers to be trained
men, not quarter trained, nor halt
trained, nor state militia, nor general.
issimos OF the seaside resorts; but rea
United States national militia, trained
by Uncle Sam himself without the sd
vice or consent of any swivel chair
potentste in any state capital"