Arizona republican., 1917-03-24
IN CASE 1T NAR AREONA'S TASK
 WOULD bE HEAVY
Ancient Law of Land Could
 Make Great Majority of Men in State Soldiers If Enforced by Nation

If Enforced by Nation Every male person in the Emitted States between the ages of eighteen and forty-five belongs to the unor- ganized militia. whether he likes 1t or not: and in consequence is subject to compulsory militar- duty in emer- gency That in substance is a law en- acted back in 1900 and which has never been repealed, although it has been many times amended, to suit mastering needs of various stages in the country's history.
 These facts were emphasized yester- day when Colonel Charles w. Harris, commanding the national guard, dropped into the capitol few hours from Naco on business and then re- turned to his regiment on the border. Colonel Harris said that the Arizona regiment would be mustered out of service of the United States March 27, unless further orders came from Wash ingtOn arising from probable war with Germany. Colonel Harris expressed himself as being at loss to fully un- derstand present orders for mastering out.
 The national guard, however, can draft in times of war. under the na- tional defense act of last June, which is practically a copy of the Arizona state law of 1912, which provides for drafting" said Harris. Our quoto for war is 1895 men and officers, or that number for 1,000,000 of the population of the United States.
 While the act of congress provides for drafting, Harris has received no definite instructions as to the method of drafting, such instructions not hay ing been issued by the war department. The requirements for war strength of the Arizona national guard are 3002 enlisted men and 56 officers, and at tached sanitary troops, consisting of four officers and thirty three enlisted men. Added to this the national guard would, in case of war, be expected to furnish a reserve battalion of 500 men.
 Compulsory Training
 The bill for compulsory training now before congress, dOvetails into the national defense act, and will place in operation the original unorganized mi litia act which only lacks two or three years of being as old as the United States itself. In the long stretches of peace between wars after the rebellion, the military spirit reached a low ebb and various laws were enacted which had a tendency to offset or make obso- lete the original unorganiZed militia act, according to references found in tte state library. In consequence it has been found necessary since the European war to enact some definite law.
 Spontoons and Hangers
 The old urorganiZed militia act is found in book entitled Army Regula- tiOns The old law said in effect that every male persons between eighteen and forty y-five years of age, was a member of the unorganized militia sub ject to cali when needed and that he should appear for drills at stipulated periods. The law required that each officer should provide himself with Q spontoGn and a hanger, whatever they are, and that every soldier should pro- vide himself with musket and cer- tain quantities of leaden bullets and powder, and horn.
 This law was observed until the time Of the civil war, annual musterings beirg held in every community. Gen eral Grant himself having taken a prominent part in drilling and disci- plining the unorganized militia, when he and every other man between eighteen and foTty-five was member of the unorganized militia of the United States, the same as all men are today although they don't know it.
 The civil war was fought without amending this federal act, fought with entirely different guns and equipment prescribed and without spontoons or hangers and nobody yesterday, when consulted, seemed to know what these mean. But anyway, the first amend ment was not made to the unorganized militia act until after the civil war, the last amendment being made about five years age.
 Order Out of Chaos
 The compulsory act now before con- Sress and which is meeting with op- position by Carl Hayden and other representatives, is for the purpose of bringing order out of chaos and giving the old federal unorganized militia law chance to become operative. One of the laws that made the unorganized mlltla act obsolete was the state rights with the organization and control of troops by the several states, on an en- Hstment basis, but still the old military law was never appealed and was held, as 1t were, as a base to fall back upon in case the country reached a national crisis, as at present.
 Every American a Soldier
 Masters were held annually until the civil war, then after the war, when ev- erybory was sick of fighting, the mili- tary Spirit lapsed into a state of com ma and musterings under the law were thing of the past and compulsory military training was forgotten. But according, to the records the United States had, under this law, compulsory training, after a fashion with the soldiers providing their own guns and ammunition until the great war be- tween the states. The musterings were by no means adequate to the training Of soldiers, as they have to be trained Tor modern warfare, say the author ities, but it served the purpose of keep ing alive the fact that every man who could carry gun was a soldier and lad to serve in defense of his country.
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