The Twin Falls times. [volume] (Twin Falls, Idaho) 1905-1916, 1916-02-15
U. S. ARMY,
PAST AND PRESENT


possible enexny nation was both I'M
fortunate and unfounded, since in all |
our conflicts, small and great, we
have used from three to sixty times
the number OF men brought into &C
ton by our respective opponents-our
complacent school histories to the con-
trary notwithstanding.
The speaker then proceeded to a
brief resume of each successive in
stance where the colonies, and then
the United States, put soldiers into the
field with hostile intent, giving organ
ization, numbers and results. 1t will,
of course. be impracticable to follow
this showing in detail here; but while
somewhat lengthy and statistical, 1t
was exceedingly interesting and in
formatory. developing numerous facts
and conditions not known to the gen
eral public Facts and conditions that,
at the present time, should not only
be eniightening as to the course to
pursue, but actually compelling with
regard to a decision to pursue it,
Lieutenant CARRIER offered no sug-
gestion, express or implied, as to what
should now be the course of the Unit
ed States with regard to prepared
ness"-to the enlargement of either
army or navy; nor did he make the
slightest attempt at an application OF
the cold facts of history rccountec by
him But no intelligent nearer could
escape applying them for himself. For
1t was abundantly evident that at each
and every time when we were called
upon to resist the encroachments eth
CT or native or foreign foes, our Ia
mentable lack of adequate "prepaI ed
ness" collected terrible bill, both of
treasure and of blood! Going back
only to the close of the Revolutionary
war, when congress, terrified by the
Standing Army" bug-a-boo, mustered
/ out the entire force, saving only eighty
enlisted men, who were to act as
| guards over public stores, we were at
/ once beset by trouble on our Indian
'begrit fronties, in which a hastily
l gathered and poorly organized force OF
volunteers met bloody defeat!
That bit of history has repeated it.
, self upon each and every occasion
when the United States has been at
r war. and In the aggregate, it has cost
4 us the lives of hundreds of thousands
>, of the bravest and best of our young
q men. Speaking, not long since, against
: the proposed increase of the army
e William Jennings Bryan declared II
inexpedient and unnecessary because
). Gin case OF need a million would
a spring forth between sunrise and sun
6 set" Some practical soul inquired
d where they would spring" to, anC
S what they would spring" with-on'
e way of reminding that a million vol
unteers (Which necessity would bring
readily enough), with neither arms
organization nor training, is not az
hut N o1a
n der all the stress of the present war
l. has sent no new levies to the from
: without at least a year in training
d camps at home, while France and Ger
t. many consider two years necessary L
s prepare a recruit for the first line.
20 is TO he hoped that the United state
ID need never again see her untraine'
IS and unseasoned young men die lik
r sheep from disease as was the cas-
e. in the war of 1872. the Mexican, tn
( Civil and the Spanish wars-aapeci. H.
a the latter, when at least a dozen fel
If before feUers, etc, to one before tn
at bullets of the enemy.
ar AT the outbreak of the second wa
in with England, she had but ALSO sol
Id diers in the province of Canada w
N had about 5000 scattered over tn
Of land, aud instead of taking Canada. a
At with proper preparedness we Nigh
e, easily have done, had the mortified
Is ton of seeing our own capitol captuI
r ed and burned by a mere handful c
e. trained soldiers. OF course volunteer
IN "sprang:" but when General Jackso
e. fought a winning battle at New o.
he leans, % days after peace had bee
IL declared, we had brought into the fiel
more than three times England's tot;
force, had lost our capital and AMI
secured peace because the claims {
ID Napoleon Bonaparte upon England
- attention were much more pressin
-. than ours.
~, 1t was after this experience tn;
"a congress first authorized a reguls
army establishment, mot to exceed 10
-. 600 men," a number that was subs
- quently reduced, so that the war wit
90 Mexico, in 1916, again found us who'll
o. unprepared, Again volunt tie T
On "sprang," and the Mexicans were d
y" feated But we put into the field cv,
70 a hundred thousand to best a total
A., forty-six thousand "greasers'-ar
~ again young lives we're wasted befo
the ills of inexperience The Civil WI
- furnishes the next and greatest e
ample. That lasted long enough
make soldiers of those who livl
rtB through the first year or two; but o
Ia of the 2.673,341 men mustered into Il
vim armies of the Union, nine died of di
ease to one from the casualties of ba
tie Then came the Spanish war, In
w which We put total of 1850
springer" young patrlol
Dis among whom the fatalities from 81
HE ease were proportionally greater hi
ever before.
ED The speakers statistics concerni
ac- the present military establishment
In the United States, were perhaps /
the most interesting of all. We now ha
ate a paper showing of 4,79S officers a.
OF 101.1 los enlisted men-a total of 10
nm 9sS of all arms, including 5,612 P,i
nty ippinc scouts, and large number
Gel coast guards, distributed as follow
= . !,