El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1917-05-14
THE SOUTHWEST FORMS HOME
GUARDS FOR ANY EMERGENCY
n 6 n

r7HE "ninute men" Of the southwest have come into
being, development CT the Few the cities,
towns and villages in Texas, New Mexico. and An
which without their companies Of home guards,
formed usually around nucleus Of rfle club and COM
manded either by officers elected from the membership Of
TIE 1fe club or by the mayor sheriff, chief Of police, or
town marshal
Tbs home guards number from so CT so IN very small
communities several hundred The larger One
town has about GOO In its organization Fl Paso has no
guards, though the Border Rifles offered their
services Home guards have formed here because
Of the presence of large numbers Of troops Nothing is
gained BY having stepping each others feet and the
soldiers can furnish protection better than any Civilians
however well meaning. IF needed home guards here,
couo have them IN an hours time We do not need them
There definite figures 70 the number Of home
guards in the border states Judging from what has been
printed IN the newspapers IN the various localities, fair
guess would be $1,000 all armed with rifles and generally
men Of sufficient maturity not to be excabe but not past
the prime Of life
guard practice speedy assenbage at given points and work
out defence plans accordance with the best ideas locally
available Motor available provided by themselves
OF other patriotic citizens for the speedy transportation of
the wherever they may be needed Some of the
pauss have machine guns and have not But all have
rteS either army miles or Others and the minute men
know how TO shoot for shooting has been favote
accomplishment N the southwest.
list were to be published Of all the towns in the
southwest which have home guard organizations of
companies together with the figures each instance
the total would surprise everyone except those who had
previously gained way another fair idea of the
extent to which the organization has been carried
Is there any need for the home guards considering that
The national guarden and other troops already have the
chief public works, communications, etc, under patrol?
Probably not but possibly. The question cannot be
swered No knows Just what may be in prospect So
far anyone see the southwest IS quiet
secure for every town. ranch, NINE and lonely wayfarer
than at any time in the past years Yet this
time and It impossible to say where when brood
ing minds nay be at work All is that prepared
the best preventive and that display of
readiness for local public service begets spirit OF willing
for national public service The fact Of the has
been brought home the whole population of many com
unty by the organization Of home guards and enlstmens
the army, navy marae corps have been result of
the awakening.
Thinking now Of the amnute men Of the southwest
how quickly they organized and armed and
selfish their spirit realizes that such organizations
ago could have dealt with the bandit problem
quite satisfactorily within borders, possibly
the event Of raids isolated ranches where men could
not be quickly assembled and such raids the troops
unable 70 prevent We realize now that troops
only needed for patrong the open country and to fur
nish gssons for border villages where the total popula
considerably under the probable strength Of raid
ing bandits.
But whatever might be the willingness of the border
country 70 protect itself the government last year was
deterrent rather than aid For when suitable arms and
supplies Of ammunition hard to obtain owing TO the
large demand. and when rifle clubs expanding the
membership lists and clubs being organized the
department would not aid the people self protection
by srmng them For instance rifle club in North Dakota
could Tequisition many rifles pleased but rifle
club IN Douglas Bisbee Dsing Fl Paso could not OBJ
tam enough rifles to the minimum number of men
necessary for the organization Of club under the var de-